Tuesday, February 21, 2012

FEDERAL AND PROVINCIAL ACCOUNTS


FEDERAL AND PROVINCIAL ACCOUNTING SYSTEMS:
        4.1 The Federal Government and the Provincial Governments have separate Public Accounts of their own into which moneys received on account of the revenue of the Federal Government or of the Provinces, are paid or credited and from which all disbursements of or on behalf of the Federal Government or of the Provinces are met. The procedure to be followed for the payments into, and the withdrawal, transfer, disbursement of money from the Public Account and for the custody of money standing in that account is regulated by the rules contained in the General Financial Rules, Treasury Rules and Audit Code and Accounts Code, etc.
        4.2 The Federal Government and each Provincial Government have made separate agreements with the State Bank of Pakistan by virtue of which the general banking business by these Governments is carried on and transacted by the State Bank. The Federal Government operates on every office and branch of the State Bank of Pakistan and on every branch of the National Bank of Pakistan acting as agent of the State Bank of Pakistan. The operations of the Provinces are, however, confined to the offices and branches of the two banks which fall within the area of the respective Provinces. Where there is no branch of the Bank, the cash business is conducted by the Treasury.
        4.3 Each branch of the Bank keeps two separate accounts of the transactions undertaken by it on behalf of the Government one for the transactions of the Federal Government and the other for the transactions of the Provincial Government within whose area it is situated. Separate statements of transactions in the Federal and Provincial Governments Accounts together with all the supporting vouchers, etc. are transmitted by each office and branch of the bank daily to the Treasury Officer or to the Accountant General, as the case may be. At the close of each month the balances of the two accounts are transferred to the Central Accounts section of the State Bank of Pakistan, Karachi. The Central Accounts Section of the State Bank of Pakistan, Karachi, acts as a general clearing house for; he adjustment of transactions between the different Governments.
        4.4 At the beginning of each month, each Accountant General receives from the Treasuries under his jurisdiction monthly accounts supported by schedules, vouchers, etc. in respect of the transactions which took place in the Treasury during the previous month. From the accounts furnished by the Treasury and other Civil Departmental officers accounts are compiled by Civil Accounts Offices showing the monthly receipts and the payments pertaining to each Department for the whole accounts circle classified under the Functions cum- Objects. Separate accounts are maintained for each Department, each group of small Departments or each major function. The transactions relating to Debt and Remittances appearing in the Treasury cash accounts are collected for the whole circle of accounts under each Code head from month to month. The final stage of compilation is the preparation of the accounts by major functions totals showing the receipts and disbursements under relevant code during and to the end of the month. From these consolidated accounts are compiled the monthly and the annual accounts of the Federal and Provincial Governments.
        4.5 The transactions in Government accounts represent the actual cash receipts and disbursements during the financial years as distinguished from amounts due to or by Government during the same period. The book adjustment may also be authorized by any general or special orders issued by the Government.
        4.6 The accounts are maintained in Pakistan currency. The transactions occurring in the U. K. are, however, in terms of Sterling in certain cases. Accounts in the Pakistan Foreign Missions are maintained in two currencies the local currency as well as Pakistan currency. All accounts are, however, rendered in terms of the Pakistan Currency.
        4.7 The following are the four divisions of the Government Accounts:
                 1. Revenue.
                 2. Capital
                 3. Debt.
                 4. Remittance.
        4.8 The Revenue deals with the proceeds of taxation and other receipts classed as revenue and the expenditure therefrom. The Capital deals with expenditure met usually from borrowed funds, the expenditure being incurred with the object of either increasing concrete assets of material character or of reducing recurring liabilities. It also includes final receipts of a capital nature intended to be applied as a set off to the capital expenditure. The debt comprises receipts and payments, in respect of which Government becomes liable to repay the money received or has a claim to recover the amounts paid together with the repayments of the former and the recoveries of the latter. The Remittance embraces merely the adjusting heads under which the remittances between treasuries and items in transit between the different accounts officers appear. The initial debits or credits under the remittance heads are cleared eventually by corresponding receipts or payments either within the same circle of account or in another accounts circle.
CHART OF CLASSIFICATION OF THE FEDERAL AND PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENTS RECEIPTS & DISBURSEMENTS:
        4.9 The Auditor-General of Pakistan has issued a new chart of classification with the approval of the President, under Article 170 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 1973 in superession of the existing "List of Major & Minor Heads of Accounts". The need for issuing the new chart was that since Independence, Governments have undertaken much wider responsibilities effecting the economic growth of the country and the welfare of the people. With these added responsibilities, the need to improve the knowledge about the economic and social effects of their actions for taking well-informed and well conceived policy has increased.Hence the chart of classification, which in addition to classifying receipts and expenditure on a functional basis for purposes of accountability, reflects a plan of grouping transactions according to their economic character in a readily comprehensible form. This plan facilitates the determination of aggregates of national income and expenditure apart from bringing out the inter-relationship between major sections of the economy. The chart also seeks to provide a scientific information base for national policy decisions with a view to facilitating judicious allocation of available resources amongst competing demands and their economic use. The new classification is readily adaptable to data processing methods and will facilitate processing of accounts on the Computer.
