IIt started as a routine government practice. In mid-January, officials of Haryana’s Directorate of Treasury and Accounts (DTA) wrote to the Chandigarh branch of IDFC First Bank, demanding closure of several long-running accounts and transfer of the balance amount to the government’s Axis Bank account. As part of the standard reconciliation exercise before the end of the financial year, the DTA compared confirmed bank balances with the government’s Integrated Financial Management System (IFMS) data. Data did not match: Deposits reflected in the government books were missing from the bank statements.