The correct answer is: d) All of the above
The Assam Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Act, 2005 aims to ensure fiscal discipline, long-term financial sustainability, and transparency in public finances.
Fiscal discipline is the practice of governments and other public bodies to manage their finances in a responsible way. This means that they should not spend more money than they have, and they should borrow money only when necessary. Fiscal discipline is important because it helps to prevent governments from going into debt, which can have negative consequences for the economy.
Long-term financial sustainability is the ability of a government or other public body to continue to meet its financial obligations in the long run. This means that they should have a plan for how they will pay for their current and future expenses. Long-term financial sustainability is important because it helps to ensure that governments and other public bodies will be able to continue to provide essential services in the future.
Transparency in public finances is the practice of governments and other public bodies making information about their finances available to the public. This information should include data on revenue, expenditure, debt, and assets. Transparency in public finances is important because it helps to hold governments and other public bodies accountable for their spending.
The Assam FRBM Act sets out a number of measures to achieve these objectives. These measures include:
- Setting limits on government borrowing
- Requiring governments to publish annual budgets and financial statements
- Creating an independent fiscal responsibility council to monitor government finances
The Assam FRBM Act has been successful in achieving some of its objectives. For example, it has helped to reduce government debt and improve transparency in public finances. However, there are still some challenges that need to be addressed, such as the need to improve the efficiency of government spending.