EAG submits report on improvement of IA in rural dev.schemes

Speed Post News Network

New Delhi : An Expert Advisory Group (EAG) consisting of retired experts from administration, accounts and audit was constituted by the Ministry of Rural Development for recommending measures aimed at expanding and deepening the application of the internal audit (IA) function across programmes at all levels of implementation.

The EAG has submitted its report to Narendra Singh Tomar, Minister for Rural Development, Panchayati Raj and Mines. On this occasion, Chief Controller of Accounts (CCA), Ministry of Rural development, informed that the Internal Audit Wing of ministry with its limited recourses has completed 143 internal audits till February this year with the help of IT portal unique to this Ministry named as GRIP.

The Expert Group has given a roadmap for establishing the internal audit function as an instrument for enhancing efficiency and effectiveness of MoRD schemes. It suggests measures for strengthening internal audit as an instrument of management control across programmes up to grassroots level, according to a PIB release.

The report includes recommendations such as revision of the existing Internal Audit Manual to cover compliance and scheme audit and manual to serve as a framework for IA at all levels of implementation, preparation of risk registers and risk matrix for all major programmes, comprehensive Policy for Internal Audit for the Ministry, programme-specific guidelines for internal audit, Long-term Audit Plan for a five year period and Annual Audit Plans, State Departments of Rural Development to prepare their respective IA plans, funds to be earmarked  within each programme for conduct of IA ,establishing a separate office of CCA-IA to prepare a composite HR Deployment and capacity Development Plan for Ministry.

Tomar said that ‘introspection’ has been a culture in Indian society. When there is an introspection there are less chances of mistakes, he said. He stated that states need handholding in the implementation of Internal Audit. It is an era of transparency and every government will have to work for it. Internal Audit will be a tool to identify the risk areas of leakages and to plug these loopholes, he added.

Minister of State for Rural Development Ram Kripal Yadav stated that the committee has given very important suggestion to improve the transparency and accountability. He said that Ministry of Rural Development is the first Ministry in the Government of India which has taken the initiative to strengthen the Internal Audit in a very systematic manner.