Receipt and Payment Rules -1983 Part 3 -SECTION I: GENERAL RULES RELATING TO CLAIMS FOR WITHDRAWALS AND MANNER OF PAYMENT

 

PART III WITHDRAWAL FROM THE GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT

SECTION I:  GENERAL RULES RELATING TO CLAIMS FOR WITHDRAWALS AND MANNER OF PAYMENT

28. Mode of withdrawals.—

Save as otherwise specially provided in these rules or unless Government in the Ministry of Finance (Department of Expenditure) otherwise direct in any case, no withdrawal of money may be made from the Government Account except by presentation of bill in support of relevant claim for the purpose.

Explanation.—A bill is a statement of claims against the Government containing specification of the nature and amount of the claim, either in gross or by items, and includes such a statement presented in the form of a simple receipt. A bill becomes a voucher only when it is receipted and stamped 'PAID'. Office copies of bills (except of regular monthly pay and allowances bill vide Note under rule 66) may be retained by each Drawing Officer bearing only his initials (and not full signatures) and the words 'office copy' prominently written thereon.

29. Presentation of claims.—

Save as hereinafter provided bills drawn and presented by a departmental officer to an Accounts Officer or to a cheque drawing DDO shall themselves be duly receipted for payments. Separate receipts, duly affixed with revenue stamp wherever necessary, shall be obtained and furnished to the bill passing and paying authority at the time of receiving payment from him in respect of all other payments claimed through bills.

30. Claims of, and payments to Suppliers, etc.—

(1)             When a person not in the Government employment claims payment for work done, service rendered or articles supplied, such claims shall, unless there are express orders of the Government to the contrary, be submitted through the Head of the Department or other responsible Government officer under whose immediate order the service was done or the equivalent was given for which payment is demanded. The officer to whom such a claim is submitted, shall be responsible for Completing the necessary formalities and for making the payment with due expedition. The payment may be made by the officer by any recognised mode of payment, that is by cheque as far as possible or by bank draft, or by Cash or by postal money order at the request and expense of the payee concerned. The other relevant rules of this Section may also be observed for the purpose. A certificate to the effect that the payment has been made to the proper person and that a proper acknowledgement has been obtained and filed in his office may be sent to the Accounts Officer when the payment is made to a private party.

(2)             Payments to pensioners are governed by rules 319 to 374 (both inclusive) and 441 of the Treasury Rules of the Central Government.

NOTE 1.—Payments due to contractors may, if so desired by them, be made to their banks instead of direct to contractors, provided that the department concerned obtains:

(i)              an authorisation from the contractor in the form of a legally valid document such as a power of attorney or transfer deed, conferring authority on the bank to revive payment, and

(ii)             the contractor's own acceptance of the correctness of the amount made out as being due to him by the Government; or his signature on the bill or other claim preferred against the Government before settlement of the account or claim by payment to the said bank. While the acknowledgement by a bank of cheque or draft received towards payment shall constitute a full and sufficient discharge, for the payment, contractors should, wherever possible, be induced to present their bills duly receipted and discharged through their bankers. Nothing herein contained should operate to create in favour of the bank any right or equity vis-a-vis the Government.

NOTE 2.—Income tax is required to be deducted at source at the rate of 2 per cent in all cases of payment to contractors and sub-contractors exceeding Rs.10,000 in terms of the provisions of Section 194-C of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (43 of 1961).

31. Permanent Advances.—

Government officers may make such payments as are authorised to be paid out of permanent advances or imprests which they are permitted to hold under orders of competent authority issued in terms of rule 90 of the General Financial Rules, 1963 subject to recoupment on presentation of bills.

32. Arrear Claims.—

Claims against the Government which are not preferred within two year of their becoming due would attract the provision of rules 82 to 88 of the General Financial Rules, 1963. After relevant requirements thereof are satisfied, they may be presented to the Accounts Officer for pre-check payment; provided, further, that this rule shall not apply to claims on account of arrears of pensions, the payment of which is regulated by rule 369 of the Treasury Rules of the Central Government.

33. Preparation of bills.—

The following instructions with regard to preparation of bills shall be observed.

(i)       Printed forms of bills as prescribed under these rules or other departmental regulations should, as far as possible, be used. Bill for all debt-head items should be drawn in separate forms printed in red ink on white paper.

(ii)      If, in any case, the use of a bill purely in any regional language becomes unavoidable, a brief abstract should be endorsed in English under the signature of the preferring officer stating the amount, the name of payee and the nature of the payment. .

(iii)     All bills must be filled in and signed in ink; entries and signature with ball point pens are also permissible provided the same are clear and legible. The amount of each bill should, as far as whole rupees are concerned be written in words as well as in figures. The fraction of a rupee may, however, be written in figures after the words stating the number of rupees, but in the event of there being no fraction of a rupee, the word 'only' must be inserted after the number of whole rupees and care should be taken to leave no space for interpolation as in the following examples 'Rupees twenty-six only' 'Rupees twenty-five and 25 paise'.

(iv)    All corrections and alterations in the total of a bill whether made in words or figures should be attested by the full signature, with date, of the person signing the receipt as many times as such corrections and alterations are made.

