Para 2.8 — This para covers how PAOs scrutinize budget allotm

2.8 SCRUTINY OF DISTRIBUTION OF GRANT APPROPRIATIONs CHECK OF REAPPROPRIATION ORDERS AND SCRUTINY WITH REFERENCE TO GUIDELINES ON NEW SERVICE/ NEW INSTRUMENT OF SERVICE

2.8.1 While scrutinizing orders relating to allotment and re-appropriation of funds, provisions of Rules contained in Rule No. 55 and 56 of the GFR, 2017 and Rules 7 to 10 of the compilation of DFPR,1978, as amended from time to time, may be kept in view. It may also be checked whether relevant orders are issued by the competent authority and that the total of the allotments among various controlling and disbursing officers does not exceed the funds duly provided under the relevant head and further that re-appropriation orders are free from arithmetical inaccuracies etc. and contain full reasons for the re-appropriations.

2.8.2 Ministry of Finance (Department of Economic Affairs) O.M. No.F.1(22)-B(AC)/2022 dated 23 rd February,2024 (APPENDIX 2.2) and subsequent OMs from time to time containing guidelines on NS/NIS may be kept in view while exercising check on budget availability during pre-check of bills.

2.9 CHECK OF SANCTIONS FOR EXPENDITURE 2.9.1 Under Article 53 of the Constitution, the executive power of the Union vests in the President and is exercised by him either directly or through officers subordinate to him in accordance with the Constitution. Article 77 of the Constitution requires that all executive action of the Government of India should be expressed to be taken in the name of the President and that orders and other instruments made and executed in the name of President should be authenticated in such manner as may be specified in rules made by the President. The rules made by the President for the authentication of orders in the name of the President are contained in the Authentication (orders & other instruments) Rules, 1958. The extent and conditions of delegation of financial powers to different authorities are contained in the Delegation of Financial Powers Rules, as amended from time to time.

2.9.2 The responsibilities of the PAO in regard to check of sanctions are as detailed in subsequent sections.

2.9.3 The sanction should conform to the relevant provisions of the Act and of the Laws and Rules made there under and should be in accordance with the financial rules, regulations and orders issued by a competent authority or by virtue of powers formally delegated to it by a higher authority. The rules, regulations and orders against which check is conducted, mainly fall under the following categories -

(i) rules and orders regulating the powers to incur and sanction expenditure from the CFI and the Contingency Fund of India;

(ii) rules and orders dealing with the mode of presentation of claims against Government, withdrawing moneys from the CFI, Contingency Fund and Public Account of India, and in general the financial rules prescribing the detailed procedure to be followed by Government servants in dealing with Government transaction and

(iii) rules and orders regulating the conditions of service and pay and allowances and pensions of Government servants.

2.9.4 The authority sanctioning the expenditure is competent to do so by virtue of the powers vested in it by the provisions of the Act, laws, rules or orders there under or by rules of

Delegation of Financial Powers made by a competent authority; and the sanction is definite and needs no reference either to the sanctioning authority or to any higher authority.

2.9.5 Check of sanctions would be done to serve as a control measure for ensuring the financial propriety in the system. The PAO is expected to exercise adequate due diligence while processing the expenditure proposal.

2.9.6 PAO would be authorized to scrutinize the relevant details of the expenditure proposals wherein prima-facie apprehensions are there on the financial propriety of the expenditure proposal.

2.9.7 In cases where the PAO is not satisfied about the observance of financial propriety he can call for additional details from the departmental officer, citing specific reasons as per provisions contained in Rule 13 (12) of R& P Rules,2022.

2.9.8 On scrutiny of relevant records, Pay and Accounts Officer may either pass the claim or send it back to the departmental officer within the prescribed time period. In case Pay and Accounts Officer is not satisfied with the expenditure proposal on grounds of financial propriety, he would submit the case to supervisory CA/CCA/Pr.CCA for consideration. In cases where CA/CCA/Pr.CCA agrees with the observations of Pay and Accounts Officer they would record their views and submit them to Financial Advisor/Chief Accounting Authority for necessary guidance.

2.9.9 All sanctions issued by Ministries/ Departments for the amounts above ₹ 50 lakhs and upto ₹ 5 crore should be reviewed by Dy. CAs and above ₹ 5 crore by CAs with the following exceptions:

(i) Inter-Governmental transactions of Ministry of Finance including tax devolution, compensation of revenue loss to States/UT Governments etc.;

(ii) Inter-Governmental transactions of Ministry of Home Affairs relating to Demands for Grants pertaining to Transfers to Delhi, Puducherry and J&K;

(iii) Inter-Departmental transactions.

Note: In case of non-availability of post of Dy.CAs, the review shall be done by the immediate next level i.e. CA. In case of non-availability of post of CA, the review shall be done by the immediate next level i.e. CCA or Pr.CCA, as the case may be.

2.9.10 Sanctions issued by Ministries/Departments for TSA assignment to Autonomous Bodies (ABs) are also required to be reviewed as per the prescribed monetary limit. Pay and Accounts Officer must submit sanction for review to higher authorities on the same day he/she receives it in the system. Review time duration of high value sanctions by Dy.CA or CA or CCA or Pr.CCA, where required, should not be in addition to the processing time of bills, and should be done in parallel as much as possible. Sanction review should be done by the said authority within a maximum of two working days and returned to Pay and Accounts Officer.

What This Means

This explanation was generated with AI assistance for educational purposes. Always refer to the official gazette notification for authoritative text.

Key Points

• 1Re-appropriation orders must come from competent authority, be arithmetically accurate, and contain full reasons
• 2Total allotments among officers must not exceed funds provided under the relevant head of account
• 3PAOs check expenditure sanctions against the Constitution, DFPR, and applicable service rules
• 4If financial propriety is doubtful, PAO can seek additional details and escalate to CA/CCA/Pr.CCA and then to the Financial Advisor
• 5High-value sanction review thresholds: above Rs 50 lakh by Dy. CA, above Rs 5 crore by CA, completed within 2 working days in parallel with bill processing

Practical Example

This explanation was generated with AI assistance for educational purposes. Always refer to the official gazette notification for authoritative text.

Cross References

Frequently Asked Questions

This explanation was generated with AI assistance for educational purposes. Always refer to the official gazette notification for authoritative text.