New Delhi: A report by the Comptroller and Auditor (CAG) of India has identified several financial lapses and execution failures in the Union government’s science and environment departments.The CAG report relating to matters arising from the compliance audit of the transactions of seven Scientific and Environmental Ministries/Departments of the Government of India, as well as autonomous bodies and Central Public Sector Enterprises under them, was tabled in the parliament on December 18.BRIT outstanding dues amounting to Rs 152.47 croreThe report found that the Board of Radiation and Isotope Technology (BRIT), which is the industries unit of the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), failed to recover payment for its products from its customers, resulting in outstanding dues amounting to Rs 152.47 crore as of September 2024. It also did not comply with the regulations of tax authorities in time, which led to tax liabilities amounting to Rs 62.04 crore, including service tax, excise duty, cess, interest and penalties.In terms of project management, the CAG found that BRIT was unable to properly monitor and implement nine projects during 2003-04 to 2022-23, which led to both time and cost overruns. The report also said that its pro forma accounts had not been prepared since inception till 2015-16, “without which the Board’s true financial status could not be determined.”The BRIT’s digital initiative in the form of the mobile application BRIT Bandhu also could not become functional since its inception, leading to an ineffective sales and management system, the report said.“BRIT is issuing test certificates of radioactive isotopes of (Caesium) Cs-134, I-131, Ru-103 and Ru-106 without following any approved procedures,” it said.An information technology audit of the functioning of Integrated Information System implemented in the Heavy Water Board, also under the DAE, revealed that core functions like plant status reporting and maintenance management were not utilised as of September 2023, over two years after the go-live date.“This showed that the main objectives of IIS were unmet, with reliance on the older IIS and manual processes risking errors,” the report said.While modules like HR and payroll were partially implemented, they had significant deficiencies and governance committees had failed to review progress and gaps in User Requirement Specification, application controls and information security.“Without full module utilisation, [the] Heavy Water Board was unable to achieve IIS benefits like operational efficiency and data integrity, delaying a fully automated system,” the report said.Unspent fundsThe report said of the total budget allotment of Rs 81,643.39 crore during 2022-23, the Scientific and Environmental Ministries/Departments had an overall saving of Rs 8,917.85 crore, which constitutes 10.92% of the total Grant/Appropriation. Of this unspent sum, that of the Ministry of Earth Sciences was the highest at 40.33%, followed by the Department of Space (25.85%), the Department of Science and Technology (24.03%) and the Department of Biotechnology (17.81%).National Biopharma Mission: Sustained shortage of capacityThe CAG report highlighted that the National Biopharma Mission (NBM) – which was an Industry-Academia Collaborative Mission preparing India’s technological and product development capabilities in the biopharmaceutical sector to a level that it was globally competitive over the next 10-15 years – has suffered from sustained shortage of capacity from the outset which hindered its operations, oversight and contributed to delays.The audit also found that the NBM operated only 12 positions in the programme management unit against the sanctioned 51 positions.“Sustained shortage of capacity within the Programme Management Unit from the outset of the Mission hindered its operations and oversight, contributing to delays, limited competition in project selection and insufficient coordination with other sectors,” the report said.“The Mission has struggled to fully implement the valuable policy guidance from the Steering Committee and the recommendations of the Technical Advisory Group, missing opportunities to strengthen its impact. Monitoring and evaluation processes have fallen short of expectations, with inconsistent follow-up on project progress and a need for greater accountability. Addressing these shortcomings remains essential to realising the Mission’s potential for India’s biopharma sector.”Delays in surveys and research findings of Zoological Survey of IndiaThe CAG found that while the Strategic Plan of Zoological Survey of India (under the Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change) from 2001 focused on conservation of biodiversity, it was poorly executed, with delays of 1-16 years in surveys and research findings.“Due to recruitment inadequacies, 77 % of specimens from the last five years remained unidentified. Infrastructure to protect specimens was absent, disposal procedures were missing and slow digitisation hindered preservation. Non-upgradation of instruments and non-establishment of a Geographical Information System slowed progress,” it said.It also said that despite assurance against an earlier CAG report, ZSI did not develop a Survey Manual even after seven years, impacting the objectives of biodiversity conservation and taxonomic knowledge.Financial lapsesFinancial lapses flagged by the CAG in the report also include the India meteorological department (IMD) that failed to recover Rs 7.28 crore in meteorological charges and statutory levies from private airport operators due to the non-execution of memoranda of understanding. Additionally, the Indian national centre for ocean information services incurred penalties of Rs 1.58 crore for occupying buildings without securing mandatory construction permissions and occupancy certificates.The CAG report also found that the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited/Bhartiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam Limited granted additional increment to its employees irregularly from November 2013 to June 2017, resulting in irregular payments amounting to Rs 8.92 crore.