NOTE.—Erasures and overwriting in any bill are absolutely forbidden and must be avoided; if any correction be necessary, the incorrect entry should be cancelled neatly in red ink and the correct entry inserted. Each such correction or any interpolation deemed necessary should be authenticated by the drawing officer setting his full signature with date against each.

(v)     The full accounts classification must be recorded on each bill by the drawing officer, the classification in the Budget being taken as a guide. The classification should also show whether the expenditure is voted or charged; and as far as practicable, its allocation between departments or between Central Government and State Governments where necessary.

(vi)    Charges against two or more major heads should not be included in one bill.

NOTE.—This does not apply to the allowances of a Government servant drawn with pay, as in such case, the whole of the allowances, even if belonging to two or more major heads of accounts, should be drawn on a single bill, if debitable wholly to the Government.

(vii)   When bills are presented on account of charges incurred under any special orders, the order

sanctioning the charge should be quoted and the sanction attached to the bill.

(viii)  Dates of payment should, when possible, be noted by the payees in their

acknowledgements in sub-vouchers and acquittance rolls. If, for any reason (such as illiteracy or the presentation of receipts in anticipation of payment), it is not possible for the dates of payment to be noted by the payees, the dates of actual payment should be noted by disbursing officers on the documents under their initials either separately for each payment or by groups as may be found convenient.

(ix)    When payment is desired wholly or partly by a bank draft (wherever payment by bank draft is permissible) or by cheques in favour of another payee, formal application for the draft or cheque should accompany the bill and the manner in which the payment is desired should also be indicated in the drawer's receipt on the bill.

(x)     the spaces left blank either in the money column or in the columns for particulars of the bill should invariably be covered by oblique lines.

(xi)    A note to the effect that the amount of the bill is below a specified amount expressed in whole rupees, which is slightly in excess of the total amount of the bill, should invariably be recorded in the body of the bill in red ink.

34. Form of bills.—

The forms prescribed for the preparation of bills relating to various classes of claims such as pay and allowances of Government servants, contingencies, and the procedure to be observed in the presentation of such claims are specified in the rules in the subsequent Sections and Parts.

NOTE 1.—A Bill Register in Form GAR 9 should be maintained by all Heads of Offices who are authorised to draw money on bills signed by them. The register should be reviewed monthly by a gazetted officer and the result of the review recorded thereon.

NOTE 2.—A Bill Transit Register in Form GAR 10 should be maintained by all Heads of Offices who are authorised to draw money from the Accounts Officer/ cheque drawing D.D.O. as the case may be. To prevent presentation of fraudulent bills, the register should be reviewed bi-weekly by a gazetted officer and the result of the review recorded thereon.

35. Signature and counter-signature on bills.—

(1)             Unless Government have expressly authorised it in the case of any specified office, no payment may be made on a bill or order signed by a clerk instead of by the Head of an Office, although in the absence of the latter the clerk may be signing letters for him. Nor may any money be paid on a bill or order signed with a stamp. When the signature on the bill is given by a mark or seal or thumb or great toe impression, it shall be attested by some known person. Signatures in Indian languages other than Hindi must always be transliterated.

Note 1.-    Bill affixed with facsimile signature of the authorised officer presented by the Posts & Telegraphs Department for telegram and truck call call charges by the municipalities and corporations for water and electricity charges and by Air India on account of their dues against Government (for passage fares, cargo and excess luggage charges), forming sub-vouchers of the contingent bills may be accepted for payment, if otherwise in order. Similarly, the recovery claims and credit notes affxied with facsimile signature of the authorised officer of the Marine, Shipping, Electricity and Forest departments of the Andaman and Nicobar Administration may be accepted, if they are otherwise in order.

Note 2.-    Unsigned bills, prepared on computer, presented by Indian Airlines on account of its dues against the Government (for passage fare, cargo and excess luggage charges) forming sub-vouchers of the contingent bills may be accepted for payment if otherwise in order. The disbursing officer should, however, maintain a record containing the complete details of journeys, etc. so that the claim when presented can be verified.

(2)             The Head of an Office may authorise any Gazetted Officer serving under him to sign a bill or order for him, communicating the name and specimen signature of the officer to the disbursing officer concerned. This will not, however, relieve the Head of the Office in any way of his responsibility for the accuracy of the bill or for the disposal of the money received in payment. When the above arrangements are made due to his temporary absence from headquarters on account of leave or tour, he should immediately, on return, check that the bills passed and cheques issued by the nominated officer during the period of his absence are correct, the payments have been properly accounted for and record a certificate to this effect in the cash book. Similar action may also be taken in case the arrangements are made due to his transfer but in that case, the prescribed verification may be made by the successor officer, soon after he takes over the new charge.

(3)             Bill requiring previous counter-signature shall not be presented for payments before such counter signature has been obtained.