        4.10 The Chart is divided into two parts namely the Consolidated Fund and the Public Account. All revenues received by a Government, all moneys received by it in repayment of any loans and the Public Debt raised by it are credited to the Consolidated Fund. The expenditure on revenue or capital account or on servicing the Public Debt is debited to it. The Public account comprises all other moneys received by or on behalf of the Government or those deposited with the courts of law and the remittances, suspense accounts etc.
        4.11 In Part I, i. e., Consolidated Fund, the receipts are to be classified by assigning a Major Head, a Minor Head and a Detailed Receipts Head. The expenditure is classified in two parts, 'namely, 'Functional Classification' and 'Object Classification'. The functions are divided into Major, Minor and Detailed Functions and an item of expenditure will be assigned a Major, a Minor and a Detailed Function. The objects are divided into Major, Minor and Detailed Function. The objects are divided into Major, Minor and Detailed Objects and an item of expenditure, in addition to functions, will bear a Major, a Minor and a Detailed Object. Thus the expenditure is to be so classified that it will at once show both the government functional responsibility for which it is set apart and the object or purpose which it tends to serve. In part II, i. e. Public Account the transactions are divided into Major, Minor and Detailed Heads of Accounts.
         4.12 The Function-cum-Object Classification has been introduced by the Federal Government with effect from the 1st July, 1979 and by the Provincial Government from the 1st July, 1980.
        4.13 The proper classification of accounts under the appropriate heads is very important. As a general rule classification of transactions should have closer reference to Department in which the revenue or expenditure occurs, then to the object of the revenue expenditure or grant on which it is sanctioned, e. g., expenditure in the Public Works Department on buildings which are under the administrative control but are in the use of other Department, is debitable to the Public Works Accounts rather than the Department benefited by the expenditure.
4.14 As for the classification of pay and allowances, the whole pay and allowances of a Government Servant holding a post should be taken against theDepartment and the post in which he is actually serving.When a Government servant whose main duties and post fall under one head of charge is entrusted with additional duties coming under another head, no portion of pay and allowances should be debited to the latter head, unless there are specific orders of the Government to the contrary. The transit pay and allowances of a Government servant should, in the absence of pay special orders to the contrary, debited to the office to which he is proceeding. The traveling advance of a Government servant is charged to the same head of account as his pay. In the following cases, however, the traveling allowance may be debited to a different head: -
(i) In case a Government servant is required to travel on duty connected with outside body or fund;
(ii) When Government consider it necessary to show separately the cost of special services; and
(iii)  In cases covered by general or special orders of the Government authorizing deviation from the general rule.
        4.15 The advance of pay and Travelling Allowance on transfer paid to a Government servant is debited under the Major Head "4000 Advances not bearing interest".The advance for house building and for purpose of conveyances is charged to Major Objects "800---Loans and Repayments bearing interest". The accounts of G.P. Fund are kept under the head "1000---Unfunded Debt".
4.16 For the purposes of inter-departmental payments, the Departments of a Government are divided into Service Departments and Commercial Departments according to the following principles:—
(a) Service Departments: — These are constituted for discharge of those functions which—
(i)  either are inseparable from and form part of the idea of Government, or
(ii) are necessary to and form part of the general conduct of the business of the Government.
Given below are few illustrations of the Service Departments:—
Departments of Administration of Justice, Jails, Police, Education, Medical, Public Health, Forest and Defence etc
(b) Commercial departments or undertakings.—These are maintained mainly for the purpose of rendering services or providing supplies on payment for the services rendered or for the articles supplied. These departments perform functions which are not necessarily Government functions. They are required to work to a financial result determined through accounts maintained on commercial basis. The examples of the Commercial Departments can be Railways, Posts, Telegraph and Telephone Department.
4.17 A Service Department should not make charge against another Department for services or supplies which fall within the class of duties for which the former Department is constituted. On the other hand, the Commercial Departments ordinarily charge and be charged for any supplies and services to or by other Departments of Government.
4.18 The payments of amounts due by one Department of Government to another are ordinarily made by book transfer except where such transfers do not suit the methods of accounts or of business adopted by the receiving departments.

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