Responsibility for observance of Account Rules, etc.

397. All officers and servants are expected to observe account rules, etc. properly in the course of performance of their duties, as may be necessary. The officers vested with any financial powers are particularly required to ensure that the powers are exercised with due care keeping in view the standards of financial propriety and orders issued by Government from time to time.

398. To assist the Heads of Department and Heads of Offices in proper discharge of their duties relating to budget, expenditure control, accounts maintenance, scrutiny of claims, etc., Accounts Organisations have been established in most of the departments, headed by a Finance and Accounts Officer or a Senior Finance and Accounts Officer or a Chief Finance and Accounts Officer. The duties and responsibilities of these officers have been laid down in the form of Government Orders issued from time to time. The existing orders have been reproduced in the Annexure to this Chapter.

399. The Heads of Departments will ensure that the Accounts Organisations in their departments are utilised fully on the duties assigned to them under orders of Government issued from time to time, in particular the following :—

(i) Formulation of budget estimates—both plan and non-plan and exercise of budgetory control. (This will also include scrutiny of all budget proposals and estimates and review of the progress of receipts and expenditure against estimates).

(ii) Expenditure Control. (This will include scrutiny of all proposals for expenditure on new items and other items involving heavy expenditure keeping in view the Government orders regarding economy issued from time to time).

(iii) Scrutiny of tenders and quotations for purchases as well as of all documents, contracts, etc., proposed to be executed for purchases and other dealings. (If there is a Purchase Committee, the Head of the Accounts Organisation should be included on it as a member).

(iv) Internal audit and inspection of the accounts of the various offices and establishments of the Department including the office of the Head of the Department.

(v) Compilation of departmental accounts, reconciliation of accounts with Accountant General’s figures and submission of periodical statements of receipts, expenditure, etc. to various authorities.

(vi) Settlement of the objections raised by the Accountants General on the accounts of the department and preparation of the replies on audit paras included in the report, of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India.

(vii) Establishment matters requiring application of Fundamental and Subsidiary rules, travelling allowance rules, pension rules and other rules relating to retirement benefits.

400-A. The Heads of Finance and Accounts Organisation will be immediately subordinate to the Heads of Departments concerned, but ultimately under the administrative control of the Finance Department of the Government.

400-B. In all important matters relating to purchases and other expenditure, the Head of the Department/Head of Office will, as a matter of rule, obtain the advice of the Head of Accounts Organisation in his office. If in any matters the Head of the Department/Head of Office differs with the advice given by the head of the Accounts Organisation, in his orders the Head of the Department/Head of Office will record the grounds on which he differs with the Head of the Accounts Organisation. In such cases it will be open to the Head of the Department/Head of Office to refer the matter to the Finance Department of the Government for their orders.

400-C. The Head of the Accounts Organisation will not be entrusted with the drawing and disbursing work. If in any case a Head of the Department thinks it useful to entrust such work to any Accounts Officer of his department, he will refer the matter to the Finance Department of the Government for their orders.

400-D. The head of the Accounts Organisation will submit a report in the months of April, July, October and January every year to the Finance Department of the Government giving brief details of the work done by him during the preceding quarter, the serious irregularities noticed by the Accounts Organisation in the course of internal audit or otherwise and the important cases in which the Head of the Department differed with him.

ANNEXURE TO CHAPTER XVIII—A

Copy of G.O. No. A—3172/X—108—48, dated April 26, 1948 from Sri P.A. Gopalakrishnan, Esq. ICS, Secretary to Government, United Provinces, Finance (A) Department to all Heads of Departments, United Provinces.

I am directed to address you on the above subject and to say that under the Scheme for the Expansion of the Finance and Accounts Organization, it has been decided to appoint efficient Accounts staff in all the important departments of the Government. This staff will be responsible not only for assisting the heads of the departments concerned to maintain their accounts properly but also to conduct preodical audit of these accounts. All the gazetted Accounts Officers, including those who are already serving in the different departments will be immediately subordinate to the heads of the departments concerned, but ultimately under the administrative control of the Finance Department of the Government. They will act as Financial Controllers in their respective departments and, if the heads of the departments do not agree with the advice tendered by them, then can directly approach the Finance Department for a ruling. The heads of Department will no doubt continue to be responsible for the financial side of the working of the departments, but the Accounts Officers will be their principal assistants for this purpose.

