Chairman of BBMP Accounts Committee, A L Shivakumar, has pointed out discrepancies in the Accounts department in a press release dated March 26th. The Accounts Committee held an inspection in the Accounts office on 26th.
They found that many letters and documents had been lying pending in the office’s Receiving Section for 6-7 months; some had been pending for over a year.
More serious matters were found. A letter from the Chief Secretary of Urban Development Department termed ‘very urgent’ has been lying pending for more than three months. In cases where employees had paid off loan amounts, installments were still being deducted from their salaries. Though Syndicate Bank had returned this money in the form of Demand Drafts, the DDs had been lying around for four months and no action had been taken on them.
The department was asked to revalidate a cheque to Justice Sadashiv Committee for Rs 81,133; this has also been pending for three months.
Though these matters were brought to the notice of higher authorities, they have not paid attention to these.
Other discrepancies found in the Accounts department:
- Audit was done without Balance Sheet.
- Audit not conducted in CAO (Chief Accounts Office) for several years, but yearly reports are being released.
- Rules in the Budget Manual not followed.
- Revenue and expenditure accounts not tallied. Probability of misuse of crores of rupees.
- Nobody has taken responsibility to do Bank Reconciliation Statements.
- CAO has not implemented the decisions made in Council meetings.
- It has been no use discussing problems in Accounts department with the Commissioner.
- Accounts department has not been able to provide relevant information whenever asked.
- CAO holds responsible the FBAS office, who does only the data entry work.
- They have not been able to substantiate the questions of BBMP audit since 1965.
- Cheques worth Rs 68 lakh was given to Horticulture department for nine works, without sanction.
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