CAG to Audit Performance of all Schemes under the Rural Development Ministry

Union Rural Development Ministry announced on 4 November 2011 that Comptroller and Auditor-General of India (CAG) will audit performance of all schemes under the Ministries of Rural Development and Drinking Water and Sanitation. CAG is to conduct an audit on expenditure incurred over a period spanning the past five years in 12 States.

The CAG audit that is to cover the outgo of an estimated Rs.3.5 crore during the past five years is expected to plug the loopholes and ensure proper execution of development and welfare schemes.

In the first phase, the CAG will audit the expenditures under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS). It will be the second such exercise related to MGNREGA. The earlier audit was a limited exercise to gauge its impact after its launch.

In the first phase, CAG will conduct financial as well as performance audits in 12 states that get the most money from the programmes— Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Orissa and Uttar Pradesh. These States were selected for the first phase of audit as they accounted for the major share of the expenditure incurred during the past five years.

Apart from drawing up a checklist to monitor expenditure at the Central and State levels, an expert committee was also set up to prepare a common accounting format for all schemes in consultation with the CAG.

The audit, apart from MGNREGA will also include other major programmes like the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana and drinking water supply and sanitation schemes.