36. Duplicates and copies of bills, etc.-

(1)             No Government officer may issue duplicates or copies of bills or other documents for the payment of money which has already been paid, on the allegation that the originals have been lost. If any necessity arises for such a document, a certificate may be given that on a specified day a certain sum was paid to a certain person. This prohibition extends only to the issue of duplicates on the allegation that the originals have been lost and does not apply to cases, if any, in which by any rule or order, duplicates have to be prepared and tendered with the originals.

(2)             In the case of a bill passed by the Drawing Officer or Controlling Officer for presentation to an Accounts Officer or cheque-drawing D.D.O. as the case may be, but lost either before payment or before such presentation, the Government Officer , who drew the original bill shall ascertain from the Accounts Officer or Cheque drawing DDO that payment has not been made on it, before he issues a duplicate thereof. The duplicate copy if issued must bear distinctly on its face the word 'duplicate' written in red ink. The fact that duplicate bill has been issued shall be immediately communicated to the Accounts Officer or cheque-drawing D.D.O. as the case may be, with instructions to refuse payments on the original bill if presented.

NOTE.-    For the purposes of this rule, the Accounts Officer or cheque-drawing DDO, on receipt of a request from any Drawing or Controlling Officer shall, after due verification from his records, furnish a certificate in the following form:-

"Certified that Bill No........................ dated ..................... for Rs......................

(Rupees .................................) reported by .................................. (Drawing Officer) to have been drawn by him in favour of ....................... has not been paid, and will not be paid if presented hereafter".

(3)             When any kind of bill is required to be prepared in duplicate or triplicate, only one copy shall be signed or counter-signed in full and the other copy or copies may be only initialled. Only the original copy shall be sent Accounts Officer or cheque-drawing D.D.O. for payment.

37. Stamps for receipts-

Receipts from all sums exceeding Rs.20 must be stamped under section 3 read with item 53 of Schedule-I of the Indian Stamp Act, 1899 (2 of 1899) unless they are exempt from stamp duty.

NOTE 1.-    The limit of Rs.20 upto which a receipt is not required to be stamped should be applied to the net amount payable on a bill and not to the gross claim preferred therein.

NOTE 2.-    Receipts for payment made outside India should be obtained from the payees and stamped in accordance with local laws, if any, governing the stamping of such receipts.

38. Source from which cheque books are to be obtained.-

(1)             Subject as hereinafter provided in this rule, cheques on the accredited bank shall be drawn on forms contained in cheque books supplied by the Accounts Officer or cheque-drawing D.D.O. concerned. Cheque books are not to be obtained from the bank for the purpose.

(2)             Drawing Officers of the Defence, Railways and Posts and Telegraphs shall obtain their supplies of cheque books under departmental arrangements.

(3)             Accounts Officers specially authorised by the Government to write cheques by means of chequeperforating machines may obtain their supply of, cheque forms by requisition from the Deputy Controller of Stamps, Central Stamp Stores, Nasik Road. Such cheque forms shall be in continuous lengths and shall not be bound in books.

39. Intimating branch bank regarding cheque book to be used.—

(1) The Accounts Officer or cheque-drawing D.D.O. shall notify to the branch bank upon with he draws, the number of each cheque book which, from time to time; he brings into use and the number of cheques it contains. The bank will keep a record of these particulars for verifying the genuineness of the cheques presented for encashment.

NOTE.—Where cheques are authorised to be written by means of cheque perforating machines, there will be no separate book number on the cheque forms. In such cases, the numbers assigned to cheque forms intended to be used during a particular period shall be intimated to the relevant branches of the accredited bank by the concerned Principal Accounts Office.

40. Scrutiny, safe custody and surrender of cheque books.—

(1)             Cheque books shall, on receipt, be carefully examined by the drawing officer who should count the number of forms contained in each and record a certificate of count on the flyleaf.

(2)             Each cheque book must be kept under lock and key in the personal custody of the Accounts Officer and cheque-drawing D.D.O. who, when relieved, shall take a receipt for the exact number of cheques made over to the relieving officer.

(3)             In cases where withdrawal of funds by cheques is no longer necessary, all the cheque forms of cheque books which remain partly or wholly unused shall be surrendered to the Accounts Officer who will put to proper use the books which are wholly unused after either taking them on stock under intimation to the Principal Accounts Office and destroy by incineration the partly used ones under personal supervision after keeping note of the fact in the relevant records under proper attestation.

41. Intimating branch bank about loss of cheque book, bank cheque form.—

The loss of a cheque book or a blank cheque form shall be notified promptly to the branch bank with which the Accounts Officer or cheque drawing D.D.O. concerned has his account.

42. Instructions for indicating amounts of cheques.—

All cheques shall have written across them in words at right angles to the type, a sum a little in excess of that for which they are drawn; thus 'under rupees thirty only' will mean that the cheque is for a sum not less than Rs. 20 but less than Rs. 30 and similarly 'under rupees eight hundred only' will mean that it is for less than Rs 800 but not less than Rs. 700. The amount shall be written in the manner prescribed for bills in clause (iii) of rule 33 and no abbreviation such as eleven hundred for 'one thousand one hundred' is permissible.

