J&K begins exercise to prepare budget estimates

Introducing performance based and zero based budgeting from the current financial year, the Finance Department has begun exercise to prepare budget estimates of 2021-22 and revised estimates of 2020-21 for Jammu and Kashmir.

For this purpose, all the Administrative Secretaries and Heads of Departments have been directed to submit their budget preparation exercise for both revenue and capital budget for the year 2021-22 online through ‘Budget Estimation, Allocation and Management System’ (BEAMS).

   

Accordingly, the administrative departments have been asked to carry out scrutiny of estimates and forward their recommendations to the Finance Department by September 25.

To ensure timely completion of budget, the Drawing and Disbursing Officers (DDOs) and the Heads of Departments (HoDs) should complete budget preparation by September 15 and September 20, 2020, respectively.

The budget preparation forms for Revenue Budget and Capital Budget should be made available to all the field offices as well as the Administrative Departments online through BEAMS only, according to the directions issued by the Financial Commissioner, Finance Department, to all the Government departments.

Meanwhile, a calendar for discussion of budget proposals of the departments will be issued separately. The NIC has been directed to put in place all required arrangements for data entry in BEAMS by the field formations and the administrative departments.

The departments have been asked for a year wise number of daily wagers and casual labourers for the period of 2015-16 to 2018-19 alongwith the full details about the source of paying wages to these workers should be appended with the budget proposal.

The DDOs should submit proposals under the capex budget (capital budget) only for ongoing works and non-construction activities through BEAMS.

The capex budget for “new works” should be included in the budget estimates in a separate statement showing the activity-wise works statement with details of individual projects on going, non-construction and new works projected under capex budget shall be commensurate with the activities of the Department.

“Performance based Budgeting” and “Zero Based Budgeting” should be introduced from the current financial year 2020-21, reads the directives of the finance department.

Meanwhile, the Finance Department has expressed serious concern over previous year’s expenditure indicating that they have noticed huge variations in the actual expenditure of the preceding year as shown by the departments and the numbers as shown by the Accountant General (A&E) J&K in the Annual Finance Account of that year (previous year).

In this regard, the directions were issued to reflect the correct and reconciled expenditure.

“The Revenue Budget Estimates should be prepared strictly in accordance with the standardized ‘detailed heads’ and no other detailed head shall be put to use and in case any of the department puts it to use the same shall be summarily disallowed,” read the Finance Department’s directives.

The salary budget should strictly be based on the actual gross amount drawn by each employee through ‘JKPaySys’ for sanctioned posts only.

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