India’s Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has reported that utilisation certificates for government grants worth ₹54,282.32 crore remained pending as of March 31, 2025, according to its latest audit of Union Government accounts.
The findings, contained in the Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India on Accounts of the Union Government for the Year 2024-25 (Report No. 6 of 2026 – Financial Audit), highlight persistent delays in the submission of documents required to verify the use of public funds.
According to the report, 33,973 utilisation certificates (UCs) were outstanding across 15 ministries and departments. Of the total outstanding certificates, 13,926 UCs worth ₹38,287.52 crore relate to the three recent financial years, from 2021-22 to 2023-24. The report also noted that some pending utilisation certificates date back to 1985-86.
The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (Grant No. 60) recorded the highest value of outstanding utilisation certificates, with 1,992 pending UCs amounting to ₹18,272.91 crore. The Department of Higher Education (Grant No. 26) followed with 3,530 pending UCs worth ₹14,359.76 crore. Together, the two accounted for 5,522 outstanding UCs valued at ₹32,632.67 crore, which is about 60% of the total amount highlighted in the CAG report.
Utilisation certificates are documents submitted by grant recipients to confirm that funds have been used for the purposes for which they were sanctioned.
“The receipt of UCs is the only mechanism to confirm that funds have been utilised for their intended purpose,” the CAG said in the report, adding that ministries and departments should establish stronger systems to ensure timely submission by grantee institutions.
The audit noted that the persistence of pending utilisation certificates indicated that ministries and departments had not adequately addressed the issue despite repeated observations in earlier audit reports.
Several ministries informed auditors that measures were being taken to reduce the backlog. The Ministry of Education said it had developed an information technology system to monitor utilisation certificate data, while the Ministries of Culture, Ayush, Tribal Affairs, Women and Child Development, and the Department of Pharmaceuticals reported ongoing efforts to address pending cases.
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, the Ministry of Planning, the Department of Health and Family Welfare, and the Ministry of Shipping, Ports and Waterways said they had taken up the matter with programme divisions and implementing agencies to minimise delays. The report noted that some ministries did not provide responses to the audit observations.
To strengthen oversight, the CAG recommended developing a digital module integrated with the Public Financial Management System (PFMS), enabling implementing agencies to directly record expenditure details and helping reduce delays in utilisation certificate submissions.
Why Utilisation Certificates Matter:
Under India’s General Financial Rules (GFR) 2017, organisations receiving government grants must submit Utilisation Certificates (UCs) to demonstrate that public funds were used for the purpose for which they were sanctioned. The rules require non-recurring grant recipients to furnish UCs within 12 months after the close of the financial year, failing which ministries or departments may blacklist the institution or organisation from receiving future grants, subsidies, or other forms of government financial assistance.
Note: This article has been updated to include additional information from the audit report.
