UPPSC 2021 Prelims Q49: The Public Accounts Committee of Indian Parliament

Q: What is the answer to UPPSC 2021 Prelims Q49?

A. Correct — A, Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) is the parliamentary body that examines the audit reports of the CAG placed before Parliament — chiefly the Appropriation Accounts and the Finance Accounts of the Government of India, together with the CAG's audit observations. It checks whether money shown as spent was legally available for, and applied to, the purpose voted by Parliament, and whether spending conformed to the sanctioning authority. The PAC is thus described as examining public expenditure not merely from a legal-formal angle but for economy, prudence and propriety — but the document it works on is the CAG's report. Options (b), (c) and (d) name the government funds/accounts themselves, which are audited by the CAG; the PAC does not scrutinise the funds directly — it scrutinises the CAG's report on them.

UPPSC 2021 Prelims GS Paper-I · Question 49 of 150

Verified against the official question paper. Answer as per the official UPPSC answer key.

The Public Accounts Committee of Indian Parliament scrutinizes the

(a)Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General
(b)Consolidated Fund of India
(c)Public Account of India
(d)Contingency Fund of India

Answer

Why

Correct — A, Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) is the parliamentary body that examines the audit reports of the CAG placed before Parliament — chiefly the Appropriation Accounts and the Finance Accounts of the Government of India, together with the CAG's audit observations. It checks whether money shown as spent was legally available for, and applied to, the purpose voted by Parliament, and whether spending conformed to the sanctioning authority. The PAC is thus described as examining public expenditure not merely from a legal-formal angle but for economy, prudence and propriety — but the document it works on is the CAG's report. Options (b), (c) and (d) name the government funds/accounts themselves, which are audited by the CAG; the PAC does not scrutinise the funds directly — it scrutinises the CAG's report on them.

Why the others are wrong

(b)Consolidated Fund of India — The Consolidated Fund is a government fund (Art. 266) audited by the CAG. The PAC works on the CAG's report about expenditure from this fund, not on the fund itself.
(c)Public Account of India — The Public Account (Art. 266(2)) is again an account audited by the CAG; the PAC examines the CAG's audit findings, so naming the account itself is incorrect.
(d)Contingency Fund of India — The Contingency Fund (Art. 267) is a fund at the disposal of the President for unforeseen expenditure; like the other funds it is audited by the CAG, and the PAC scrutinises the resulting report, not the fund directly.

Concept

The Public Accounts Committee is one of Parliament's key financial committees. It has 22 members — 15 from the Lok Sabha and up to 7 from the Rajya Sabha — elected annually by proportional representation, and by convention (since 1967) its chairperson is drawn from the Opposition. Its core mandate is to examine the audit reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) — the Appropriation Accounts, the Finance Accounts and the CAG's report on them — and to satisfy itself that public money was spent lawfully and for the purposes intended. The CAG acts as the 'friend, philosopher and guide' of the PAC.

The distractors deliberately list the three government funds/accounts — Consolidated Fund, Public Account and Contingency Fund. These are what the CAG audits. The PAC sits one step downstream: it does not audit funds; it scrutinises the CAG's report on them. Fixing that chain — CAG audits the funds → submits report to the President → laid before Parliament → PAC examines the report — points cleanly to option (a).

Key facts

PAC examines the CAG's audit reports (Appropriation Accounts, Finance Accounts) laid before Parliament.
Strength: 22 members (15 Lok Sabha + 7 Rajya Sabha); chair by convention from the Opposition since 1967.
The CAG is the 'friend, philosopher and guide' of the PAC.
The Consolidated Fund, Public Account and Contingency Fund are audited by the CAG — not directly by the PAC.

The circular colonnaded Parliament House (Sansad Bhavan) in New Delhi viewed across landscaped lawns and flowerbeds, with the national flag flying. — the Public Accounts Committee is a committee of Parliament that examines the CAG's audit reports laid before it hereImage: Nikhilb239 · Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Study next

Financial committees of Parliament: PAC, Estimates Committee, Committee on Public UndertakingsComptroller and Auditor General — appointment, powers (Articles 148–151)Consolidated Fund, Public Account and Contingency Fund (Articles 266–267)Budget process and the 'guillotine' / demands for grantsDifference between PAC and Estimates Committee in scope

Common traps

Thinking the PAC directly audits or scrutinises the government funds — it scrutinises the CAG's report on them
Confusing the PAC (post-audit, expenditure) with the Estimates Committee (pre-audit, estimates/economy)

UPPSC and UPSC test the PAC through its function ('scrutinises the CAG's report'), its composition (22 members, no minister), and its relationship with the CAG.

Related PYQs

UPSC_2013_GS1_Q512013Open & attempt →

Consider the following statements : The Parliamentary Committee on Public Accounts 1. Consists of not more than 25 Members of the Lok Sabha 2. Scrutinizes appropriation and finance accounts of the Government 3. Examines the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer(b) 2 and 3 only

Directly the same concept — it confirms the PAC 'examines the report of the CAG' (statement 3, correct), which is exactly what this UPPSC question asks.

UPSC_2001_GS1_Q862001Open & attempt →

Which one of the following duties is NOT performed by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India?

(a) To audit and report on all expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India
(b) To audit and report on all expenditure from the Contingency Funds and Public Accounts
(c) To audit and report on all trading, manufacturing, profit and loss accounts
(d) To control the receipt and issue of public money, and to ensure that the public revenue is lodged in the exchequer

Answer(d) To control the receipt and issue of public money, and to ensure that the public revenue is lodged in the exchequer

Clarifies the distractors — the CAG (not the PAC) audits the Consolidated Fund, Contingency Fund and Public Account; the PAC then scrutinises the CAG's report, which is why option (a) is the answer here.

Practice

practice — not a real PYQ
The Comptroller and Auditor General of India is often described as the 'friend, philosopher and guide' of which body?
- (a)The Union Cabinet
- (b)The Public Accounts Committee
- (c)The Finance Commission
- (d)The NITI Aayog
Answer(b) The Public Accounts Committee — the CAG assists the PAC in examining audit reports of government expenditure.
practice — not a real PYQ
Consider the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament. Which statement is correct?
- (a)It consists only of members of the Lok Sabha
- (b)A Union Minister can be elected to it
- (c)It examines the audit reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General
- (d)It prepares the annual Union Budget
Answer(c) It examines the audit reports of the CAG — no minister can be a member, and it draws members from both Houses.