The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has found serious financial irregularities in the popular Ladki Bahin scheme of the Maharashtra government. According to the CAG report, an excess of Rs 3,541.16 crore has been spent in taking the scheme to the people, along with thousands of crores of rupees lying in deposit accounts and major shortcomings in financial management have also been revealed. The CAG report presented in the state assembly has revealed that the Women and Child Development Department has not given any concrete answer on the additional expenditure incurred in the scheme.
According to the report, the Women and Child Development Department spent Rs 33,237.24 crore against the sanctioned budget of Rs 29,693.09 crore for the scheme. Due to which additional expenditure of Rs 3,541.16 crore was incurred. It said a total grant of Rs 29,693.09 crore was provided for the scheme, which included Rs 26,200 crore through supplementary provisions and Rs 3,490.75 crore re-appropriated from the Lake Ladki scheme.
Government is borrowing off budget
In the third chapter of CAG’s 2024-25 state finance audit report, it has been said that there are not just minor irregularities in the financial affairs of the Maharashtra government, but there are shortcomings in the entire system. The government is now borrowing too much outside the budget. Proof of where and how the money was spent is not being submitted on time.
A lot of money is being kept outside the consolidated fund (main account). Many bills and accounts are pending. Off-budget borrowing has reached Rs 28,640 crore by March 31, 2025. CAG also said that 12,829 Utilization Certificates (UCs) worth Rs 40,097 crore are still pending. This means that it is not known whether such a huge amount of money was spent in the right place or not.
The report states that non-submission of UC (Usage Certificate) is a violation of Maharashtra government rules. This shows shortcomings in financial monitoring and internal control. The government is still using AC bills (Abstract Contingent bills) a lot. As of March 31, 2025, 1,698 AC bills worth Rs 3,532 crore are still pending. Their calculations have not been completed yet. In the month of March 2025 alone, 268 AC bills worth Rs 35.18 crore were issued.
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