A whopping Rs 1,254.88 crore grants paid to the State government remained unutilized up to June 2014, with the State failing to submit the Utilization Certificates (UC), clearly hinting at a lack of monitoring of usage of grants and loans by the concerned departments, observes the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG). 

As per the CAG report on State Finance for the year end in March 2014, of the total 10,297 UCs due in respect of grants and loan aggregating Rs 1,333.33 crore paid up to 2012-13, UC of 9,190, which is almost 89 percent for the total UC with aggregate amount of Rs 1,254.88 crore remained outstanding. 

 “Non-submission of UCs in time may result in mis-utilisation of grants. The large tendency in submission of UCs indicates a lack of monitoring of utilization of grants and loans by the departments,” CAG said in its report tabled before the State Legislative Assembly on Friday. 

Out of total 9,190 UCs amounting to Rs 1,254.88crore, 4,687 UCs involving Rs 954.58crore were pending for periods raining from one to five years while 4,503UCs involving Rs 300.30 crore were pending for more than five years. 

Major cases of non-submission of UCs are mainly pertaining to the department of Art and Culture (30 percent), Directorate of Panchayat (36 percent), Directorate of Municipal Administration (11 percent), Directorate of Women and Children, Department of Education and Town and Country planning. 

 “In the absence of the requisite certificates, it could not be ascertained in the Audit whether the recipients had utilized the grants for the purposes for which these were given,” CAG said.