West Bengal’s delay in tabling reports miffs CAG

NEW DELHI: The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India is miffed over Mamata Banerjee government’s repeated delay in placing its accountability-seeking audit reports in the state assembly after the issues flagged by it becomes stale.
West Bengal government is not alone, as CAG sources said Tamil Nadu government too did not timely table a report on Chennai floods last year.

The Trinamool Congress regime is learnt to have resorted to belated tabling of CAG reports since it came to power in 2011, which had pushed the constitutionally empowered auditors to take up the serious issue with West Bengal governor and Principal Secretary (finance) last November, sources in CAG office of West Bengal, told ET.

Each of the 18 reports submitted by the CAG officials in Kolkata to Governor Kesri Nath Tripathi and state finance department were tabled in the House at least after about a year’s delay.



The Governor, stated CAG sources in Kolkata, was told that audit reports for periods – 2011-12, 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15 were not submitted in time in the legislative assembly and about pending ones. Now reportedly due to egging by both the constitutional bodies, the state government is believed to be tabling five audit reports -- such as on states finances, general and social sector and economic sector -- in the legislative assembly on Wednesday, sources in officeof Accountant General, West Bengal, stayed. State chief secretary Malay Kumar De and finance secretary HK Dwivedi were not available for comment.

These reports for the period of 2015-16 were submitted to the state in January, February and March last year. The government held these reports though the legislative assembly has had five sessions – from February to November in 2017, CAG sources pointed out.

RB Sinha, the CAG Director General Audit who retired in December 2016, said it is not often that inordinate delays take place . “I have heard West Bengal has been doing it. This is highly unfortunate. The basic intention of CAG is to ensure accountability of executive towards legislature in financial matters,” he told over phone.