Crunch time: Govt makes the most of remaining fiscal year

Approves strict measures to streamline payments to departments and offices.

PESHAWAR: In an attempt to observe fiscal discipline and streamline the management of public accounts, the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Department of Finance has approved measures which are to be strictly enforced till the end of the current fiscal year (2012-13).

According to an official statement released on Wednesday, funds placed at the disposal of government departments and offices are to be expended uniformly, with all accrued liabilities to be cleared without delay.

The accountant general of K-P along with district and agency accounts officers have been asked to issue all cheques and pay orders by June 28. The handout stated every payment instrument shall be supported by a schedule, which will be circumscribed before cheques are presented – with all cheques, apart from salary payments, to be cashed by June 30. The validity of these cheques will expire with the new financial year beginning July 1.



The statement added all issued cheques are to be submitted to commercial banks by account holders no later than June 28. The regional chiefs of all these banks have also been directed to issue instructions to branch officers to present the government’s cheques to national and state banks for encashment.

Finally, the handout clarified State Bank of Pakistan and national banks would make necessary arrangements for receipts and payments to be concluded by the expiration date, with cheques honoured till late night. The banks have been strictly ordered not to make any transactions on government accounts after June 30 or before June 28.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 13^th, 2013.