Para 15.21 — MSO (A&E)
Original Rule Text
15.21 A register in Form 88 will be maintained by the Accountant General (A&E) showing the daily issues and encashment responsible for the preparation of the list of outstanding balances of unpaid cheques at the end of the month. The register will be kept in the custody of the Accountant General (A&E) but may be posted by an Assistant Accounts Officer/Section Officer or other nominee of the Accountant General other than one connected with the Pre-check Payment Department or the Department of Precheck cheques (Central or State) and the outstanding cheques.
The monthly comparison as indicated in the form will be made by the Accountant General himself.
A comparison should also be made with the balances in the Registers of Outstanding Cheques at the end of each month. The balances in the Accountant General’s register should also be verified independently with the Ledger balances in t he Book Department and a note to this effect recorded in Form 88.
The following rules govern the procedure which should be followed an A.G. office in dealing with claims against Government presented for payment from the Consolidated Fund and Public Account of India and of the States.
# PAYMENTS
(1) Bills which should be only claims and not acknowledgements, will be presented by the claimant in person, or through a messenger, or through a bank or other authorised agent, or by post. (2) Bills so presented will be subjected to check before payment by the Check Section concerned which will be conducted on the same principles and with precisely the same formalities as are observed in the case of bills received with the treasury accounts for post audit after payment. (3) After a bill has been examined and recorded, the amount admitted will be passed for payment by a Branch Officer of the A.G. Office. (4) All bills as soon as passed will be made over to the Cash Department. (5) Unless there is a special request on a bill for cash payment, all bills will be paid by cheque if the total of all the bills received from one party at the same time exceeds Rs. 300/-. (6) If payment is to be made by cheque, the bill should bear an endorsement showing:-
- ANNEXURE ‘A’
- (Referred to in paragraph 15.1)
(a) in whose favour the cheque is to be drawn-self, Bank or other authorised agent;
Note 1:Cheques may be drawn in favour of a firm or a private person for payment of contingent bills when the Government authorities direct payment to suppliers of articles. These cheques should always crossed in such manner as may be prescribed in the Treasury Rules or the Financial Rules of the Government concerned and will be issued by the A.G. Office either on original bills of the supplier duly counter-signed by the Head of the office or on consolidated bills in which claims of different persons are included by the Head of the office. In the later case the names of the payees should be specified in the bill, with the respective amounts, for which separate cheques should be issued.
What This Means
The AG maintains a register (Form 88) that records daily cheque issuances and encashments, and tracks the outstanding balance of unpaid cheques at month-end. This register is kept in the AG's custody but posted by a nominated officer who is not connected to the Pre-check Department. The AG personally makes the monthly comparison. The register balance is also independently verified against the Book Department's ledger balances. The Annexure to this chapter lays out the complete procedure for handling claims presented for payment from the Consolidated Fund and Public Account, including bill presentation, pre-check, cheque or cash payment, token system, and receipt acknowledgement.
This explanation was generated with AI assistance for educational purposes. Always refer to the official gazette notification for authoritative text.
Key Points
- 1Form 88 tracks daily cheque issues, encashments, and outstanding balances
- 2Register is in AG's personal custody; posted by a nominee NOT from Pre-check Department
- 3AG personally performs the monthly comparison
- 4Balances verified independently against Book Department ledger
- 5Annexure A details the full payment procedure: bill receipt, token, pre-check, cheque/cash, acknowledgement
Practical Example
The AG opens Form 88 at month-end and personally verifies that 450 cheques were issued for Rs. 78,00,000 during the month, 438 were encashed for Rs. 75,50,000, and 12 remain outstanding for Rs. 2,50,000. He compares this with the outstanding cheque list and the Book Department's ledger balances. All three figures agree, and he records this confirmation in the register.
This explanation was generated with AI assistance for educational purposes. Always refer to the official gazette notification for authoritative text.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does the AG personally perform the monthly comparison?▼
What does Annexure A cover?▼
Can an open cheque be sent by post?▼
This explanation was generated with AI assistance for educational purposes. Always refer to the official gazette notification for authoritative text.