IX PAY & ACCOUNTS 43. PAY & ACCOUNTS OFFICE 43.1. Introduction: The Pay and Accounts Office, Rajya Sabha, was constituted on 1 st October 1955 under the scheme of separation of Accounts from Audit. It functions as a Treasury cum- Departmental Accounts Office of Rajya Sabha Secretariat and also as Controller of Exchequer. All Payments and accounting of transactions relating to the Rajya Sabha Secretariat and Pay and Accounts Office are made by this Office. Besides other work, the Pay and Accounts Officer also acts as D.D.O. for Pay and Accounts Office. 43.2. Main Functions: The Pay and Accounts Office, Rajya Sabha consists of two Sections namely Accounts Section and Audit Section. The main duties of Accounts Section in brief are as follows: - (a) (b) (c) To diarise all kinds of bills and letters received in the section. Controlling of bills to ensure that the expenditure incurred is within the sanctioned budget grant during the current financial year and under the particular head of accounts. (Controlling of expenditure has been routed through Estt.(G) Section from the Financial Year 2001-2002) Preparation of Union Government monthly Civil Accounts in two ways manually as well as on computer and submission thereof to Comptroller General of Accounts (CGA) latest by 15 th of each month. (d) Preparation of Union Government Finance Account, appropriation account, Statement for Central transactions to be submitted to the office of CGA annually. (e) Disbursement, revision/settlement of pension cases in respect of retired/retiring employees of Rajya Sabha Secretariat /P&AO. This Section has been entrusted to process the pension cases of Ex. Vice-Presidents of India also. (f) (g) Maintenance of GP Fund Accounts/CPF in respect of all officers and staff of Rajya Sabha Secretariat including Pay and Accounts Office. Calculation of interest, issuance of GPF/CPF annual statements to the subscribers, payment of temporary GPF advances/non-refundable withdrawal to the employees and settlement of final G.P.F. Accounts and payment thereof. Preparation, submission and finalisation of revised and budget estimate relating to revenue receipt head, public account head and pension pertaining to Rajya Sabha Circle of Account.
(a) (b) The main duties of Audit Section are as follows: - Pre check/audit of the Bills received from the Estt.(A/Cs) Section/M.S.&A Section/Pay and Account Office through Accounts Section of the PAO ( after Diarisation and Controlling of the amounts), and arranging payments thereof after cent percent pre check and account for all receipts relating to Rajya Sabha Circle. Foreign Travel Expenses Bills relating to the Hon ble Chairman/Deputy Chairman/Members and Officers of this Secretariat. (c) LTC advance bills, Children Education Allowance reimbursement/ota and Honorarium Bills in respect of, officers and staff of the Rajya Sabha Secretariat and Pay and Accounts Office. (d) (e) Bills relating to Loans and advances to MPs and Government Servants (HBA/Motor Car Advance/Scooter Advance/Computer Advance/Fan Advance bills). Bills relating to salaries, TA/DA, Indian Airlines Invoices, conveyance and medical claims of the Chairman/Deputy Chairman and Members, Rajya Sabha and Officers and Staff of the Rajya Sabha Secretariat as well as this Office after pre check and audit of bills. (f) Bills relating to payment of pension to ex-members of Parliament (g) Maintenance of service books, leave accounts and acquittance rolls in respect of the establishment of Pay and Accounts Office and maintenance of accounts of short term and long term loans and advances sanctioned and paid to Government employees in the Rajya Sabha Circle of Accounts. The comprehensive list of work done in P&AO during the year 2002 is at (Annexure-43.1). 43.3. Goals: The primary responsibility of this Office is to ensure that no payment is made in excess of the Budget Grant unless it is covered by an advance from the Contingency Fund of India. Moreover, all kinds of Payments (Salary, OTA, TA/DA, Medical bills, Pension bills, Office Expenditure of Members/officers of the Rajya Sabha Secretariat and Pay and Accounts Office, Rajya Sabha) are made after cent percent pre check of bills by issuance of cheques payable on the Reserve Bank of India, New Delhi and to ensure that payment are not delayed without any sufficient reason. However, the statutory Audit Functions have been devised on the pattern of Director of Audit,
Central Revenues, New Delhi. The Pay and Accounts Officer has to discharge his duties and responsibilities in direct liaison with the Secretary-General, Rajya Sabha who is the Chief Accounting Authority of the Rajya Sabha Circle of Accounts. The Pay and Accounts Officer has also to ensure that the incurring of expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India is governed by the following essential conditions:- (i) (ii) (iii) that there is provision of funds authorised by the competent authority fixing the limits within which expenditure can be incurred. that the expenditure incurred conforms to the relevant provisions of the Act, Constitution and of the laws made thereunder and are also in accordance with the financial rules and regulations framed by the competent authority; and that there exists sanction, either special or general, accorded by the competent authority authorising expenditure. The Pay and Accounts Officer is authorised to draw funds by means of cheques drawn on Reserve Bank of India accredited for handling the receipts and payments of the Rajya Sabha circle of Accounts. Pay and Accounts Officer himself has also to discharge a special responsibility for indenting, safe custody, issue and accountal of cheques books as prescribed under the rules. Moreover, a classified account of all payments made by this Office are compiled and rendered to the Office of the