Good governance including fiscal accountability is essential for the implementation of policies and achievement of developmental objectives of the nation. It is important to have strong institutions of governance in general to effectively control the executive and make it accountable. In India, considerable progress has been made in economic governance, public financial management and accountability, and the integrity of the monetary and financial systems. Yet, it is generally felt that these institutions must be empowered and their capacity enhanced in view of the shift in the development philosophy based in the context of Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalisation (LPG).
Ever
since the collapse of socialism, the market-driven LPG paradigm
has remained as the only viable model of development. Good
governance system with strong regulatory institutional mechanism
is a crucial requirement for the new thinking to succeed.
The system of governance should be committed to efficient
public financial management and accountability.
In
India, significant institutional structure already exists
in respect of public financial management and accountability.
Yet, in view of the change in the economic policy environment
its suitability to the needs of the new model of development
is yet to be known. This article aims to take stock of selected
aspects of fiscal management and assesses the adequacy of
the existing systems, policies and programmes in line with
internationally accepted rules, regulations and codes of good
practices and also examines whether sufficient capacity to
implement related reforms is available. In particular, the
study focuses on: the basic budget preparation and parliamentary
control system; systems of budget monitoring; system of expenditure
reporting and controls; the accounting policies and codes
of conduct; and also the budget comprehensiveness and reliability. |
