The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : BMP launches special audit drive

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Feb 11, 2006

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

BMP launches special audit drive

Staff Reporter

It is meant to clear backlog of files relating to `advance credits'

BANGALORE: The Bangalore Mahanagara Palike's (BMP) Finance Department on Friday started a special two-day audit drive to clear backlog of files relating to "advance credits" taken by officials in the past.

With all the officials of the audit section pressed into the job, the BMP has decided not to take up any other files relating to financial matters till Saturday.

A circular in this respect has been put up on the audit section's notice board.

The BMP's bureaucracy has always been under fire for several lapses in the audit of the civic body's accounts.

Criticism

Members from all parties have criticised the officials for not taking measures to recover amount from those officials who have taken excess "advance credits" but have not submitted "no due certificates".

Audit objections of over Rs. 960 crores have been raised against several officials since 1965.

Most of these officials have either gone back to their parent departments or have retired. But no measures are being taken to recover the excess amount from them, is the members grouse.

Lapses

During the recent Council meeting, BMP Commissioner K. Jothiramalingam had admitted that there are several lapses in the BMP's accounts for the last 10 years.

Show-cause notices had been issued to 227 officials in January for not submitting "no due certificates", he said.

The January salaries of these officials have been held back, he said.

The "advance credit" bills issued by the BMP for 2005-2006 to officials of various ranks range between Rs. 50,000 and Rs. 15 lakhs, he added.

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