The Punjab Government today launched a special drive to ensure financial management in all the departments for the year 2012-13. By issuing directions to all the departments, the Finance Department asked them to spend less money and that also with utmost care and restraint and to provide better services to the people. Disclosing this here today, Finance Minister Parminder Singh Dhindsa said that all the Departmental Heads, Commissioners of pisions, Deputy Commissioners, District and Sessions Judge and Registrar, Punjab and Haryana High Court have been asked to pursue austerity measures while spending money from their allocated budget. He said that these departments/officers have also been asked to provide quality services to the people. Minister said that they have also been urged to review and furnish a detailed report on their financial transactions on a prescribed Performa before the Finance Department.Dhindsa said that for controlling over expenditure, DDOs in the districts have been asked to reserve non planned budget and to ensure signature of departmental head on budget allocation table. He said that the prior approval of Finance Department would be imperative for departments with the practice of Letter of Credit (LoC). He said that there would not be any quarterly ceiling for salaries, wages, Medical reimbursement, conveyance expenditure, Pension benefits, rent rates and taxes and Telephone etc. Dhindsa further said that departments have been instructed to meet their expenses of water and electricity with allocated budget and no additional budget would be provided for such things.