NOTE 1.—In drawing or cashing a cheque, it should be remembered that a common form of fraud consists in altering the words 'one' into 'four' by prefixing an 'f' changing the 'e' into 'r', the figures being easily altered to correspond. The word 'twenty' written carelessly has also sometimes been changed into 'seventy', the drawer of a cheque in which these words occur should, therefore, so write them as to make the fraud impossible.

NOTE 2.—The cross entry is not necessary if the amount in words is type perforated by special cheque writing machine.

NOTE 3.—There is no bar on cheques being drawn for less than Rs. 10. However, in the case of the Postal Section of the Posts and Telegraphs Department, the lowest sum for which a cheque may be issued is Rs. 100.

NOTE 4.—All cheques should be written and signed in indelible ink only.

43. Attestation of corrections, alterations in a cheque.—

All corrections and alterations in a cheque shall be attested by the drawing officer over his full signature.

44. Types of cheque forms.—

(1)             Cheque drawn in favour of Government offices or Departments or payment on account of interdepartmental or inter-Governmental dues shall be crossed and the words "for credit to Government account and not payable in cash" written between the lines.

NOTE.—A distinct format for this type of cheques, bearing the superscription "Government Account" has been approved by the Controller General of Accounts for use by the Accounts Offices and also by cheque drawing

D.D.Os who have to pay telephone bills through cheques of this category in terms of rule 114 and are functioning under the scheme of departmentalisation of Central (Civil) Accounts for the purpose of payment of interdepartmental, inter-Governmental claims. These cheques are not negotiable and not payable in cash but creditable to Government Account only. These special cheque forms, therefore, do not require to be crossed as indicated in this sub-rule.

(2)             Cheques payable to Government officers to enable them to make disbursement in cash, such as of pay and allowances of establishments, of contingent expenditure on behalf of the. Government, shall be issued in favour of the disbursing Government officer concerned by designation, the word "only" being added after the designation of the payee officer on the cheque. Such cheques shall bear the superscription "not transferable" on the top and are not negotiable.

NOTE 1.—A distinct format for this type of cheques bearing the superscription "Not-Transferable" has also been approved by the Controller General of Accounts for use by Accounts Offices and by cheque-drawing D.D.Os under the scheme referred to in the note under sub-rule (1).

NOTE 2.—In the case of such cheques, the payments will be made to the payee or to his messenger holding a letter or authority for proper identification. The specimen signatures of these officers will be supplied to the bank in advance and care will be taken by the bank to see that the signature given as discharge on the cheque agrees with the specimen signature on its records.

(3)             (a) Subject to the provisions of clause (b), all cheques towards payment or personal claims of Government servants, pensioners, contractors, suppliers and public sector companies and corporation shall be drawn as payable to or order of the payee.

(b) Cheques coming within the purview of clause (a), if drawn on the bank shall be crossed with the superscription "Account Payee only" wherever the amount exceeds Rs. 1000 in regard to salary cheque, or wherever the amount exceed Rs.500 in respect of non-salary cheques. Such non-salary cheque for an amount not exceeding Rs. 1000 may, however, be issued as open cheque if so desired by the payee but only as order cheque. It should be ensured that no payee makes it a practice to get uncrossed cheques in his favour as a matter of course. {Refer Correction Slip 23}

NOTE 1.—A distinct format for this type of cheques bearing the words "Pay to......... or order" on its body has been approved by the Controller General of Accounts for use by Accounts Offices and cheque drawing D.D.Os under the said scheme.

NOTE 2.—Government servants are permitted to receive their salary in cash or by cheque at their option. Acquittance for the payments made to them shall be obtained in accordance with the provisions of rule 92 of these rules. An option, in this regard will, however, be exercised in March every year for the ensuing financial year. Payments other than of salary will also be made by the same kind of payment as of salary. However, in bases where salary is payable in cash, other payments like house building advance may nevertheless be paid by cheque if these are heavy and where specifically requested for in writing by the payee.

NOTE 3.—In cases where the working of any bank accredited to a Ministry, Department or Union territory is affected by go-slow and timely payment of salary and other payments is likely to be delayed, the officers and staff getting salary by cheques may be issued 'open' instead of 'Account Payee' cheques even when the amount to be paid in a case exceeds Rs. 1000. For this purpose, the provisions contained in clause (b) of sub-rule 3 may be relaxed by the Chief Controller of Accounts or Controller of Accounts or Deputy Controller of Accounts with the approval of the Financial Adviser in respect of payments to be made at the headquarters of the Ministry or Department. At other places, similar action may be taken by the concerned Pay and Accounts Officer with the approval of the Head of Department, subject to the condition that whenever such relaxation is granted, a report to that effect is immediately furnished to the Chief Controller, Controller of Accounts or Deputy Controller of Accounts, as the case may be. This procedure may also be followed by the relevant offices in the Posts and Telegraphs, Defence and Railway Departments.

NOTE 4.—'Open' cheque will invariably be made over to the individual payees through the concerned Drawing and Disbursing Officers who would be responsible for obtaining their acknowledgement in the register in Form GAR 11.

45. Period of validity of a cheque.—

Cheque shall be payable at any time within three months after the month of issue; thus a cheque bearing any date in January is payable at any time upto 30th April.

