Audit Reports
Tripura
Report of 2008 - Financial Audit on Urban Local Bodies and Panchayati Raj Institutions, Government of Tripura
Overview
This Report, dealing with the results of audit of accounts of Local Bodies, is prepared in two parts and consists of five chapters. Part-I deals with Panchayati Raj Institutions and Part-II on Urban Local Bodies. A synopsis of audit findings is presented in this overview.At present, there are four Zilla Parishads, 23 Panchayat Samitis and 513 Gram Panchayats in Tripura. At the State level, the Panchayat Department of the State Government coordinates and monitors the functioning of the Panchayati Raj Institutions(PRIs).Transfer of functionaries to PRIs was not done which is a prerequisite for successful working of local self government at the grass-root level. The works of the PRIs are being performed by the State Government functionaries only.
For execution of various developmental works, the PRIs mainly receive funds from the Government of India (GOI) and the State Government in the form of grants. Besides, the own source of funds includes the revenue earned by the PRIs in the form of taxes, fees,issue of licenses, etc.A test check of records of the Uttar Tripura Zilla Parishad for the year 2008-09 revealed that only two meetings of Standing Committees were held against the prescribed of 12 meetings in a year. In ten Panchayat Samitis, during 2008-09 meetings of the different Standing Committees were not held regularly.No prescribed audit authority has yet been appointed by the State Government as per Section 215 of the Tripura Panchayats Act, 1993. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India is conducting audit of all three level of PRIs as statutory auditor as requested by State Government.
The State Government did not accept the recommendations of the second State Finance Commission considering the fact that higher devolution of fund as recommended by the Commission was not found realistic under the prevailing financial position of the State.Development funds remaining unspent indicates poor planning and inadequate monitoring, thereby depriving the beneficiaries from the intended benefits of the schemes.Scrutiny of the records of four Zilla Parishads and 19 Panchayat Samitis revealed that neither the Zilla Parishads nor the Panchayat Samitis have prepared the budget of its estimated receipts and disbursement for the year upto 2008-09 and expenditures were incurred without preparing the budget.The records of four Zilla Parishads, 19 Panchayats Samitis and 289 Gram Panchayats were test checked during 2009-10 and it was noticed that none of these PRIs prepared Annual Accounts upto the year 2008-09.