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With reference to the Union Government, consider the following statements : 1. The Department of Revenue is responsible for the preparation of Union Budget that is presented to the Parliament. 2. No amount can be withdrawn from the Consolidated Fund of India without the authorization from the Parliament of India. 3. All the disbursements made from Public Account also need the authorization from the Parliament of India. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Explanation
The Budget Division in the DEA (Department of Economic Affairs) has the prime responsibility for the preparation and submission of the Union Budget[1], not the Department of Revenue. Therefore, statement 1 is incorrect.
All expenditures incurred by the government are debited against the Consolidated Fund and no amount can be withdrawn from the Fund without the authorization from the Parliament[2]. This is further reinforced by the constitutional provision that no money can be withdrawn from the Consolidated Fund except under an Appropriation Act[3]. Therefore, statement 2 is correct.
However, disbursements from the Public Account are not subject to vote by the Parliament, as they are not moneys issued out of the Consolidated Fund of India[4]. The Public Account contains moneys held in trust by the government (like provident funds, small savings, etc.) and their disbursement does not require parliamentary authorization. Therefore, statement 3 is incorrect.
Only statement 2 is correct, making option C the right answer.
Sources- [1] https://dea.gov.in/files/budget_division_documents/Budget_Manual_1.pdf
- [2] Indian Economy, Vivek Singh (7th ed. 2023-24) > Chapter 4: Government Budgeting > 4.3 Government Accounts > p. 150
- [3] Introduction to the Constitution of India, D. D. Basu (26th ed.). > Chapter 12: The Union Legislature > p. 258
- [4] https://dea.gov.in/files/budget_division_documents/Budget_Manual_1.pdf
PROVENANCE & STUDY PATTERN
Guest previewThis is a classic 'Polity-Economy Hybrid' question. While technical manuals exist, the core answers lie in standard texts like Laxmikanth (Parliamentary Funds) and basic Economy NCERTs (Budget Process). The difficulty comes from the specific administrative detail (Department of Revenue vs. DEA) which tests if you read the 'fine print' of the Ministry of Finance structure.
This question can be broken into the following sub-statements. Tap a statement sentence to jump into its detailed analysis.
- Statement 1: Under the Union Government of India, is the Department of Revenue responsible for preparing the Union Budget presented to Parliament?
- Statement 2: Does the Constitution of India require parliamentary authorization for any withdrawal from the Consolidated Fund of India?
- Statement 3: Does the Constitution of India require parliamentary authorization for disbursements from the Public Account of India?
- Explicitly names the Budget Division in the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) as having the prime responsibility for preparation and submission.
- Identifies DEA (not Department of Revenue) as the organizational unit charged with preparing the Union Budget.
- States that the Union Budget is presented to Parliament by the Finance Minister of India, indicating presentation and central management lie with the Finance Ministry/DEA ecosystem.
- Reinforces that budget presentation is a Finance Ministry function rather than a role attributed to the Department of Revenue in these passages.
Explicitly states that the Budget Division of the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance is the nodal agency for preparation of the general budget.
A student could check organisational charts or official Ministry of Finance documents to compare the roles of Department of Economic Affairs versus Department of Revenue.
Says the budget is prepared by the Budget Division, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, giving a clear rule about which department prepares the budget.
Use this rule to rule out Department of Revenue unless external sources show responsibility transferred or shared.
Describes the procedural role of the Finance Minister in presenting the General Budget and lists main budget documents, implying central coordination in Ministry of Finance.
Combine with knowledge that Finance Minister heads the Ministry of Finance to infer which internal departments likely coordinate budget preparation.
Contains a past exam-style item that explicitly questions whether 'The Department of Revenue is responsible for the preparation of Union Budget', indicating this is a contested or testable claim.
A student could use this as a prompt to verify which department is actually responsible by consulting authoritative sources or the Ministry's organisational responsibilities.
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