With measures announced by Finance Department to ensure fiscal discipline getting legal cover, the departments would now become liable to disciplinary action in case of any deviation, officials said on Thursday.
On February 20, the finance department issued comprehensive guidelines on range of issues including tendering out of projects, clearing payments, procurement of machinery and equipment, taking up new projects and timely expenditure. Â
These guidelines followed much-awaited public expenditure reforms announced by finance minister Haseeb Drabu in the recently concluded state legislature.
“Every individual department and official has now become accountable as the measures announced have been brought under the legal framework,” said a senior official.
Citing an example the official said the reforms make it mandatory on the departments to complete the process from planning of a project to tendering it out in 60 days.
The official said since there was still more than a month left to beginning of the new financial year, the individual department can start work for finalizing the projects to ensure their timely completion.
“All departments need to pull up their socks. Keeping in mind the limited work season in Kashmir and Ladakh, the government has already released 50 percent of funds well in advance. Now no department should have any reason not to spend in time to increase the quality work,” said the official.
“The whole idea is to make system faster, and ensure quality and timely completion of the works,” said the official, adding that the deviations from the set guidelines would invite disciplinary action against the officials and individuals.
To begin with, the finance department acted against the departments this year which had registered less than 70 percent spending by the end of December.
“We withdrew funds from the departments who had shown spending less than 70 percent. These departments include Power, R&B, PHE and I&FC and others,” said Drabu.Â
“Now we are providing more teeth to the system to ensure fiscal discipline and accountability as the reforms and guidelines announced have become part of appropriation act.”