Controller General of Accounts on monthly as well as annual basis. In discharging the aforesaid duties, this office maintains necessary liaison with the Office of the Controller General of Accounts in order to affect overall coordination and control in accounting matters. While monitoring disposal of all bills received by this office, Pay and Accounts Officer ensures with utmost expedition that the work is consistent with efficiency and accuracy. Pay and Accounts Officer has the overall responsibility to ensure that the requisite standard of technical expertise for accounting work is maintained as per the procedure and time limits in accordance with Rules laid down in the Civil Accounts Manual and Ministry of Finance (Department of Expenditure) orders issued from time to time. 43.4. Analysis: Though Pay and Accounts Office has a separate identity and separate budgetary allocation, it functions in close coordination with the Rajya Sabha Secretariat. Consequent upon the constitution of six Departments Related Parliamentary Standing Committees in April 1993, Committee on Ethics, Committee on MPLAD and Committee on the functioning of different state Wakf Boards and
tour programmes undertaken by these Committees and by Sub- Committees thereof, the workload of Pay and Accounts Office in general and Audit Section in particular has increased to a great extent. Besides, creation of Training Unit, O&M Section and Computer Section and introduction of Secretarial assistance Service to about 250 Hon ble Members the quantum of work in Audit Section has enormously increased. There has been significant increase in the sanctioned strength of Rajya Sabha Secretariat. However, the strength of Pay & Accounts Office has remained same since 1974. Nevertheless, this factor has not affected the quality of work in Pay & Accounts Office. As custodian of funds, Pay & Accounts Officer has ensured strict compliance of rules and regulations by all concerned. At the same time, there has been no delay in the disbursement of the payments. 43.5. Computerisation: Improved Contact SCT (DOS Ver) supplied by System Group, O/O CGA are used to compile monthly as well as yearly accounts. Different packages running under Unix- for generating pay bills/bank Statements/GPF monthly statements/gpf interest calculations and to Generate Annual Statement of each individual working in this Secretariat and subscribing to G.P. Fund have been used. MS Excel has been used for calculating Deposit Linked Insurance Scheme/Pension Arrears etc. All the statements pertaining to appropriation Accounts/Finance Accounts are being prepared with the help of Lyrix/MS words. 43.6. Training: In view of the facts that maintenance of Accounts and its related functions of scrutiny are technical in nature, periodical on the spot training programme for the staff posted in Accounts as well as Audit Section of P&AO may be arranged for smooth and efficient functioning. 43.7. Budget Estimate 2002-2003: Head 2002-2003 Purpose Expenditure upto 31.12.2002 Salary 56,00,000/- To pay the salary and 27,28,098/- other allowances
Employees of to the P&AO. OTA 1,10,000/- To make Payment on 89,383/- Account of extra work done by P&AO Staff. D.T. Exp 5,000/- To make payment Nil in connection with Official tour undertaken by the staff of P&AO Office Exp 5,000/- To meet Petty 1,641/- Contingent expenses such as Scooter/Taxi fare in connection with visit to different offices. The advances under Major Head 7610 Loans and Advances to Govt. servants etc. is mainly looked after by Estt. (G) Section. PAO sends the demand for allocation for its office as and when the demand arises. 43.8. Miscellaneous: Pay and Accounts Office processed and prepared 7 Medical Bills, 16 GPF Bills, and 3 Children Education Allowance Bills for employees of the P&AO Office. All the 24 Service Books maintained by this Office have been verified and signed by the concerned Officers. 43.9. Inspection: The inspection of Accounts Section of P&AO was done on 02.01.2003 by Shri G.C. Miglani, Deputy Secretary. The inspection of the Audit Section will be taken up shortly.
Annexure 43.1 Abstract of the work done by Pay & Accounts Office during 2001. 1. Hon ble Chairman & Deputy Chairman Salary & Medical Bills 29 2. Hon ble Deputy Chairman s TA/DA Bills 36 3. MP s & MP s PAs salary and medical bills 630 4. Hon ble Leader of Opposition Salary & Medical bills 26 5. MP s Car advance 5 6. MP s TA/DA and I.A.C. bills 3435 7. LOP TA/DA bills 11 8. Rajya Sabha Sectt. Salary, TA/DA, Contingent and other miscellaneous bills. 2384 9. Demand Drafts for outstation payments 5 10. Fresh cases of Ex-MPs pension 42 11. Pension bills of Ex- MPs Nil 12. Ex-MPs Pension Cases transferred to Banks Nil 13. Ex-MPs Pension Cases correspondence dealt by the use of Computer 554 14. Pension cases of Ex-MPs revised 512 15. Finalisation of Pension Cases in respect of Rajya Sabha Employees on their retirement including family pension cases 23 16. Revision of pension cases of employees 2
17. Transfer of pension payments of the employees to Private Sector Banks 22 18. Computation of pension cases of employees of Rajya Sabha / P&AO 22 19. Gratuity cases of employees of Rajya Sabha/P&AO 35 20. Number of effective G.P. Fund Accounts maintained 1171 21. Pension, Commutation & Gratuity Bills of employees 90 22. G.P. Fund Bills of Rajya Sabha Secretariat employees 768 23. Settlement of final payments of G.P. Fund accounts 25 24. Inward Claims regarding settlement of cheques received from other Ministries/Departments 47 25. Return & Accounts Statements submitted to the concerned authorities 87 26. Receipt of letters: Audit Section & Accounts Section 2864 27. OTA Bills from Rajya Sabha Secretariat 137 28. OTA Bills from Pay and Accounts Office 17 29. Salary & other bills of P&AO 104 30. Bills of Secretariat LOP 61