Sending out a strong signal to the corporate world, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament has decided to empower the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) to examine investment, expenditure and profit aspects in public-private partnership (PPP) projects. PAC Chairman KV Thomas has also decided to call the full CAG before it soon to discuss how to technically empower the audit watchdog in this regard. This decision was taken in the recent debates of PAC.
After its meeting with the CAG, the Parliamentary panel will then call the Ministries concerned with PPPs. The move is significant as it comes in the backdrop of corruption allegations in various PPP projects in the past.
The private sector has so far been resisting the move but the committee’s argument is that since public money is being spent even in PPP projects, it needs to be safeguarded. “The stand of private parties is that the CAG has no business to look into their transactions. PAC, however, strongly feels that wherever the Government money is involved, the CAG indeed has a role to play. Since Government money is also involved in PPP projects, the entire transaction has to be examined by the CAG,” a PAC member said.
Under the PPP mode, the project is implemented based on a contract or concession agreement between a government or statutory entity on the one side and a private sector company on the other side for delivering an infrastructure service on payment of user charges. PAC’s view that the CAG should also start examining public-private partnership (PPP) projects is not a new one.
Former PAC Chairman Murli Manohar Joshi, a veteran BJP leader, too had earlier said that the CAG should be given powers to look into the functioning of PPP projects, societies and NGOs. His argument was that every single paisa going through the budget should be looked into by the CAG.