Question

Which of the following are Financial Committees of Parliament in India?
1. Public Accounts Committee
2. Estimates Committee
3. Committee on Public Undertakings
A. 1 and 3
B. 1 and 2
C. 2 and 3
D. 1,2, and 3

Answer 1

Hint: Extensively, parliamentary councils are of two sorts Ad-hoc Committees and Standing Committees. The former is temporary and ceases to exist on completion of the task assigned to them, while the latter is permanent (constituted yearly and periodically) and works on a continuous basis.

Complete answer:
Financial committees are classified into three categories. These are the Public Accounts Committee, Estimates Committee, and Committee on Public Undertakings.
Under the provisions of the Government of India Act of 1919, the Public Accounts Committee was set up in 1921 and it has since been in existence. The capacity of this advisory group is to look at the yearly review reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG), which are laid before the Parliament by the President. The CAG submits three audit reports to the President, namely, an audit report on public undertakings, an audit report on financial accounts, and an audit report on appropriation accounts. The committee examines public expenditure from the point of view of the economy, but also from a legal and formal point of view.
The Estimates Committee was set up in 1921. In post-independent India, it was constituted in 1950. The function of the committee is to suggest ‘economies’ in public expenditure after examining the estimate included in the budget. It has thus been described as a ‘continuous economy committee’.
On the recommendation of the Krishna Menon Committee, the committee was established in 1964. Some of the functions of the committee include examining the reports and accounts of public undertakings; examining the reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General on public undertakings.

Thus, option (D) is correct.

Note: These Financial Committees of the Parliament are standing committees, thus they are permanent and they work on a continuous basis.