PORVORIM: Goa Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC) indulged in wasteful expenditure to the tune of Rs 19.84 lakh by way of distributing gold coins to honour its staff, the CAG report exposed.
The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) in its report ending March 31, 2017, tabled in the Assembly on Friday, revealed that distribution of gold coins to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of GIDC was in “violation of the letter and spirit of financial propriety”.
“The General Financial Rules 2005 stipulates that every officer incurring or authorising expenditure from public money should be guided by high standard of financial propriety and enforce financial order and strict economy,” the CAG has said.
The standards of financial propriety require every officer to exercise the same vigilance in respect of expenditure from public money as a person of ordinary prudence would do with their own; nor spend more than what the occasion prima facie demands and not incur expenditure for the benefit of a particular person or class of person, the report said.
In the August 2016, the GIDC Managing Director approved an expenditure of Rs 20.75 lakh for award of mementos to the staff (both regular and contractual staff) in the form of gold medallion of two grams worth Rs 7,305 each to honour the sincere efforts of the staff commemorating the Golden Jubilee Year of GIDC.
The CAG said that though the MD had no power to authorise such nature of expenditure as per delegation of powers of GIDC, the expenditure was approved by the MD with a remark that the proposal may be placed before the Board for its approval and ratification.
“However, the gold coins were procured and distributed. The proposal was placed before the Board after over a year in its 352nd meeting held on October 17, 2017 and an expenditure of Rs 19.84 lakh was ratified ex-post facto,” the report says.
The GIDC management, in its justification, stated that the Corporation had a net surplus of Rs 56.12 crore up to the year 2014-15 which was the reason for distribution of the mementoes to the employees.
“The reply, is not convincing since while approving the proposal it was stated that on the occasion of Golden Jubilee celebration, the gold coins were given to honour the sincere efforts of the staff. Audit observed that the accumulated surplus was not because of the operational efficiency of the GIDC but mainly on account of interest received from banks,” CAG stated.
