The Comptroller Auditor General (CAG) of India has revealed that 91% of the total revenue of the State amounting to Rs. 5947.94 crore came from the Government of India.
Addressing a press conference at his official chamber here, Nagaland Accountant General (Audit) A. P. Chophy said that 15% of the revenue came as Central transfers amounting to Rs 1001.27 crore and 76% as grants-in-aid at Rs 4946.67 crore during the fiscal 2013-2014.The State however, achieved the total revenue collection target fixed by the Thirteenth Finance Commission during 2013-14, he said.
Dwelling on the assessment of the Government of Nagaland’s fiscal position as on March 31, 2014, he said during the year, the fiscal deficit decreased due to the combined effect of decrease in capital expenditure and increase in revenue surplus. As a result, the primary deficit also changed into primary surplus. Besides, during the last five years the fiscal deficit continued with a fluctuating trend, he said.
He also revealed that the overall revenue expenditure of the State increased by Rs 148.68 crore (2.66 %) over the previous year. The revenue expenditure constituted 82.64% of total expenditure while the expenditure incurred under capital head constituted 17.35% and loans & advances constituted 0.01%.
The AG (audit) exposed that there were 214 incomplete projects estimated cost Rs 2268.64 crore and actual expenditure incurred Rs 1202.70 crore as on 31 March 2014 pertaining to 24 departments. Out of 214 incomplete projects, 77 projects (estimated cost Rs 1126.20 crore and actual expenditure Rs 702.97 crore were due to be completed by March 2014 but remained incomplete as of October 2014, he added.
During 2013-14, he said that an approximate amount of Rs. 1022.93 crore was directly transferred by GOI to the State Implementing Agencies. Chophy maintained that as long as these funds remain outside the State budget, there is no single agency monitoring its use and there is no readily available data on how much is actually spent in any particular year on major flagship schemes and other important schemes which are being implemented by State implementing agencies but are funded directly by the GOI.
As on 31 March 2014, Government had invested Rs 270.01 crore in Statutory Corporations, Rural Banks, Joint Stock Companies and Co-operatives, he said adding that the average return on this investment was ‘nil’ during the last five years.
He maintained that financial management and budgetary control is based on audit of Appropriation Accounts and gives the grant-by-grant description of appropriations and the manner in which the allocated resources were managed by the service delivery departments.
There was a saving of Rs 2438.90 crore and excess expenditure of Rs 38.51 crore under 82 grants during 2013-14, he said, adding that this excess expenditure together with an excess expenditure amounting to Rs. 533.68 crore for the years 2000-01, 2005-06, 2008-09 to 2012-13 require regularisation by the Legislature under Article 205 of the Constitution of India.
Mention be made here that the on the first day of the ongoing Assembly session, Chief Minister TR Zeliang, who also holds the Finance portfolio, yesterday presented the supplementary demands for grants to Regularise excess expenditure for the earlier mentioned years, except 2011-12 and 2012-13.
Chophy also said that a rush of expenditure was noticed in respect of six major heads in which expenditure exceeding Rs. 10 crore or more than 50% of the total expenditure was incurred during the last quarter or during the last month of the financial year.
There were 179 unadjusted AC bills involving Rs. 171.87 crore awaiting adjustment due to non-submission of DCC bills for long periods and therefore was fraught with the risk of misappropriation, he added.
Expressing that timely submission of utilisation certificates (UCs) is a major area of concern, he said at the end of March 2014, 163 UCs involving an aggregate amount of Rs. 262.99 crore were pending for submission even after a lapse of one to five years from various departments.
He also said that though the accounts of the State Autonomous Bodies and Departmental Commercial Undertakings were overdue, these accounts were not submitted.
Non-submission of accounts in time amounted to non-compliance with the financial rules, he said adding that as on 31 March 2014, 30 cases of misappropriation, loss etc. involving Rs. 105.97 crore pertaining to 13 departments were pending finalisation.
The CAG report was laid in the State Assembly yesterday.
