After Ghaziabad, UP may allow CAG to audit Noida, Greater Noida - Hindustan Times
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After Ghaziabad, UP may allow CAG to audit Noida, Greater Noida

Hindustan Times | By
Apr 19, 2017 10:15 AM IST

After allowing the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) to audit Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA), the state government has given indications that it was open for CAG audit of Noida authority and Greater Noida authority as well.

After allowing the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) to audit Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA), the state government has given indications that it was open for CAG audit of Noida authority and Greater Noida authority as well.

After allowing the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) to audit Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA), the state government has given indications that it was open for CAG audit of Noida authority and Greater Noida authority as well.(HT Photo)
After allowing the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) to audit Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA), the state government has given indications that it was open for CAG audit of Noida authority and Greater Noida authority as well.(HT Photo)

“We will consider a request for CAG audit of Noida and Greater Noida as well if a request in this regard is made by the CAG to the state government,” said minister for industrial development Satish Mahana, when asked about the state government’s stand on CAG audit of Noida Authority and Greater Noida authority.

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The state government, on chief minister Yogi Adityanath’s insistence, had approved the proposal for CAG audit of GDA.

With the issue coming up for discussion at the state cabinet’s meeting on Tuesday, a decision to allow CAG audit in other development authorities was also taken.

Accountant General (Economic and Revenue Sector Audit) Uttar Pradesh Vinita Sharma had requested the state government to allow audit of the GDA.

The AG had brought the issue to the notice of governor through letters sent to him on May 5, 2016 and May 31, 2016.

Governor, who had taken up the issue with President Pranab Mukherjee, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, union minister for finance Arun Jaitley, welcomed the decision to allow the CAG to audit the income and expenditure of GDA.

“For the purpose of transparency, audit should be allowed everywhere where there is use of government funds,” said governor in a press statement.

It may be mentioned that the Samajwadi Party government had denied permission to the CAG to audit the GDA despite governor Ram Naik’s intervention on the issue. Principal secretary, Awas Evam Shahri Niyojan Vibhag through a letter sent in June, 2016 to principal secretary to governor had informed that the state government in consultation with the finance and law department had issued a government order for not allowing the CAG to audit the GDA.

The governor had noted that the state government’s contention of not allowing the CAG to conduct the audit was completely untenable and without any legal basis. The audit had been conducted every year prior to this, under express authority granted by the governor of Uttar Pradesh and in consonance with the provisions of the Comptroller and Auditor General’s (Duties, Powers and Conditions of Services) Act 1971, said the governor in his letter to the then chief minister Akhilesh Yadav.

The state government had, however, refused to change stance pointing out that 2% of stamp duty under the Indian Stamp Act 1899, Section 27 and the UP Urban Planning and Development Act, 1973, section 3 did not fall within the category of the consolidated fund of the state.

It was further pointed out that under the terms of section 20 (3) of the Comptroller and Auditor General’s (Duties, Powers and Conditions of Service) Act 1971, the Accountant General was not empowered to carry out the audit of bodies or authorities unless authorised to do so by the governor.

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  • ABOUT THE AUTHOR
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    Umesh Raghuvanshi is a journalist with over three decade experience. He covers politics, finance, environment and social issues. He has covered all assembly and parliament elections in Uttar Pradesh since 1984.

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