New Delhi, Mar 24: Calling for greater accountability and transparency, Delhi Assembly Speaker Vijender Gupta on Monday warned officials not to ignore findings of CAG reports and religiously file action taken notes (ATNs), a practice that was given up during the 10-year rule of the AAP government.

“The failure of departments to submit ATNs is a serious lapse, as it renders the entire lengthy and detailed audit process meaningless,” he said in the House.

Speaker Gupta directed the Chief Secretary to adopted the Central government-supported online Audit Para Monitoring System (APMS) for effective monitoring of actions taken on CAG reports.

“I believe this is a good initiative and should be implemented in Delhi without delay. The Chief Secretary of the Delhi government must take immediate steps to implement the online APMS in Delhi for effective monitoring of actions taken on CAG reports,” he said in a statement in the House.

He said that on March 21, the Accountant General of Delhi met him and provided information regarding various pending paras of the CAG report related to the Delhi government.

The Speaker said the AG drew his attention to the serious fact that, over the past 10 years, neither the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) nor the Committee on Government Undertakings (COGU) of the then Assembly had submitted any reports.

"What is even more concerning is that the administrative departments have also failed to submit their Action Taken Notes (ATNs) on the CAG report’s paras, which should have been presented in the Assembly within three months," said the Speaker.

He said CAG officials conduct rigorous audits of various departments throughout the year, and only serious irregularities are included in the final report.

“Despite this, when the PAC or COGU takes up a matter, it is the responsibility of the concerned departments to present their Action Taken Notes in the Assembly, which are later reviewed by the CAG Office,” he said.

The Accountant General, Delhi, also mentioned that the Government of India’s Expenditure Department has established a monitoring cell to track compliance, and a web-based application called the Audit Para Monitoring System (APMS) has been developed for monitoring pending Action Taken Notes, he said, asking the Delhi government to adopt this system.

“This is the sentiment of the House, and any negligence in this regard will not be tolerated. It will reduce paperwork and ensure real-time monitoring of ATN submissions. The Finance Department has been directed to present a status report by the first week of April 2025,” said the Speaker.

--IANS

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