NOTE.—The provisions of this rule do not apply to cheques drawn on local banks by the Indian Missions and Posts abroad. The period of currency of cheques in these cases will be determined according to local regulations of the country concerned.

46. Procedure for revalidation of a time-barred cheque, etc.—

(1)             A time-barred cheque may be received back by the drawer and in a case where its amount was not cancelled and written back in the accounts in accordance with the provisions of sub-rule (2) of rule 47 and it is not older than one year from its original date, may be revalidated under the signature of the drawer by changing the date; otherwise, a new cheque may be issued in lieu thereof, after he satisfies himself about the reasons for its non-encashment and also justification for revalidation or issue of a new cheque in lieu. The fact of receipt of the time-barred cheque and action taken should be noted on its counterfoil and in the register of cheques delivered; and in the latter case, necessary cross reference should be given in the new counterfoil. Where the drawer of the cheque is a cheque drawing D.D.O., he should deface it suitably and forward it to the Pay and Accounts Office alongwith the list of payments, in support of the item representing the drawal of the new cheque.

(2)             In the event of the non-return of the time-barred cheque to the drawer, the drawer should, on the expiry of the prescribed period of 3 months after the month of issue of the cheque, request the payee either to return the cheque or explain the causes for its non-return and take further action, as may be necessary, in terms of the provisions of rule 47 or 48, as the case may be.

47. Procedure for cancellation of a cheque.—

(1)             When it is necessary to cancel a cheque, (i) in cases where the cheque is not issued, its cancellation should be recorded with dated signature on the counterfoil and the cheque should be destroyed;

(ii)                 where it is issued and withdrawn, after similar note on its counterfoil, it should be defaced; and forwarded to the Pay and Accounts Office where the drawer is a cheque-drawing D.D.O.; entries in the accounts should be suitably reversed;

(iii)                if the cheque is not in the drawer's possession after satisfying himself with reference to his records (namely payment and error scrolls and register of cheques delivered) that it is not paid, he should promptly send an intimation by registered post (acknowledgement due) to the branch bank on which it is drawn to stop payment of the cheque. In case the drawer is a chequedrawing D.D.O., he should inform the Pay and Accounts Office. If the currency of the cheque has not expired at the time of sending the intimation, the bank shall acknowledge in writing in the

form indicated in clause (i) of sub-rule (2) of rule 48 that it has kept a note of the 'stop payment' order.

(2)             A cheque remaining unpaid for any cause, six months after the month of its issue and not surrendered for renewal should be cancelled in the manner indicated in clause (iii) of sub-rule (1) with the difference that no acknowledgement of the stop order may be insisted from the bank. Its amount should also be written back in the accounts.

NOTE.—Fan-fold cheques used in the Defence Accounts Department and cheque forms in continuous lengths permitted to be used by certain offices under the provisions of sub-rule (3) of rule 38 have no counterfoil. The cancellation of such cheques, should, therefore, be recorded by the drawing office on the copy of the schedule of cheques issued and the register of bill payments, as the case may be.

48. Lost cheques.—

(1)             A request for the issue of a cheque in lieu of a cheque alleged to be lost, may be entertained if the request is received by the Pay and Accounts Officer or Accounts Officer or cheque-drawing D.D.O. who had issued the original cheque, within a period of one year from the date of issue of the original cheque, irrespective of the date on which the relevant claim had accrued. However, the concerned Principal Accounts Officer may, nevertheless, order entertainment of such a request received by the Pay and Accounts Officer or Accounts Officer of cheque-drawing D.D.O. within a period of 3-1/2 years from the date on which the relevant claim had become due, wherever this is beneficial.

(2)             The Pay and Accounts Officer shall proceed with a request relating to a cheque issued by him and which satisfies the above conditions in the manner stated below:

(i)                   The Pay and Accounts Office should send an intimation by registered post, acknowledgement due, to the bank drawn on regarding the alleged loss of the cheque and advise it to stop payment if the cheque alleged to have been lost is presented for payment thereafter. If the currency of such a cheque has not expired in terms of rule 45 ibid at the time of sending such an intimation, the bank shall acknowledge in writing in the following form, that it has kept a note of the Stop Payment Order:—

"We acknowledge receipt of your letter No.....dated.......... and advice having noted to stop payment of cheque No .... ........dated .......for Rs...........Rupees....... favouring.............

In this connection, it is certified, that cheque No. ............dated. ........for Rs. ..... reported by the drawing officer to have been drawn by him on this bank in favour of....... ..... .will not be paid if presented thereafter."

In case, however, the currency of the cheque alleged to have been lost has expired when the intimation regarding loss of cheque is sent to the bank, no acknowledgement of the Stop Payment Order may be insisted from the bank. The postal acknowledgement may be treated as sufficient for the record of the Pay and Accounts Office.

(ii)                 The Pay and Accounts Officer should satisfy himself with reference to the records maintained in his office such as the payment or error scrolls received from the paying bank and register of cheques delivered, that the payment of the cheque in question has not been made. He should also keep a suitable note on the counter-foil of the lost cheque and against the relevant entries in the register of cheques delivered and paid voucher, regarding the Issue of a fresh cheque in lieu of the lost one.

