Paingottoor
Grama Panchayat

Here is the English translation of the audit report, formatted for clarity and scannability:

Audit Report 2022-23

The District Audit Office of the Kerala State Audit Department has issued the final audit report for the financial year 2022-2023 for Paingottoor Grama Panchayat in Ernakulam district. Under the supervision of Bindu S. Nair, Deputy Director of the Kerala State Audit Department, an audit team consisting of Audit Officer Arun Mathew, Assistant Audit Officer Joseph George, Senior Grade Auditor Viju M.S., and Auditor Swapna V. conducted this inspection from November 15, 2023, to November 22, 2023. During this financial year, Smt. Seema Sibi served as the President, and Shri M.V. Ajayakumar and Smt. Sujatha M.U. (In-Charge) held the post of Secretary. As per the revised budget finally approved by the Panchayat Committee, receipts of ₹14,78,28,428 and expenditures of ₹14,56,60,867 were expected; however, the actual annual receipt was ₹2,78,93,132 and the total expenditure was ₹3,00,38,675.

Financial and Accounting Discrepancies

During the verification of financial statements, the audit team detected serious accounting lapses:

• Inaccurate Balance Sheet: The figures in the balance sheet are incorrect because assets and liabilities were neither accurately determined nor updated during the transition from the single-entry to the double-entry accounting system.
• Software Flaws: Independent logins have not been authorized for the software applications handling financial transactions.
• Unreconciled Statements: The figures in the cash flow statement do not match, and the property tax DCB (Demand, Collection, and Balance) figures do not reconcile with the Sanchaya software.

Negligence in Own Revenue Mobilization

The audit evaluates that there has been major negligence in mobilizing the Grama Panchayat's own revenue:

• Property Tax Arrears: An amount of ₹4,43,778 is yet to be collected as property tax arrears from various mobile towers, including Reliance, BSNL, and TVS.
• Tax Under-assessment: A significant amount due to the own fund was lost by failing to levy property tax at the correct rates on the commercial establishment 'M.D. Brahmins Foods'.
• Profession Tax Lapses: Profession tax was not demanded and collected on time from the employees of around 14 establishments, including Surya Fuels, Matha Hotel, and Janamaithri Polyclinic.
• Interest and Banking Losses: No action was taken to claim the legally eligible interest from the Kadavoor Service Co-operative Bank, where the own fund has been maintained since 1989. Furthermore, because the funds in the account opened in the name of the Assistant Engineer for e-tender fees were not transferred to the own fund in a timely manner, interest was lost. Additionally, a loss of ₹9,558 was incurred as bank charges due to non-maintenance of the minimum balance, and funds were withdrawn into a personal account in violation of rules.

Irregularities in Project Implementation and Asset Management

Serious irregularities and misuse of funds were also discovered in project execution:

• Poultry Distribution Scheme (Project S. 0095/23): In the egg-laying chicken distribution scheme for women, instead of collecting a 50% beneficiary contribution as per government guidelines, only 16.7% was collected. This caused a clear loss of ₹77,500 to the general category of the development fund.
• Solar Lamp Scheme: In the distribution of domestic solar lamps for the Scheduled Caste (SC) category, an excess amount was paid by violating the maximum subsidy limit fixed by ANERT.
• Idle Assets: The Women's Industrial Training Centre in Paingottoor Town, constructed at an expenditure of ₹9,95,556, has been left unused and overgrown with weeds for 4 years since its completion, remaining a non-performing asset.
• Safety Hazards: The report criticizes that despite 17 months having passed since the Panchayat Committee decided to cut down dangerous trees leaning over the Anganwadi building in Ward 5, no action has been taken, posing a threat to children's lives.

Audit Materiality and Accountability

Through this audit, a total loss of ₹4,092 under receipts and an unacceptable loss of ₹77,500 under expenditure heads have been recorded. Additionally, an amount of ₹66,000 has been held/disallowed in the audit due to the non-submission of utilization certificates.

The audit has fixed personal liability on the following officials for the respective lapses:

• Secretary M.V. Ajayakumar: Held responsible for under-charging permit fees and profession tax, as well as failing to produce various certificates.
• Veterinary Surgeon Dr. Sumeera Ibrahim & ICDS Supervisor Livia Lalji: Held responsible for the financial loss incurred in the poultry distribution scheme.

