J&K’s Rs 1.24 Lakh Cr Spending In Excess Of Budget Pending For Legislative Approval Since 1980: CAG

JAMMU : The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has flagged that the Jammu and Kashmir government’s spending of Rs 1.24 lakh core spanning over four decades since 1980 has been pending for legislative approval and regularisation, which undermines the system of public resource management.
Jammu and Kashmir is yet to regularise excess expenditure amounting to over Rs 1.24 lakh crore incurred between 1980 and 2020, the CAG said in its report on the Union Territory’s finances for the year ended March 2024.
Regularisation of additional spending exceeding the budgeted allocation requires approval from the state’s legislative assembly.
Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh became separate Union Territories in October 2019 following the reorganisation of the erstwhile state.
“As the appropriation accounts of 1980-81 onwards had not been discussed in the public accounts committee, the excess expenditure aggregating to Rs 1,24,004.41 crore for the years 1980-81 to 2019-20 (April 1, 2019 to October 30, 2019) pertaining to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir is yet to be regularised,” the report said.
The central auditor cautioned that prolonged non-regularisation of such expenditure undermines the system of budgetary and financial control and encourages financial indiscipline in the management of public resources. Responding to the audit observations, the Finance Department of the Jammu and Kashmir government stated in February 2025 that the excess expenditure is a “legacy issue” and it would be regularised by the legislature.
The CAG report highlights decades of pending legislative scrutiny, as the Appropriation Accounts since 1980-81 have not been examined by the Public Accounts Committee, delaying the regularisation process.
“Excess expenditure remaining unregularised for extended periods vitiates the system of budgetary and financial control and encourages financial indiscipline in the management of public resources,” it added. The report noted that the excess expenditure was incurred across a total of 543 grants and appropriations year after year between 1980 and 2019, with particularly high overruns being recorded during the late 1990s and early 2000s, including Rs 12,954.06 crore in 2005-06 and Rs 9,770.53 crore in 2003- 04.
It further pointed out that even in recent years, prior to the reorganisation of the state, excess expenditure continued, with Rs 5,311.53 crore recorded for 2019-20 (April 1 to October 30, 2019). (Agencies)