Rule 74 — GAR

Rule 74 is the interpretation rule for the Government Accounting Rules, 1990. It establishes a clear mechanism for resolving doubts: whenever any doubt arises about how any rule in GAR 1990 should be interpreted, the matter must be referred to the Ministry of Finance, Department of Expenditure, Controller General of Accounts, for its decision. The CGA's decision on interpretation is given on the advice of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India.

This rule is important for several reasons. First, it creates a single authoritative interpretation body — the CGA, with CAG's advice — preventing inconsistent interpretations by different departments or Accountant Generals. Second, it sets the hierarchy clearly: neither a department nor an Accountant General can authoritatively interpret GAR on their own. Third, the CGA's ruling, being made on CAG's advice, carries constitutional weight — the CAG is the Constitutional authority for prescribing the form of government accounts. Any interpretation must be consistent with the CAG's role and responsibilities under Articles 149 and 150 of the Constitution.

For day-to-day accounting purposes, Accounts Officers should exercise their own judgment in routine cases based on the clear text and context of the rules. Rule 74 is invoked for genuine interpretive doubt — where the rule text is ambiguous, where two rules appear to conflict, or where a novel transaction does not clearly fit any existing classification.