Here is the English translation of the audit report, formatted for clarity and scannability:

Audit Report 2022-23

The District Audit Office of the Kerala State Audit Department has issued the final audit report for the financial year 2022-2023 for Paingottoor Grama Panchayat in Ernakulam district. Under the supervision of Bindu S. Nair, Deputy Director of the Kerala State Audit Department, an audit team consisting of Audit Officer Arun Mathew, Assistant Audit Officer Joseph George, Senior Grade Auditor Viju M.S., and Auditor Swapna V. conducted this inspection from November 15, 2023, to November 22, 2023. During this financial year, Smt. Seema Sibi served as the President, and Shri M.V. Ajayakumar and Smt. Sujatha M.U. (In-Charge) held the post of Secretary. As per the revised budget finally approved by the Panchayat Committee, receipts of ₹14,78,28,428 and expenditures of ₹14,56,60,867 were expected; however, the actual annual receipt was ₹2,78,93,132 and the total expenditure was ₹3,00,38,675.

Financial and Accounting Discrepancies

During the verification of financial statements, the audit team detected serious accounting lapses:

• Inaccurate Balance Sheet: The figures in the balance sheet are incorrect because assets and liabilities were neither accurately determined nor updated during the transition from the single-entry to the double-entry accounting system.
• Software Flaws: Independent logins have not been authorized for the software applications handling financial transactions.
• Unreconciled Statements: The figures in the cash flow statement do not match, and the property tax DCB (Demand, Collection, and Balance) figures do not reconcile with the Sanchaya software.

Negligence in Own Revenue Mobilization

The audit evaluates that there has been major negligence in mobilizing the Grama Panchayat's own revenue:

• Property Tax Arrears: An amount of ₹4,43,778 is yet to be collected as property tax arrears from various mobile towers, including Reliance, BSNL, and TVS.
• Tax Under-assessment: A significant amount due to the own fund was lost by failing to levy property tax at the correct rates on the commercial establishment 'M.D. Brahmins Foods'.
• Profession Tax Lapses: Profession tax was not demanded and collected on time from the employees of around 14 establishments, including Surya Fuels, Matha Hotel, and Janamaithri Polyclinic.
• Interest and Banking Losses: No action was taken to claim the legally eligible interest from the Kadavoor Service Co-operative Bank, where the own fund has been maintained since 1989. Furthermore, because the funds in the account opened in the name of the Assistant Engineer for e-tender fees were not transferred to the own fund in a timely manner, interest was lost. Additionally, a loss of ₹9,558 was incurred as bank charges due to non-maintenance of the minimum balance, and funds were withdrawn into a personal account in violation of rules.

Irregularities in Project Implementation and Asset Management

Serious irregularities and misuse of funds were also discovered in project execution:

• Poultry Distribution Scheme (Project S. 0095/23): In the egg-laying chicken distribution scheme for women, instead of collecting a 50% beneficiary contribution as per government guidelines, only 16.7% was collected. This caused a clear loss of ₹77,500 to the general category of the development fund.
• Solar Lamp Scheme: In the distribution of domestic solar lamps for the Scheduled Caste (SC) category, an excess amount was paid by violating the maximum subsidy limit fixed by ANERT.
• Idle Assets: The Women's Industrial Training Centre in Paingottoor Town, constructed at an expenditure of ₹9,95,556, has been left unused and overgrown with weeds for 4 years since its completion, remaining a non-performing asset.
• Safety Hazards: The report criticizes that despite 17 months having passed since the Panchayat Committee decided to cut down dangerous trees leaning over the Anganwadi building in Ward 5, no action has been taken, posing a threat to children's lives.

Audit Materiality and Accountability

Through this audit, a total loss of ₹4,092 under receipts and an unacceptable loss of ₹77,500 under expenditure heads have been recorded. Additionally, an amount of ₹66,000 has been held/disallowed in the audit due to the non-submission of utilization certificates.

The audit has fixed personal liability on the following officials for the respective lapses:

• Secretary M.V. Ajayakumar: Held responsible for under-charging permit fees and profession tax, as well as failing to produce various certificates.
• Veterinary Surgeon Dr. Sumeera Ibrahim & ICDS Supervisor Livia Lalji: Held responsible for the financial loss incurred in the poultry distribution scheme.