2. At present there are already gazetted Accounts Officers in the Industries, Labour, Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Co-operative, Education, Transport, Refugee and Food and Civil Supplies Department. The appointment of an Accounts Officer in the Department Forest is at present under the consideration of the Government. It is also proposed to appoint Accounts Officers in the Medical and Public Health Departments as well as Senior Accounts Officers in the Buildings and Roads, Irrigation and Tube-well and Hydel Branches of the Public Works Department. There will also be a Senior Accounts Officers at the headquarters of Government with the necessary number of Accounts and Assistant Accounts Officers will, however, be deputed to the Departments, concerned as and when necessary. The whole scheme come into effect gradually. The cost on account of the pay and allowances of the various Accounts Officers will be met from the departmental budgets concerned, but all orders regarding appointment, leave, transfer etc., of all the gazetted Accounts Officers will issue from the Finance Department of the Government. These orders will come into effect from April 1, 1948.

3. In addition to the Accounts Officers in the various departments, it is proposed to appoint an officer of higher status in the Public Works Department to act as Deputy Financial Adviser. Similarly there will be one Deputy Financial Adviser for Development comprising the work in the departments of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Co-operative etc. These appointments will be made as and when necessary.

4. The Finance Department will prescribe the special and subsidiary accounts of the various adminsitrative departments to be complied by the Accounts Officers of those departments and transmitted to the Senior Accounts Officer at the Headquarters as well as to the Accountant General of the Province. The Accounts Officers in the various departments being experienced men will be of great assistance to the departmental heads in the preparation of initial budget estimates and the present deficiencies of over-budgetting, of lumpsum provisions savings and surrenders will be minimised to a considerable extent. The Accounts Officers will also make inspections and audit and systematize the accounts of all commercial undertakings and give financial advice on all technical points to their departmental heads. The Deputy Financial Advisor the Public works Department and Development Departments, when appointed, will represent the Finance Department at departmental meetings and note on departmental files from the financial angle. All important cases, will, however, have to come to Finance Department as usual.

5. I am to request you to bring the above decision to the notice of all concerned.

Copy to A.G., U.P.

Copy to all Departments of the Secretariat.

Copy to the Secretary to Her Excellency the Governor, U.P.

No. S-5860/X—448-50

FROM

SRI B.G. RAU, I.C.S.

SECRETARY TO GOVERNMENT,

UTTAR PRADESH.

To

ALL SENIOR ACCOUNTS OFFICERS AND ACCOUNTS OFFICERS,

UTTAR PRADESH.

Dated Lucknow, August 22, 1950.

SIR,

I AM directed to refer to G.O. no. A-3172/X—108-48, dated April 26, 1948, in which it was declared that the gazetted Accounts Officers appointed under the scheme for the expansion of the Finance and Accounts Organization will act as Financial Controllers in the respective departments to which they are posted and that though the heads of departments will continue to be responsible for the financial side of the working of the departments, the Accounts Officers will be their principal assistants in that respect. In G.O. no. S-28 (AI)/X—300(7)-49, dated February 27, 1950, it was further clarified that the Accounts Officers were attached to the offices of various heads of departments for ensuring proper maintenance of accounts conducting periodical audits and tendering financial advice on all technical points to the departmental heads and that their duty was not to act as drawing and disbursing officers of the departments. I am now to explain in greater detail the duties and responsibilities of Senior Accounts Officers and Account Officers attached to various departments.

2. The Senior Accounts Officers and Accounts Officer are to perform duties not only as Accounts Officers, but also as officers for internal audit and they are also Financial Controllers and Advisers in their respective departments. Their duties in these respective spheres are enumerated in the following paragrapghs for their guidance. Government expect them to study these instructions very carefully and to follow them closely in their actions.

3. Their duties as Accounts Officers will be to supervise the various accounts and see that they are properly maintained in accordance with the Accounts Rules in Financial Handbooks, Volumes V and VI. In particular, they should see that pay bills, T.A. bills and contingent bills are properly prepared and registers of contingent expenditure are properly maintained. In the headquarters’ office to which they are attached, they should at times check the bills before they are encashed in order to satisfy themselves that no mistakes are committed by accountants or clerks. In the subordinate offices of the department, they should at the time of inspection test-check some of the paid bills and should point out to the head of the office any mistakes or irregularities which they notice and instruct the office to avoid such mistakes in future. They should particularly see that the contingent register is regularly signed by the head of the office as required by the rules. They should also see that the accounts records, i.e. bills, contingent registers, etc. are retained up to the periods prescribed for their retention in the rules in Appendix XVI of Financial Handbook, Volume V, Part I. It will be their duty to satisfy themselves that contingent charges are incurred in accordance with the rules in Chapter VIII of Financial Handbook, Volume V, Part I and to point out to the head of the office or to the head of the department any deviation from those rules. They should also see that the contingent register prescribed in paragraph 173 of Financial Handbook, Volume V, Part I and the registers of travelling allowance prescribed in paragraph 119 of the abovementioned Book are properly maintained and are up-to-date. In the discharge of their duties as Accounts Officers, they should examine the current accounts records in offices subordinate to them and see that the accounts rules are followed in preparing them maintaining them and in preserving them. As required by paragraph 169 of Financial Handbook, Volume V, Part I, they should see that the heads of offices exercise vigilance in incurring contingent charges and they should report to Government in Finance Department through their heads of departments where proper vigilance is not exercised.

