The home ministry has declined a request from the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) for documents and other material to enable it to carry out an audit of the Padma Awards. The ministry’s decision has the backing of India’s highest law officer, and the file has been cleared by Home Minister P Chidambaram, it is learnt.
In a communication to the Home Ministry on April 19, the Director General of Audit (Central Expenditure) sought documents and official records pertaining to the Awards.
CAG wanted, among other documents, a copy of the rules and regulations of the Awards, agenda notes and minutes of meetings of the Padma Awards Committee for the last six years, details of members of the committee for the last six years, and records relating to investigations carried out before the Awards were finally approved.
CAG also asked for a brief note on the procedure for selection of the candidates for the Awards, minutes of review meetings in the last 10 years to revise the criteria for the Awards, year-by-year details of recommendations received by the ministry in the last three years, and complaints about the Awards in the last three years. (Indian Express)
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