Principals and superintendents of government medical college and hospitals are set to receive a crash course in accounting and related software.

The health department has decided to train administrative heads of the government medical college and hospitals in accounting to help them check any financial irregularities in their institutions.

According to sources in the health department, the decision also aims to speed up financial work at the health hubs. On several occasions, the principals and superintendents are found hesitant to utilise funds provided by the state government because of little knowledge of accounting and preparing proposals.

R.P. Ojha, additional secretary, health, said: “Funds are lying unused at most of the government medical colleges and hospitals. We found that the principals and superintendents of the government medical colleges and hospitals could not utilise the funds on time because they could not completely trust their clerks. So, they delayed work on utilisation of the funds.”

He added: “The thought that they would be held responsible for any mistake in the accounting prevented the principals and superintendents from utilising the funds. This is the reason we took the decision to train the administrative heads in accounting. We would also train them in different softwares because today most accounting work is done on computers. This will also help the principals and superintendents manage their financial responsibilities better.”

Gita Singh, the principal of Nalanda Medical College, said: “Principals and superintendents of government medical colleges and hospitals only have medical degrees. They hardly know about accounting, which creates problems in administrative job. Many times principals and superintendents do not sign on utilisation certificates, thinking in case of any mistake in accounting, they would have to pay for it.”

The initiative of the health department was appreciated by those it means to serve.

Arjun Singh, superintendent, Patna Medical College and Hospital, said: “We have to keep records of miscellaneous funds at the hospital. Maintaining the records of the funds provided is a challenging task. The health department’s initiative will be helpful to us,” he said.