4. As Audit Officers, they will not only be responsible for the proper observance of the accounts rules but of all other rules in the various Financial Handbooks, Civil Service Regulations, etc. and of orders issued from time to time from Finance Department. For this purpose, they should maintain collection of all the circular Government Orders, issued from time to time by Finance Department and of all Government Orders issued from the administrative department to which they are attached, containing any general instructions of a financial nature pertaining to that department alone. They should see that all these orders and rules in various Financial Handbooks, etc. are properly followed and no financial irregularity of any sort is committed in the case of individual Government servants of their department of otherwise. In particular, they should see that the instructions issued by Government from time to time relating to the drawal of travelling allowance, particularly road mileage allowance, are followed. Any glaring case of non-observance of these instructions in which any touring officer of their department may have repeatedly ignored these instructions, should be brought to the notice of Government in the Finance Department through the head of the department. They should see that the rules relating to contingent expenditure in Appendix X of Financial Handbook, Volume V, Part I are not infringed in any office of the department under their charge. They should also see that the vent statements of Government owned and leased buildings in their departments are properly maintained and revised in time in accordance with the rules and rent is regularly realised in accordance with the rules from the occupants of those buildings. The work connected with the preparation of rent statements and their quinquennial revision remains in arrears in many offices and they should see that this does not happen. In departments where contracts are given to private persons for the excution of works, it will be the duty of these officers to see that the general principles laid down in Appendix XIX of Financial Handbook, Volume V, Part I are observed by officers empowered to give contracts and that the agreements are in the prescribed forms and have been properly executed. It will also be the duty of these officers as Audit Officers to examine all cases of embezzlements, thefts, losses of Government property or stores and to advise the head of the department about action to be taken in such cases. No recommendation about write off of any loss should be made to Government without the case having been first examined by the Accounts Officer and all proposals submitted to Government in this connexion should be accompanied by a note of the Accounts Officer containing his comments in the matter. Where the head of the department or office is himself competent to write off a loss, the formal sanction to the write off should similarly be accompanied by a note or a certificate of the Accounts Officers containing his comments and recommendations. All cases of abandonment of revenue and waiving of claims and all audit reports from the Accountant General and Examiner, Local Fund Accounts should be examined by the Accounts Officers before action is taken on them by the head of department. They should also see that all receipts are properly credited into Government accounts and where they suspect that any leakage of revenue has occurred, they should point this out to the head of the department and suggest remedies. They may, in their capacity as audit officers, also make a test check of stores, where they consider it necessary but it should be clearly understood by them that stock verification will not be part of their duties.

5. As Financial Controller-cum-Financial Adviser, the Senior Accounts Officers, and Accounts Officers should see that no wasteful expenditure or expenditure which can be avoided is incurred in the departments to which they are attached. The heads of departments should consult these officers on all matters which involve any new expenditure of additional expenditure though within their budget grants and those officers will advise the head of department or subordinate officers, whether the proposed expenditure is reasonable and unavoidable and whether the head of the department or the subordinate officers concerned is competent to incur it without Government sanction or sanction of the higher authority. If higher sanction is necessary, they will advise accordingly. If the Accounts Officer thinks that the proposal involving the expenditure need not be sanctioned or can be postponed or modified in any way so as to reduce the expenditure he will advise accordingly and if there is difference of opinion between the head of the department and the Accounts Officer, the matter will be discussed and thoroughly considered between them and if even then the matter is not settled and the Accounts Officer thinks that the matter is of sufficient importance to be reported to Government. The Accounts Officer will submit a full un-official note to Government in the Finance Department for final orders. As Financial Controller, the Accounts Officers, will also advise the head of department on all proposals relating to grants-in-aid and their distribution. He will also carefully scrutinize the budget estimates and proposals for additional funds and advise the head of the department about the figures to be adopted. If the head of the department does not agree with the Account Officer, he should, with the budget estimates and proposals for additional funds, submit a note of his Accounts Officer containing his views about the figures to be adopted. There is room for much improvement in the preparation of budget estimates which at present either show large savings or require to be augmented later by additional grants or re-appropriations. The Accounts Officers are expected to so examine the estimates on the basis of actual requirements of the departments that such savings or excesses may be avoided to a great extent. They should particularly see that in the closing months of the year expenditure for which provision does not exist in the budget and which may lead to the budget provision being exceeded, is not in curred. Any excess expenditure over budget grants is a serious irregularity and every step should be taken to avoid such irregularities, the Accounts Officer should also see that surrenders of savings are made to Finance Department in proper time.