Here is the English translation of the audit report, formatted for clarity and scannability:

Audit Report 2022-23

The District Audit Office of the Kerala State Audit Department has issued the final audit report for the financial year 2022-2023 for Paingottoor Grama Panchayat in Ernakulam district. Under the supervision of Bindu S. Nair, Deputy Director of the Kerala State Audit Department, an audit team consisting of Audit Officer Arun Mathew, Assistant Audit Officer Joseph George, Senior Grade Auditor Viju M.S., and Auditor Swapna V. conducted this inspection from November 15, 2023, to November 22, 2023. During this financial year, Smt. Seema Sibi served as the President, and Shri M.V. Ajayakumar and Smt. Sujatha M.U. (In-Charge) held the post of Secretary. As per the revised budget finally approved by the Panchayat Committee, receipts of ₹14,78,28,428 and expenditures of ₹14,56,60,867 were expected; however, the actual annual receipt was ₹2,78,93,132 and the total expenditure was ₹3,00,38,675.

Financial and Accounting Discrepancies

During the verification of financial statements, the audit team detected serious accounting lapses:

• Inaccurate Balance Sheet: The figures in the balance sheet are incorrect because assets and liabilities were neither accurately determined nor updated during the transition from the single-entry to the double-entry accounting system.
• Software Flaws: Independent logins have not been authorized for the software applications handling financial transactions.
• Unreconciled Statements: The figures in the cash flow statement do not match, and the property tax DCB (Demand, Collection, and Balance) figures do not reconcile with the Sanchaya software.

Negligence in Own Revenue Mobilization

The audit evaluates that there has been major negligence in mobilizing the Grama Panchayat's own revenue:

• Property Tax Arrears: An amount of ₹4,43,778 is yet to be collected as property tax arrears from various mobile towers, including Reliance, BSNL, and TVS.
• Tax Under-assessment: A significant amount due to the own fund was lost by failing to levy property tax at the correct rates on the commercial establishment 'M.D. Brahmins Foods'.
• Profession Tax Lapses: Profession tax was not demanded and collected on time from the employees of around 14 establishments, including Surya Fuels, Matha Hotel, and Janamaithri Polyclinic.
• Interest and Banking Losses: No action was taken to claim the legally eligible interest from the Kadavoor Service Co-operative Bank, where the own fund has been maintained since 1989. Furthermore, because the funds in the account opened in the name of the Assistant Engineer for e-tender fees were not transferred to the own fund in a timely manner, interest was lost. Additionally, a loss of ₹9,558 was incurred as bank charges due to non-maintenance of the minimum balance, and funds were withdrawn into a personal account in violation of rules.

Irregularities in Project Implementation and Asset Management

Serious irregularities and misuse of funds were also discovered in project execution:

• Poultry Distribution Scheme (Project S. 0095/23): In the egg-laying chicken distribution scheme for women, instead of collecting a 50% beneficiary contribution as per government guidelines, only 16.7% was collected. This caused a clear loss of ₹77,500 to the general category of the development fund.
• Solar Lamp Scheme: In the distribution of domestic solar lamps for the Scheduled Caste (SC) category, an excess amount was paid by violating the maximum subsidy limit fixed by ANERT.
• Idle Assets: The Women's Industrial Training Centre in Paingottoor Town, constructed at an expenditure of ₹9,95,556, has been left unused and overgrown with weeds for 4 years since its completion, remaining a non-performing asset.
• Safety Hazards: The report criticizes that despite 17 months having passed since the Panchayat Committee decided to cut down dangerous trees leaning over the Anganwadi building in Ward 5, no action has been taken, posing a threat to children's lives.

Audit Materiality and Accountability

Through this audit, a total loss of ₹4,092 under receipts and an unacceptable loss of ₹77,500 under expenditure heads have been recorded. Additionally, an amount of ₹66,000 has been held/disallowed in the audit due to the non-submission of utilization certificates.

The audit has fixed personal liability on the following officials for the respective lapses:

• Secretary M.V. Ajayakumar: Held responsible for under-charging permit fees and profession tax, as well as failing to produce various certificates.
• Veterinary Surgeon Dr. Sumeera Ibrahim & ICDS Supervisor Livia Lalji: Held responsible for the financial loss incurred in the poultry distribution scheme.

