Rs 2.4L cr collected for 4 reserve funds lying unutilised: CAG

The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India, in its report tabled in Parliament on Tuesday, flagged an unutilised Rs 2.40 lakh crore collected for four specific reserve funds from FY19 to FY23.

The CAG report said of the collected Rs 2.41 lakh crore, only an amount of Rs 344 crore was transferred to the intended accounts.

The reserve funds are part of the Public Account of India and are set aside for specific purposes. These funds are generally collected through cess or levy, then credited into the Consolidated Fund of India and further transferred to the specified reserve fund after Parliament’s approval.

The report also highlighted that outstanding loans and advances reached Rs 8.69 lakh crore, with Rs 74,241 crore in overdue principal and interest. The government also failed to recover Rs 113.57 crore in guarantee fees and Rs 669.13 crore in dividends from 16 entities functioning under seven ministries.

On the revenue side, an 11.36 per cent rise in receipts was driven by a 16.28 per cent increase in net tax revenue, with direct taxes making up 53.50 per cent of gross tax revenue, up from 51.14 per cent in FY 2021-22.

GST collections hit a five-year high as a share of GDP, though road and infrastructure cess fell due to fuel excise duty cuts. While the expenditure as a share of GDP dropped, the capital outlay edged up to 2.32 per cent of GDP, led by transport and defence.