(iii)                The Party requesting for the issuance of a fresh cheque in lieu of the lost one should execute an indemnity bond in Form G.A.R. 12. However, in the case of a Government Department, Public Undertakings wholly owned by Government or the bank, the execution of such an indemnity bond is not necessary but a fresh cheque should, in these cases, be issued only on receipt of a certificate that the cheque alleged to have been lost was not received by them or having received the same, it was lost and further that it will be returned to the Pay and Accounts Office if found afterwards.

(iv)                on completion of the requirements in clauses (i) to (iii), the Pay and Accounts Officer Officer may issue a fresh cheque in lieu of the lost one under intimation to the drawee office.

NOTE: If the currency of the lost cheque expires on Saturday, the Pay and Accounts Officer shall also verify the scroll of cheques paid for the subsequent working day of the bank for purposes of clause (ii) and sub-rule (3).

(3)             When cheque drawing D.D.O. reports to the paying branch of the bank about a cheque issued by him having been lost, the bank shall record a 'Stop' against the cheque and issue an acknowledgement in the form given in clause (i) of sub-rule 2. On receiving a copy of this acknowledgement from the said cheque-drawing D.D.O., the Pay and Accounts Officer concerned will after verification of his relevant records such as register of cheques delivered and after keeping a suitable note against the relevant entry in that register, issue a nonpayment certificate to the cheque drawing D.D.O. in the following form:—

"Certified that cheque No.————dated——for Rs.—————reported by (the drawing officer) to have been drawn by him on.... .......branch of ........ bank in favour of—————has not been paid".

The cheque-drawing D.D.O. will note particulars of the non-payment certificate received by him against the relevant entry in the office copy of the list of payments, to indicate that the original cheque has not been paid and it has been 'stopped' from payment. A similar note will also be made by him on the counterfoil of that cheque and office copy of the relevant paid voucher before issuing a fresh cheque in lieu thereof. Provisions of clause (iii) of sub-rule 2 will be followed for the purpose of issue of a fresh cheque and the number and date of the fresh cheque will also be noted on the list of payments, paid voucher and counterfoil of the old and cancelled cheque. While the paying bank need not thus issue 'non-payment certificate', there will be no change in their responsibilities in regard to lost cheques. All usual precautions will continue to be exercised by them with a view to ensuring that a cheque in respect of which 'stop' advice has been received, is not subsequently paid.

(4)             If it is found afterwards, that the original cheque had been paid, the Pay and Accounts Officer will take up the matter with the paying branch telegraphically and stop payment of the renewed cheque if not already paid. He will also reverse the entries made in the relevant record (including counterfoils) on this account on receipt of confirmation of this fact from the paying branch. In case the renewed cheque is reported to have been paid by then, he will place the paid amount under the head of account "858-Suspense Accounts-Suspense Account (Civil)-cheques cancelled but paid" till the matter is investigated and the amount is recovered or written off. The paid cheque will also be removed from the payment scroll and kept in the personal custody of the Pay and Accounts Office till then. In case the fact of such payment is noticed by the drawing and disbursing officer, he will report the matter immediately to the paying branch and inform the Pay and Accounts Officer accordingly by a telegram for further action.

49. Date of payment.—

(1)             For the purpose of this rule, payment realised by the payee by encashing a cheque revalidated in terms of sub-rule (1) of rule 46 or a fresh cheque obtained in terms of sub-rule (1) of rule 48 shall be treated as payment realised by encashing the original cheque. Without prejudice to the provisions of rule 190 of the General Financial Rules 1963, the date of payment when payment is made by a cheque of the type referred to in clause (a) of sub-rule (3) of rule 44 will be reckoned as—

(i)   the cheque is handed over to the payee or to his authorised messenger,

(a)                    the bank's working day next to the date of the cheque if the cheque does not bear superscription in terms of Note 2 or

(b)                    the specific date superscribed in terms of Note 2 on the cheque, as the case may be; or

(ii)  if it is posted to the payee in pursuance of a request for sending it by post, the date on which

the cover containing it is put into the post or the date under sub-clause (b) of clause (i), whichever is later.

(2)             Wherever payment is arranged by means of a bank draft to a payee located at a station different from that of the authority competent to draw relevant cheque (against which the draft is purchased), the date of payment will be reckoned as—

(i)   date on which it is handed over to the payee or his authorised agent (presuming that no undue delay is caused by the payee in this regard) or the specific date superscribed in terms of Note 2, if the latter date is later; or

(ii)  if it is posted to the payee, the date on which the cover containing it is put into the post or the said specific date whichever is later, as the case may be.

NOTE 1.—Payment made by Government by postal money order or by any other recognised mode of remitting money by post shall be reckoned as having been made on the date on which the receipt for the money is issued by the post office.

