CAG Report, Pulling Up everything and everyone.lol

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Govt watchdog pulls up Indian Navy, Army



NEW DELHI: The Indian Navy has been pulled up by a government watchdog on public finances for getting two maritime reconnaissance aircraft refurbished at a cost of Rs 2.69 billion but minus essential avionics and weapon systems leading to serious limitations in their operational role.

The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) in its report Monday said refurbishing was done due to "unrealistic assumption" about the capability of timely indigenous development of certain avionics systems and lead-time for import of necessary weapon systems.

Five Russian made IL-38 planes were approved for restoration by the government but only two aircraft were received after undergoing mid-life upgrade in January 2006.

The two refurbished planes came back from Russia after a delay of 25 months and 16 months, respectively, the report said.

An audit examination revealed that the mid-life upgrade did not progress according to the schedule due to delays in finalisation of contracts for supply of certain avionics and weapon systems as also due to delays in supply of customer supplied equipment, it said.

As a result, the upgrades the two aircraft received were without essential avionics and weapons systems, the report said.

The CAG also pointed to the navy's failure to synchronise pilot training abroad with the acquisition schedule of the newly-acquired fighter aircraft, thus not adhering to the justification given for training abroad of at least 16 pilots.

This delay in finalisation of the deal also resulted in avoidable extra expenditure of Rs 462 million, it said.

Even the army was pulled up by the CAG for purchasing hand-held thermal imagers (HHTI) in excess valued at more than Rs 10.16 crore (Rs 101.6 million).

"Audit of a transaction of HHTI used by Army and the Rashtriya Rifles to detect and monitor enemy activities at night, especially along the Line of Control, has revealed an excess procurement of 56 Thermal Imagers worth Rs 10.16 crore due to incorrect assessment," the report said.

The Army had put up an order for 4,062 HHTIs, including a reserve stock of 10 percent.

The Army received the full consignment of these thermal imagers by March 2004, but a detailed audit showed that while giving its assessment of 4,062 thermal imagers the army had adopted an "incorrect number of battalions" to be armed with these force multipliers.

The CAG said the army action had resulted in "avoidable expenditure of Rs 10.16 crore."


http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Govt_watchdog_pulls_up_Indian_Navy_Army/articleshow/2045774.cms

 

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CAG pulls up DRDO for unauthorised constructions

New Delhi, May 15: Having been censured for cost and time overruns in its weapons programmes, the DRDO has now been pulled up by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) for undertaking unauthorised works in its new showpiece office in Lutyens Delhi.

The bone of contention is the 450-seat convention centre built in the new DRDO building behind South Block at an additional cost of Rs 6.40 crore which has been taken objection to by the Comptroller and Auditor General.

"Construction of convention center is not authorised in the approved scales of accommodation applicable to DRDO," the CAG said in its latest report tabled in Parliament.

The sanction issued by the Director General, Research and Development was therefore not in order, the report said.

It said that the DRDO was already in possession of a 515-seat convention centre at the Metcalfe House about 15km from DRDO headquarters, so the construction of the second centre was "uncalled for."

The CAG brushed aside pleas by the DRDO that there was no convention centre or auditorium available near the Central Secretariat except Vigyan Bhawan and the convention centre was for common use along with the Navy, Army and the Air Force.

"These arguments are not acceptable as sanction of works was beyond the delegated power of director general and thus irregular," it said.

It said government departments are expected to exercise economy in planning and executing works by restricting the scope of the work strictly according to authorised scales.

Bureau Report

http://www.zeenews.com/articles.asp?aid=371376 .

 

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IAF officers, wives flew in VIP planes, ran up Rs 75-cr bill: CAG

NEW DELHI, MAY 14 : The Comptroller & Auditor General (CAG) has slammed the Indian Air Force (IAF) for unauthorised use of VIP aircraft by senior defence officers and their spouses that cost the government Rs 75 crore.




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Objecting to the conversion of eight An-32 aircraft for VIP use, the CAG report criticised the IAF for diverting the medium tactical transport aircraft from primary duties like troop transport, para-dropping of troops and supplies.

The report tabled in Parliament today says that the IAF had 19 aircraft of a communication squadron earmarked for VIP duty and the conversion of An-32 “lacked justification.”

“Diversion of such large number of aircraft (20 per cent of the total serviceable aircraft with IAF) for VIP use showed an unexpected indifference to its primary role,” said the report, which scrutinized records of the aircraft from 2001-06.

None of the modified aircraft were ever used by the three entitled VIPs (the President, the Prime Minister, and the Vice-President) but by senior service officers and their wives.

The spouses of the air force and army chiefs, president of the Air Force Wives Association (AFWA) and Army Wives Welfare Association (AWWA) respectively, have specially come under the scanner for unauthorised usage of the service aircraft.

“AFWA/AWWA presidents are not even covered under the category of OEPs (other entitled personages),” the report says.

 

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CAG comes out with severe censure of defence purchases

New Delhi, May 14: In a strong censure of the country's weapons procurement procedure, the Comptroller and Auditor General today said the process of technical and trial evaluation lacked "objectivty and fair play" and 60 per cent of purchases were made from a single vendor.

There are deficiencies too in formulation of general staff qualitative requirements and acute lack of coordination in procurement of weapons common to the three services army, navy and IAF, the CAG said in its latest report tabled in Parliament.

Coming out for the first time with a 'performance audit' of defence capital acquisitions, the CAG said "the process of technical and trial evaluation of weapons system did not demonstrate objectivity and fair play".

The report said that in "60 per cent of cases of army purchases, only a single vendor was pre-qualified".

The accounting watchdog body's observation about the new defence procurement comes as India, according to official figures tabled in Parliament, spent a staggering Rs 44,009 crore on arms imports in the last three years.

In coming two to three years, the defence projections of purchase of weapon systems are to touch another Rs 45,000 to Rs 50,000 crores (almost 10 to 15 billion dollars).

Bureau Report