Some Financial Terms

Appropriation means assignment to meet specified expenditure of funds included in a primary unit of appropriation.

Appropriation Accounts:

Appropriation Accounts present the total amount of funds (original and supplementary) authorised by the Parliament in the budget grants under each voted grants and charged appropriation vis-a-vis the actual expenditure incurred against each grant or appropriation and the saving or excess under each grant or appropriation. Any expenditure in excess of the grants requires regularisation by the Parliament. Appropriation Act: When appropriation bill has been passed by the Parliament, it is presented to the President. After the assent by the President to the bill, it becomes an Act.

Appropriation Bill:

As soon as may be, after the grants under Article 113 have been made by Lok Sabha, a bill to provide for the appropriation out of the Consolidated Fund of India of all money required to meet

(a) the grants so made by the Lok Sabha

(b) the expenditure charged upon Consolidated Fund of India but not exceeding in any case the amount shown in the statement previously laid before the Parliament, is introduced.

Capital Expenditure:

It consists of payment for acquisition of assets, investment in shares, and loans and advances given by the Government.

Capital Receipts:

Capital receipts comprise loans raised by the Government from the public, borrowing from the Reserve Bank of India and loans taken from foreign Governments, recoveries of loans by the Government, proceeds of disinvestments etc.

Charged Appropriation:

Sum required to meet expenditure ‘Charged’ on Consolidated Fund under Article 112 (3) of the Constitution is called Charged Appropriation.

Demand for Grants:

Demand for Grants is for gross amount of expenditure to be incurred and shows recoveries to be taken in reduction of expenditure separately by way of footnotes, presented by the Parliament at two levels. ‘The Demands for Grants are presented by the Ministry of Finance along with the Annual Financial Statement. ‘The Detailed Demands for Grants are laid on the table of Lok Sabha by the concerned ministries a few days in advance of the discussion of respective Ministry’s Demand in that House. As the Demands for Grants are for gross expenditure and the Annual Financial Statement gives the net amount to be expended under each head, the total of the two should be reconciled after adjustment of the recoveries taken in account in reduction of gross expenditure.

Original Grant:

The amount provided for any service in the ‘Annual Financial Statement’ in a financial year is called original grant or appropriation.

Treasury Bills:

All instrument issued by the Reserve Bank of India on behalf of the Union Government to raise short term loans intended to fill transient resource gaps.

Saving:

When expenditure falls short of budget provisions, it results into saving.

Voted Grant:

Sum required to meet other expenditure for vote of Parliament is required under Article 113 (2) of the Constitutions is called voted grant.

Cut motion:

A motion for the reduction of a demand for grant by or to a specified amount. ‘The three kinds of cut motions are:- (i) Disapproval of policy cut’when the motion moved is ‘that the amount of the demand be reduced to Re. 1’; (ii) Economy cut’when the motion moved is ‘that the amount of the demand be reduced by a specified amount’; and (iii) Token cut’when the motion moved is ‘that the amount of the demand be reduced by ` 100’. (Rule 209).

Finance Bill:

A Bill ordinarily introduced each year to give effect to the financial proposals of the Government of India for the following financial year and includes a Bill to give effect to supplementary financial proposals for any period. (Rule 219).

Financial Bill:

Financial Bills can be divided into two categories’ (i) In the first category are Bills which inter alia contain provisions for any of the matters specified in sub-clauses (a) to (f) of clause (1) of article 110 of the Constituion. Such a Bill cannot be introduced except on the recommendation of the President and a Bill making such provisions cannot be introduced in Rajya Sabha, and (ii) In the second category of Financial Bills are those Bills containing inter alia provisions which if enacted and brought into operation would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. Such Bills cannot be passed by either House of Parliament unless the President has recommended to that House the consideration of the Bill. (Article 117).

Vote on Account:

A grant made by Lok Sabha in advance in respect of the estimated expenditure of the Government of India for a part of a financial year pending the voting of Demands for Grants for the financial year. Such motion is dealt ewith in the same way as if it were a demand for grant. (Rule 214).