CAG recommends revamp of audit response system in Goa

Panaji, Aug 19 (UNI) Taking serious exception to ''lack of response to audit findings'', the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) favoured revamp of the system of audit response by departments so that the recovery procedings be initiated against delinquent officers.

''It is recommended that the government should revamp the system of proper response to the audit observations in the departments and ensure that procedure exists for action against the officials, who fail to send replies to interim reports as per the prescribed time schedule and action to recover loss/outstanding advances/overpayments opointed out in audit in a time bound manner,'' the report observed.

Chief Minister Digambar Kamat today placed copies of the CAG report for the year ending March 31,2007 on the table of the Goa Legislative Assembly after question hour.

The report observed that a review of the inspection reports issued upto December 2006, pertaining to 41 departments showed that 847 paragraphs relating to 250 reports were outstanding at the end of June 2007.

''Of these, 56 reports containing 67 paragraphs were more than five years old, Failure to comply with the issues raised by the audit facilitated the continuation of financial irregularities and loss to the government,''the report pointed out.

Even the initial replies which were required to be received from the heads of offices within six weeks from the date of issue of inspection reports, were not received upto June 2007 in respect of 188 paragraphs of 25 reports, the CAG averred.

The audit also took serious note of lack of response in furnishing explanatory memoranda (EM) duly vetted by the office of the accountant General of goa within three months from the date of tabling of the audit report to the state legislatuire in respect of paragraphs included in the audit reports.

''In spite of this, there were 25 paragraphs/reviews in respect of which the EMs were not received as of September 2007 from the administrative departments,'' the CAG noted.

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