6. The Accounts Officers will scrutinize and make their separate comments on all development schemes which head of departments may submit to Government. They will in particular note on the financial implications of these schemes and will comment whether the scheme will be profitable or will run at a loss and will give full reasone for their views. In the case of all commercial undertakings they will be required to prepare quarterly profit and loss accounts ordinarily but in such cases where it will not be possible to submit quarterly profit and loss accounts for any special reasons, profit and loss accounts will be submitted for such periods as may be required by the Finance Department, they will also prepare such special and subsidiary accounts of commercial undertakings as may be required by Finance Department. The special and subsidiary accounts and also profit and loss accounts will be submitted by them to Finance Department through the head of the department. If any commercial undertaking shows sign of running into a loss, they will promptly bring this to the notice of the Government Finance Department and will also state the reasons which in their opinion may be contributing in that direction.

7. In departments to which Senior Accounts Officers are attached, these officers will supervise and inspect the working of all Accounts Officers subordinate to them and see the latter perform their duties according to the above instructions. In the beginning of the year, they will prepare a programme of inspections in an intelligent manner and submit it for the approval of Government in Finance Department. They will, as far as possible, carry out this programme during the quarter of the year, but if for any special reasons deviation have to be made from it, these will be allowed by Government in Finance Department. They will submit quarterly reports of the work which they have done during the quarter to Government in Finance Department. It will not be necessary for them to send their detailed inspection notes but in their quarterly reports, they should show in general terms what types of irregularities they have discovered and what steps they have taken to remove them and how they are improving the financial side of their department. The quarterly report should thus be a sort of progress report and not detailed inspection notes. The quarterly report should be submitted direct to Government in Finance Department but copy of it may also be sent to the head of the department. In departments where there are no Senior Accounts Officers quarterly reports will be submitted by the Accounts Officers concerned. In departments where Senior Accounts Officers are attached, the duties of Financial Controller and Financial Adviser as enumerated in paragraphs 5 and 6 above will be performed by these senior Account Officers. Where no Senior Accounts Officers are attached, these duties will be performed by Accounts Officers, who will also inspect by rotation the offices of heads of departments and other subordinate offices. They will propose programme of inspections and submit quarterly reports to Government in Finance Department as indicated above.

8. The Accounts Officers and Senior Accounts Officers should fully utilize the accounts staff already sanctioned in the offices of Heads of Department and in subordinate offices in the proper working of the financial side of the departments to which they are attached.

No. S-5860(1)/X—448-50

COPY forwarded to all heads of departments for information and guidance with the remarks that the Government hope that they will give their full co-operation in the successful working of the procedure indicated in the above letter.

No. S-5860(2)/X—448-50

COPY also forwarded to all departments of the Secretariat for information.

No. S-5860(3)/X—448-50

COPY also forwarded to the Accountant General, Uttar Pradesh, for information.

No. S-5860(4)/X—448-50

COPY also forwarded to the Secretary to His Excellency to Governor Uttar Pradesh for information.

No. SA-1339/X-448-50

FROM

To

Dated Lucknow, November 12, 1952

SIR,

IN continuation of G.O. No. 8-5860/X-448-50, dated August 22, 1950, addressed to all Senior Accounts Officers and Accounts Officers, Uttar Pradesh copy also endorsed to all Heads of Departments, for information and guidance, I am directed to say that Senior Accounts Officer and Accounts Officers attached to various department of Government should not be placed incharge of cash or receipts or payment of moneys. If any of them has been entrusted with such a duty, he should immediately be relieved of this, and the work entrusted to some officer of your department.

Yours faithfully,

B. NARAIN,

Deputy Secretary.

No. SA-1339(1)/X-448-50

COPY forwarded for information to all Senior Accounts Officers and Accounts Officers in Uttar Pradesh.

No. SA-1339(2)/X-448-50

COPY also forwarded for information to all departments of the Secretariat.

No. SA-1339(3)/X-448-50

COPY also forwarded to the Accountant General, Uttar Pradesh, Allahabad, with reference to D.O. letter No. Exr. OA/212, dated September 5, 1952, from the Examiner, Outside Audit Department.

No. SA-1339(4)/X-448-50

COPY also forwarded for information to the Secretary to Sri Rajyapal, Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow.

By Order,

B. NARAIN

Deputy Secretary.

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