NOTE 2.—The superscription "payable on or after. .. ." (specific date of payment to be indicated in the blank space) may be recorded on cheques wherever necessary. The superscription should invariably be affixed with a rubber stamp in bold letters just below the date of issue of the cheque. The contemplated due date of payment should preferably be written in red ink. In the case of a bank draft also, similar superscription could be got endorsed by the bank.

(3)             Cases of payment of Rs. 1 crore and above to a public sector undertaking/ Government aided institution, have to be authorised by the concerned PAO at New Delhi through the Reserve Bank of India, New Delhi, which will afford credit to the bank (current) account of the beneficiary by affording contra-debit to the Ministry's/ Department's account with the Reserve Bank. The date of payment in such cases will be the date indicated against the relevant entry in the payment scroll rendered by the Reserve Bank.

50. Letters of Credit against assignment accounts, etc.--

(l) The Accounts Officer concerned shall communicate to the relevant branch of the accredited bank, the amount of quarterly assignment authorised in favour of cheque drawing D.D.O.s rendering account to him. A fresh letter of credit, issued after expiry of the period prescribed in the earlier letter of credit will be treated as an addition to the unspent balance of the earlier letter of credit. The Pay and Accounts Officers, while communicating the assignment for the second and subsequent quarters should indicate not only the amount assigned for that quarter, but also the progressive total of alignment upto the end of the quarter so that the bank is able to ensure that the total cumulative drawals from the beginning of the year do not exceed the total progressive assignments. However, the assignment remaining unspent as at the end of a financial year is not to be carried forward to the first quarter of the next financial year. The paying branch is responsible to ensure that at no time the amount assigned in the letter of credit is exceeded by the payment of any cheque. The cheques actually issued during the last quarter but presented for payment during the next quarter (within the period of validity) will be taken by the bank against the assignment of the year in which they were drawn and not against the assignment of the year in which they are paid.

(2) A drawing officer in whose favour an assignment account has been opened in the accredited bank, is not permitted to draw the whole amount and place it in a separate account in the bank or in a private account.

NOTE.—It is not also permissible to draw cheques and deposit the amount in the department's cash chest at the end of the year for the purpose of showing the full amount of the grant as utilised.

51. Specimen signatures and other safeguards.— 

(1)             Every Government officer who is authorised to (i) sign or countersign bills shall send a specimen of his signatures to his Accounts Officer through some superior officer or predecessor whose specimen signature is already with the Accounts Officer and (ii) draw cheques, shall send specimen of his signatures similarly to the branch bank concerned (and also to the Accounts Officer in cases where the officer is cheque-drawing

D.D.O.). When such an officer makes over charge of his office to another, he shall likewise send a specimen of the signature of the relieving officer to the Accounts Officer and bank concerned.

(2)             Specimen signatures when forwarded on a sheet of paper, other than the forwarding letter itself, must be duly attested by the officer signing the forwarding letter.

NOTE.—The Mint Masters are exempted from circulating the specimen signature of their officers issuing Mint Out-turn Certificates payable at the bank.

52. Comparison of signature with the specimen, etc.—

(i) With regard to claims presented, the signature of the drawing officer shall be compared carefully with his specimen signature received under rule 51 before payment is ordered.

NOTE.—Specimen signatures received should be carefully pasted in guard files which must be kept in the personal custody of the Accounts Officer and cheque drawing D.D.O.

(2)             Special precautions must be taken as regards all bills and documents showing signs of alteration and if such documents be frequently received from any office, the attention of the Head of the Office shall be formally drawn to the irregularity.

(3)             No document bearing an erasure can be accepted and payment on such documents shall be refused and a fresh document called for.

53. Special seal to be affixed on payment authorities.—

All orders and authorities for payment wherever required to be issued from one Accounts Office on another (e.g. Pension Payment authority) will be stamped with a special seal, which will remain in the personal custody of the officer signing them, and specimen impression of the seal duly attested will be supplied to all Accounts Officers concerned.

NOTE.—The provisions of this rule are not applicable to payment orders issued by or upon Defence Accounts Officers.

54. Payment by postal money order.—

(1)             In case in which money due by the Government is paid by Postal Money Order, the cost of remittance shall, in the absence of any special rule or order to the contrary, be borne by the payee.

(2)             Wherever money is withdrawn by departmental officers under these rules, from Government Account for payment, such as to a refundee in cash, and the claimant does not receive it (or arrange to receive it) within a month from the date of drawal in spite of intimation thereof, and where individual payments are of value upto Rs. 100, the money may be remitted to the payee by postal money order irrespective of whether a request to this effect has been received from the payee or not.

55. Rules applicable to officers in charge of Military Treasure chest etc. in dealing with claims.—

Unless there be anything repugnant in the subject or context, and subject to such variation or modification as may be authorised by departmental regulations, the rules contained in Rules 177 to 204 of the Treasury Rules of the Central Government shall be followed generally by officers-in-charge of Military Treasures chests, and offices of the Posts and Telegraphs department mentioned in rule 4, in dealing with claims against the Government that may be presented to them for disbursement.

