Utilization Certificates of Grants and Funds

Utilization Certificates of Grants and Funds

The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) and Accountant General (AG) offices of State Governments; are entrusted to verify and audit the works of Government keeping in view the proper utilization of financial resources. The Government organizations are allotted budget on the basis of their proposals from time to time; on various projects and programmes. After utilizing the budget, the organizations required to submit Utilization Certificates of the allocated budget which comprises the amount sanctioned, amount utilized, and work or functions performed with the amount spent, also the balance unutilized amount (if any).

Audit of Organizations failed to submit Utilization Certificates (UCs):

The organizations which failed to submit Utilization Certificates (UCs) are taken very seriously by the Government. The special audit of such organizations is done by the Accountant General (AG) Auditors from time to time.

Why Grants are provided by Government?

The grants are provided after taking a serious view upon the demand of the organizations keeping in view, their primary functions, policies, programmes of Government and their actual requirements to spend money upon the activities. The grants are provided for specific purposes and required to be spent upon the same. In case, the money provided through grants is utilized for other functions, the utilization certificates be difficult to produce by the government organizations. The transfer of grant from one head to another cannot be done arbitrarily. The sanction of competent authorities is must for such cases.

Financial and Administrative Irregularities

The pending Utilization Certificates are most of the times, symptoms of financial and administrative irregularities in the organizations. The impression of the organizations become negative and such organizations also try to keep the information secret by not providing the replies of RTI queries in their offices. The inefficiencies in financial and administrative functions started to grow and ultimately, the organizations seem to be non-functional as per their mandate, vision, goals etc.

Training is the ultimate solution

The organizations with pending utilization certificates require training from Administrative Training Institutions (ATIs) like Haryana Institute of Public Administration (HIPA) in Haryana where financial and administrative skills are sharpen to minimize the inefficiencies, irregularities and the organizations start functions to attain their ultimate goals.