Civil servants across the country have falsely claimed Nu 8.8 M in Daily Subsistence Allowance (DSA) and mileage since 2020 according to the Royal Audit Authority (RAA). From the total amount, the RAA has recovered Nu 6.7 M so far.
The false claims were caught when the RAA verified data submitted by agencies using the Check Post Management System or CPMS.
Starting July 2022, the RAA initiated auditing through the CPMS to trace movement of civil servants.
The decision to use CPMS data for audit purposes was reached during the annual audit meeting earlier in 2022.
The authority has yet to recover almost Nu 2 M. The authority has audited 10 districts so far. The highest false claims were from Thimphu, followed by Paro and Bumthang.
The RAA said that if a civil servant repeats false claims, the official will be dealt as per the Bhutan Civil Service Rules and Regulations. Parent agencies of the civil servants found to have false claims were also cautioned.
Audit officials said, they considered some genuine cases. The RAA said, some officials claimed that they completed their field work before the allotted time by their agencies and that they should not be fined.
However, according to the audit authority, the DSA is meant primarily for the number of days officials have worked. If they finish their work before the allotted time, they should not be claiming DSA for the remaining days.
Chenga Dawa
Edited by Sherub Dorji
