The Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman launched the Electronic Bill (e-Bill) processing system, announced in Union Budget 2022-23, on the occasion of 46th Civil Accounts Day here today at Dr. Ambedkar International Centre.
Along with Finance Minister as Chief Guest, Finance Secretary Dr. T.V. Somanathan; Smt. Sonali Singh, Head of the Organisation of Controller General of Accounts (CGA); Smt. Dharitri Panda, Additional CGA (PFMS) and Smt. Bharati Das, Principal CGA (MHA) also graced the occasion besides other senior dignitaries from the CGA and Ministry of Finance.
Talking about the e-Bill processing system initiative, Smt. Sitharaman said that this is part of ‘Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) and Digital India eco-system’ to bring in broader transparency and expedite the process of payments. It will enhance transparency, efficiency and faceless-paperless payment system by allowing suppliers and contractors to submit their claim online which will be trackable in real time basis, She added.
Referring to the critical role played by the CGA, the Finance Minister lauded the CGA in keeping Government transaction seamless and ensuring smooth payments besides keeping the economy of the country moving ahead. Smt. Sitharaman mentioned the successful implementation of Treasury Single Accounts (TSA), Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) and PAHAL through Public Financial Management System (PFMS) as a case in point.
Elaborating further, the Finance Minister said that TSA System has developed a “Just in Time” fund release mechanism and has been implemented across 150 Autonomous Bodies of Central Government; while PFMS has evolved as an efficient tool to maintain transparency, facilitating speedy payment and an instrument of Government outreach to the last beneficiary.
Smt. Sitharaman said that the CGA has been managing public finance by adapting technology, thereby stopping pilferage of public money and ensuring that benefits reach directly to citizens.
The Finance Minister applauded the many silent milestones achieved by the Civil Accounts organization by working behind the scenes to ensure that the account system is run well.
In his address on the occasion, Finance Secretary & Secretary, Expenditure, Dr T.V. Somanathan stated that on the one hand, PFMS is a critical aid to financial administrators of the country, and on the other, it is most important citizen-centric initiative specially the new E-bill system. Dr Somanathan said that the new e-Bill system will reduce time lags further and will serve as a model for accounts towards digital India and EoDB.
Earlier, while welcoming dignitaries in her welcome address, Smt. Sonali Singh recounted various initiatives taken by the CGA over the years, along with brief summing up of ongoing initiatives and a roadmap for the CGA of the future. Smt. Singh said that the country on path of growth and CGA would work incessantly to take the country to greater heights.
Smt. Dharitri Panda, Additional CGA (PFMS), elaborated on the salient benefits of the e-Bill system. Smt. Panda said that the e- Bill system will be rolled out, on a pilot basis in 9 Pay & Account Office (PAO) Accounts of Central Ministries and Departments.
Smt. Bharati Das, Principal CGA (MHA), gave a vote on thanks on behalf of the CGA.
In a phased manner, the new system will make the entire process of submission and backend processing of bills completely paperless and transparent. Thus, it is a major step forward in realizing the vision of “Digital India” and promoting ease of doing business.
The objectives of the system are to:
a) Provide convenience to all vendors/suppliers of the government to submit their bills/claims at anytime, from anywhere.
b) Eliminate physical interface between suppliers and government officers.
c) Enhance efficiency in processing of bills/claims.
d) Reduce discretion in processing of bills through “First-In-First-Out”(FIFO) method.
Currently, the suppliers of various goods and services to the Government have to submit physical, ink signed copies of their bills to the respective Ministries/Departments/offices of the Government of India. Similarly, the government employees also need to submit hard copies of their claims. At the backend too, the processing of bills is done through a mixed system of physical and digital modes. So the suppliers/vendors or their representatives need to visit the offices to deliver bills. Moreover, they are unable to track the status of processing of their bills.
Under the newly launched e-Bill system, vendors/suppliers can upload their bills online along with supporting documents from the convenience of their homes/offices at any time through digital signature. For those not having a digital signature, the facility of e-sign using Aadhaar has also been provided. So, the suppliers will no longer be required to visit the offices concerned for this purpose.
At the backendtoo, the electronic bill received will be processed by the authorities digitally at every stage and finally, the payments will be credited digitally to the bank account of the vendor. The vendor/supplier would be able to track the status of processing of their bills online. Thus, the new system will bring in lot of efficiency and transparency in the system and is a big citizen-centric decision of the Government of India.
The e-Bill system has been developed by the Public Financial Management System (PFMS) Division in the office of the Controller General of Accounts in the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance. The bills will be processed by First-In-First-Out (FIFO) method.
The system has been initially rolled out in the following nine Pay and Accounting Units of following nine Ministries/Departments:-
1) PAO Ministry of Food Processing Industry
2) PAO, Department of Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemical and Fertiliser
3) PAO, Department of Science and Technology, Ministry of Science and Technology
4) PAO (CGA HQ), Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance
5) PAO (PFMS Division), Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance
6) PAO, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy
7) PAO (Census), Ministry of Home Affairs
8) PAO M/o Steel
9) PAO (NIC), Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology
The e-Bill system will be rolled out in other Ministries/Departments in a phased manner in 2022-23.
In addition to promoting ease of doing business and brining convenience to lakhs of vendors/suppliers, the e-Bill system will be environment friendly, eliminating the need to submit crores of paper bills annually and will thus save tonnes of papers every year. The e-Bill system has an elaborate digital storage facility for retrieval of documents and a robust audit trail.
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