Here is the English translation of the audit report, formatted for clarity and scannability:

Audit Report 2022-23

The District Audit Office of the Kerala State Audit Department has issued the final audit report for the financial year 2022-2023 for Paingottoor Grama Panchayat in Ernakulam district. Under the supervision of Bindu S. Nair, Deputy Director of the Kerala State Audit Department, an audit team consisting of Audit Officer Arun Mathew, Assistant Audit Officer Joseph George, Senior Grade Auditor Viju M.S., and Auditor Swapna V. conducted this inspection from November 15, 2023, to November 22, 2023. During this financial year, Smt. Seema Sibi served as the President, and Shri M.V. Ajayakumar and Smt. Sujatha M.U. (In-Charge) held the post of Secretary. As per the revised budget finally approved by the Panchayat Committee, receipts of ₹14,78,28,428 and expenditures of ₹14,56,60,867 were expected; however, the actual annual receipt was ₹2,78,93,132 and the total expenditure was ₹3,00,38,675.

Financial and Accounting Discrepancies

During the verification of financial statements, the audit team detected serious accounting lapses:

• Inaccurate Balance Sheet: The figures in the balance sheet are incorrect because assets and liabilities were neither accurately determined nor updated during the transition from the single-entry to the double-entry accounting system.
• Software Flaws: Independent logins have not been authorized for the software applications handling financial transactions.
• Unreconciled Statements: The figures in the cash flow statement do not match, and the property tax DCB (Demand, Collection, and Balance) figures do not reconcile with the Sanchaya software.

Negligence in Own Revenue Mobilization

The audit evaluates that there has been major negligence in mobilizing the Grama Panchayat's own revenue:

• Property Tax Arrears: An amount of ₹4,43,778 is yet to be collected as property tax arrears from various mobile towers, including Reliance, BSNL, and TVS.
• Tax Under-assessment: A significant amount due to the own fund was lost by failing to levy property tax at the correct rates on the commercial establishment 'M.D. Brahmins Foods'.
• Profession Tax Lapses: Profession tax was not demanded and collected on time from the employees of around 14 establishments, including Surya Fuels, Matha Hotel, and Janamaithri Polyclinic.
• Interest and Banking Losses: No action was taken to claim the legally eligible interest from the Kadavoor Service Co-operative Bank, where the own fund has been maintained since 1989. Furthermore, because the funds in the account opened in the name of the Assistant Engineer for e-tender fees were not transferred to the own fund in a timely manner, interest was lost. Additionally, a loss of ₹9,558 was incurred as bank charges due to non-maintenance of the minimum balance, and funds were withdrawn into a personal account in violation of rules.

Irregularities in Project Implementation and Asset Management

Serious irregularities and misuse of funds were also discovered in project execution:

• Poultry Distribution Scheme (Project S. 0095/23): In the egg-laying chicken distribution scheme for women, instead of collecting a 50% beneficiary contribution as per government guidelines, only 16.7% was collected. This caused a clear loss of ₹77,500 to the general category of the development fund.
• Solar Lamp Scheme: In the distribution of domestic solar lamps for the Scheduled Caste (SC) category, an excess amount was paid by violating the maximum subsidy limit fixed by ANERT.
• Idle Assets: The Women's Industrial Training Centre in Paingottoor Town, constructed at an expenditure of ₹9,95,556, has been left unused and overgrown with weeds for 4 years since its completion, remaining a non-performing asset.
• Safety Hazards: The report criticizes that despite 17 months having passed since the Panchayat Committee decided to cut down dangerous trees leaning over the Anganwadi building in Ward 5, no action has been taken, posing a threat to children's lives.

Audit Materiality and Accountability

Through this audit, a total loss of ₹4,092 under receipts and an unacceptable loss of ₹77,500 under expenditure heads have been recorded. Additionally, an amount of ₹66,000 has been held/disallowed in the audit due to the non-submission of utilization certificates.

The audit has fixed personal liability on the following officials for the respective lapses:

• Secretary M.V. Ajayakumar: Held responsible for under-charging permit fees and profession tax, as well as failing to produce various certificates.
• Veterinary Surgeon Dr. Sumeera Ibrahim & ICDS Supervisor Livia Lalji: Held responsible for the financial loss incurred in the poultry distribution scheme.