Mumbai: To cut back on expenses, the State Finance Ministry has asked all other departments to not raise purchase demands after February 1. The directions are also intended to curb the practice of spending large parts of the allocated budget in the last month of the financial calender.
A Government Resolution (GR) issued on Monday said each department is expected to plan its expenditure on a monthly basis. “The government has noticed that departments are spending large amounts in the last three months of the financial calender. Therefore, expenditure on non-important issues which are not priority should be controlled and managed,” the GR says.
The Finance Department has directed other departments to not put up purchase demands after February 1, except to buy medicines. Besides new purchases, the GR also asks departments to not undertake works such as maintenance of existing furniture, repairing photocopiers, computers or other electronic apparatus, workshops, seminars and programmes in rented premises. “Do not present these proposals to the Finance Department for approval,” the GR says.
A senior Finance Department officer said, “For several years, CAG reports too have been pointing out the trend of bulk expenditure in the last two to three months. Funds are made available to each department after presentation of budget and it is expected that it is spent with planning. We’ve asked departments to not spend large amounts in the last months, as it may lead to financial indiscipline.”
The Finance Department had recently asked all its departments to raise supplementary demands only if necessary.
The Fadnavis government is readying to present its fourth budget.
