Finance Ministry asks departments, ministries to surrender savings by Mar 21 - What you need to know

The finance ministry has asked departments and ministries to surrender savings, if any, for the current financial year 2021-22 by March 21.

An office memorandum issued by the Budget Division of the Ministry of Finance informed all departments and ministries that the last date for accepting the surrender of savings anticipated in the Grants for 2021-22 has been fixed as March 21, 2022.

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"lt is therefore requested that the surrenders of savings under each unit of Appropriation may be sent to this Ministry so as to reach the Budget Division latest by March 21," the office memorandum dated March 2 said.

The fund, if not utilised, lapses at the end of March 31 as the new Budget through the Finance Act comes into force from the new financial year beginning April 1.

While surrendering the savings, the excess or shortfall in recoveries, if any, in the respective Grants against the original estimates of recovery may also be furnished, it said.

"Although under gross system of budgeting, it is not necessary to surrender the recoveries, the excess or shortfall in recoveries is required for a review of the budgetary position with reference to the sanctioned provisions and to arrive at the net amount of surrender during the year," it said.

In order to ascertain the actual net expenditure under a particular demand, the ministries/departments are also required to furnish the details of surrenders of savings on net basis latest by March 7.

The savings by ministries or departments would provide some cushion for the shortfall in revenue mobilisation for this fiscal.

The government is running a risk of not meeting revised disinvestment target of Rs 78,000 crore for the current fiscal if the mega initial public offering of LIC is deferred due to geopolitical uncertainties triggered by the Russia-Ukraine crisis.

The government was expecting to garner Rs 63,000 crore by selling 5 per cent stake in the life insurance behemoth.

So far, the government has raised Rs 12,030 crore through CPSE disinvestment and Air India's strategic sale this fiscal.