56. Vouchers for payment.— 

Subject as hereinafter provided in this rule, a Government officer entrusted with the payment of money shall obtain for every payment he makes, including repayment of sums previously lodged with the Government, a voucher setting forth full and clear particulars of the claim and all information necessary for its proper classification and identification in the accounts. Every voucher must bear, or have attached to it, an acknowledgement of the payment signed by the person by whom or on whose behalf the claim is put forward. The acknowledgement shall be taken at the time of payment.

NOTE 1.—As adjustment bills for 'Nil' amount involve no payment, it is not necessary to insist upon any acknowledgement of payment in respect of such bills.

NOTE 2.—A single receipt, stamped where necessary, given by a payee in acknowledgement of several payments or a lump sum payment, either in cash or by cheque, made to him on one occasion, shall constitute a valid quittance and the disbursing officer, in such cases, should give cross reference on all vouchers to which the receipt relates.

57. Certificate of payment in certain circumstances.—

In all cases in which it is not possible or expedient to support a payment by worker or by the payee's receipt, a certificate of payment duly signed by the disbursing officer and counter-signed by his superior officer, together with a memorandum explaining the circumstances, should invariably be placed on record and submitted to the Accounts Officer where necessary. Full particulars of the claims should invariably be set forth; and where this necessitates the use of a regular bill form, the certificate itself may be recorded thereon.

NOTE 1.—In case of articles received by value payable post, the value payable cover together with the invoice or bill showing the details of the items paid for, may be accepted as a voucher. The disbursing officer should endorse a note on the cover to the effect that the payment was made through the Post Office and this also covers charges for the money order commission.

NOTE 2.—A certified copy, marked 'duplicate', of a receipted voucher may be retained by the disbursing officer, should this be necessary to complete the record of his office, but the payee should not be required to sign such a copy or give a duplicate acknowledgement of the payment.

58. Scrutiny of claims presented to a departmental office.—

The provisions of rules 33 and 37 regarding the preparation of bills and giving of stamped receipts shall be carefully observed in regard to claims presented at a departmental office of disbursement.

NOTE.—Cash memoranda which do not contain an acknowledgement of the receipt of money from persons named therein are not receipt within the meaning of clause (23) of section 2 of the Indian Stamp Act, 1899 (2 of 1899). Further, the mere writing of the purchaser's name and address on a cash memorandum for delivery purposes does not transform it into an acknowledgement to the purchaser that the money has been paid. Cash memoranda will not therefore, be regarded as sub-vouchers in audit unless they contain an acknowledgement of the receipt of money from the person named therein (with stamps affixed when the amount exceeds Rs. 20)., or, in cases where this is not practicable, they are stamped 'paid' and initialled by the drawing and disbursing officer. The cash memoranda submitted in support of the claims for reimbursement of the cost of special medicines purchased from the market under the Medical Attendance Rules need not, however, be stamped or bear the supplier's acknowledgement.

59. Instructions relating to affixing pay orders, defacing of stamps affixed on vouchers and manner of cancellation of vouchers.—

(1)             Every voucher must bear a pay order signed or initialled by the responsible disbursing officer, specifying the amount payable both in words and figures. All pay orders must be signed by hand and in ink.

(2)             All paid vouchers must be stamped 'paid' or so cancelled that they cannot be used a second time. Stamps affixed to vouchers must also be Cancelled so that they may not be used again.

(3)             All sub-vouchers to bills must be cancelled in such a manner that they cannot be subsequently used for presenting fraudulent claims or other fraudulent purposes.

60. Safe custody etc., of vouchers and acquittances which are not required to be submitted to Accounts Offices.—

(1)             Vouchers and acquittances which are not required to be submitted to the Accounts Officer shall be filed and retained carefully in the office concerned as important documents till they are destroyed under the orders of competent authority.

(2)             The provisions of rule 109, with regard to cancellation and destruction of sub-vouchers relating to contingent expenditure shall apply generally to sub-vouchers in respect of other classes of payments, unless they are governed by special departmental regulations or orders of the Government to the contrary.

61. Overcharges.—

Subject to such special orders as the Government may issue in any individual case, the responsibility for an overcharge shall rest primarily with the drawer of a bill, and it is only in the event of culpable negligence on the part of the controlling officer or of the Accounts Officer that the question of recovery from either of them may be considered.

62. Audit objections and recoveries.—

(1)             Every Government servant must attend promptly to all objections and orders communicated to him by the Accounts Officer, Internal Check Inspecting Officer and Statutory Audit Officer.

(2)             When an Accounts Officer disallows a payment as unauthorised, the disbursing officer is bound not only to recover the amount disallowed without listening to any objection or protest but to refuse to pay it in future till the Accounts Officer authorises the payment to be resumed.

NOTE.—If a Government servant from whom a recovery is ordered is transferred to the jurisdiction of another disbursing officer, the orders of recovery should be passed on to that disbursing officer without delay.

(3)             Recoveries may not ordinarily be made at a rate exceeding one-third of pay unless the Government servant affected has, in receiving the excess, acted contrary to orders or without due justification or taken an advance for a specific purpose, not utilised it for the purpose (for which the advance was sanctioned) within the prescribed period, and failed to refund the outstanding amount within the stipulated date.