International delegates shun PAC centenary celebrations amid fresh COVID threat

In the wake of the rising threat by the new Covid-19 variant, none of the delegates invited from various countries will attend the centenary celebrations of the PAC, parliamentary panel Chairperson Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said on Friday.

The two-day centenary celebrations of parliament's Public Accounts Committee (PAC) will be held from December 4.

Addressing a press conference here, Chowdhury said, ''Delegates from 52 countries were invited for the centenary celebrations but none of them is attending due to the Omicron variant.'' Asked whether Pakistan was also invited for the event, Chowdhury said it was but it didn't give any response.

All the invites were extended through the Ministry of External Affairs, he said.

Asked about any audit of the PM Cares Fund, Chowdhury said, ''Our hands are tied as PM Cares Fund does not come under the ambit of CAG.'' The PAC -- one of the three financial standing committees in the Indian Parliament - was established in 1921 under the Indian British government to check the revenue and expenditure of the government of India.

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