The Hindu : National : CAG pulls up Prasar Bharati for excess payment of Rs.3.39 crore to BCCI

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Mar 17, 2008
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

National

National

CAG pulls up Prasar Bharati for excess payment of Rs.3.39 crore to BCCI

Special Correspondent

Asks it to recover the money, fix responsibility for the negligence

NEW DELHI: The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has pulled up Prasar Bharati for making an excess payment of Rs. 3.39 crore to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). It has asked the public broadcaster to recover the money from BCCI and fix responsibility for the negligent scrutiny of bills.

The matter came to light during a sample check of the payments made for telecast rights of one-day international (ODI) matches played during October-November, 2005. As per the report on autonomous organisations — tabled in Parliament on Friday — the audit objection was referred to the Union Information & Broadcasting Ministry in June 2007 but no response had been received till November.

Referring to the agreement between Prasar Bharati and BCCI for the telecast of 12 ODIs — seven India-Sri Lanka fixtures and five between India and South Africa — CAG noted that it provided for deductions in the amount to be paid in case a match was not played for the full duration of seven hours.

While one match did not take place, audit of the time sheets maintained by Prasar Bharati for the remaining 11 matches revealed that five matches were played for less than seven hours.

“Yet Prasar Bharati did not reduce the payment on pro-rata basis with reference to reduced time during which the matches were actually played.”

Further, in one match — between India and Sri Lanka at Mohali — where Prasar Bharati did make a reduction on pro-rata basis, the deduction was made by treating the total duration of the match as six hours instead of seven hours. “The negligence in the scrutiny of the claims and the deficient internal control within Prasar Bharati resulted in excess payment of Rs. 3.39 crore to BCCI,” the report said.

As for Prasar Bharati’s contention that pro-rata deduction was not applicable for ODIs, CAG said this argument was not tenable as it ran contrary to specific provisions of the agreement.

Prasar Bharati itself reduced the payment in the case of one match which was not played for the full duration.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

National