The Public Accounts Committee has slammed the Ministry of Defence following CAG findings that revealed massive pay irregularities and structural failures in military medical facilities.

Key Takeaways

  • Over 6 lakh pay orders were rejected manually without recorded reasons.
  • Six military hospitals were found operating X-ray machines without radiation licenses.
  • Structural audit failures led to a building collapse in a Lansdowne military hospital.
  • Retiring personnel faced sudden, massive recoveries due to bypassed settlement protocols.

The Parliament's Public Accounts Committee (PAC), chaired by senior Congress leader K.C. Venugopal, has launched a scathing inquiry into the Ministry of Defence. The scrutiny follows a damning report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) highlighting systemic failures in pay disbursement and medical infrastructure safety.

Financial Mismanagement and Pay Irregularities

The CAG audit, covering the period between 2020-21 and 2022-23, examined the management of ₹3,09,975.07 crore in pay and allowances. The findings revealed a staggering inefficiency, with pay processing taking an average of 68 to 80 days. Most alarmingly, more than 6 lakh pay orders were rejected manually without any recorded justification, leading to 50,646 personnel being denied their rightful Risk and Hardship Allowance.

Why This Matters

BozokMedia analysis shows that such administrative bottlenecks in the defense sector do more than just disrupt finances; they erode the morale of the Junior Commissioned Officers (JCOs) who form the backbone of the armed forces. Unexplained rejections and delayed settlements suggest a profound lack of digital integration and accountability within the Principal Controller of Defence Accounts.

The failure to track rejected orders and the bypassing of settlement protocols represent a systemic breakdown in military financial administration.

Retirement Settlement Issues: The committee also highlighted irregularities in the retirement process. By bypassing the mandated Provisional Final Settlement of Accounts, the Ministry has resorted to sudden recoveries from retiring personnel, including a case where ₹3.7 lakh was recovered from a soldier for an incident dating back six years.

Critical Safety Concerns in Military Hospitals

The audit's findings regarding military medical facilities are equally concerning. Out of 19 sampled hospitals, 12 are operating out of vintage buildings, seven of which are over a century old. The committee demanded accountability for the Lansdowne hospital wing collapse in June 2022, which occurred after structural audits were repeatedly ignored. Furthermore, six hospitals were found to be operating X-ray machines without mandatory radiation safety licenses.

Did You Know?: Audited medical depots are meeting only 27% to 43% of the actual demand from military hospitals, forcing them to rely on expensive local procurement.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. How many pay orders remain unresolved?
While a special drive cleared 13.48 lakh orders, approximately 5.94 lakh orders remain unresolved.

2. What is the status of hospital modernization?
The Ministry stated that a new IT integration module and a Cabinet Committee on Security note for modernization are currently under process.