Dear Professional Colleagues, |
Change is the only thing that is constant. It is this continuity of change-change with times, that has kept our profession in a leading position in India for decades. As the saying goes, ‘continuity gives us roots; change gives us branches, letting us stretch and grow and reach new heights’. It is time for change in ICAI too-a change of guard at the very top. Yes, very soon you will have a new President, a new direction and a new surge of energy. |
'As I sign off as President of ICAI, I feel overwhelmed by the love and affection showered on me and the confidence reposed in me by all of you. My tenure as President, which completes a long professional journey of 24 years since 1990, has been full of special moments, which I would cherish for all times to come… My term as President has been truly a learning experience. I have tried to transform my tenure into a worth-reading Chapter in the history of ICAI and wish that all such chapters to be written in future turn out to be golden ones for the ICAI and its members.' |
This year we Grew Bigger and Better |
I believe that with every rising sun, you rejoice at a journey that has begun, and with every setting sun, you rejoice at the victories that you have achieved and the paths that you paved for victories the next day. I am handing over the baton of ICAI leadership to my successor in this very spirit, with much to rejoice for. We have indeed come a long way in a short span of one year. I am proud to say that the ICAI is today a more robust, energetic and futuristic organisation than a year ago. I am happy to recall that in the last one year during which I led the glorious journey of ICAI, it has not only grown bigger and better but has also paved way for a brighter tomorrow for the profession. There has been a phenomenal rise in status, prestige and image of ICAI in public eye. |
Special Thanks.... |
These achievements were not possible without the active and unflinching support of CA. Manoj Fadnis as Vice President, my colleagues in the Central Council, Regional Councils, Branches, Foreign Chapters and officers and staff of ICAI. I humbly thank all of them. I also express my gratitude towards Past Presidents and other well wishers for their encouragement and support. On a personal note I also take this opportunity to say special thanks to my late father, whose motivation and inspiration has kept me committed to our profession for more than two decades. I am also indebted to my mother, wife and children understanding my overbearing pre-occupation with the affairs of our alma mater ICAI, and their unfathomable and inexpressible support and encouragement in the process. |
1. Leadership and Influence: PM Nominates ICAI for Swatchha Bharat Abhiyan |
This year ICAI set an example worth following in the realm of ‘Leadership and Influence’ by reaching out to all levels of Indian polity and regulators, and winning recognition all around. The most recent achievement in this sphere has been our Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi nominating ICAI to take forward the Swatchha Bharat Abhiyan. We feel extremely honoured to receive this nomination as it is for the first time that any professional body has been nominated by the Prime Minister for this important national initiative. This is the result of our deep commitment and proactive actions with respect to Government’s growth agenda and its flagship programmes all through this year. I humbly accept the nomination on behalf of the entire CA fraternity and congratulate all of you for this recognition and acknowledgement from the leader of Indian polity. The ICAI will launch vigorous campaigns to make the national cleanliness drive a grand success through the branch network and with the support of 2,35,000 members, 8,50,000 students and staff members across the country. |
2. Global Recognition: Formation of New Chapters |
This year I aimed at putting brand Indian CA on the global map and tap the ever-increasing global opportunities for our members. I am satisfied that we have fulfilled this objective to a great extent, particularly by establishing three new chapters. I am happy to inform you that while we recently opened ICAI’s 24th Overseas Chapter in Vancouver (Canada), the 25th and 26th Chapters were opened in Bangkok (Thailand) and Dar Es Salam (Tanzania) this month. Meanwhile, the stage is set to open new chapters at Ras-Al-Khaimah, Perth, Adelaide and Canberra. |
3. Members in Industry-Advancing the Agenda of Responsibility |
Our ‘Members in Industry’ received special attention this year in line with my vision to spread the ICAI Vision and Mission and promote ‘brand Indian CA’ across industry. These times saw huge demand for CA and brimmed with opportunities, which were effectively tapped through Campus Interviews, outreach programmes, knowledge and support to members in industry, mentorship programme and ICAI-Reconnect. In fact 7,409 candidates registered for our Campus Interviews and 1,719 jobs were offered this year. Further, two high-profile events-ICAI Corporate Forum 2014 and ICAI Awards for Excellence in Financial Reporting are all set to be organised very soon. |
4. Members in Practice-Consolidating Profession |
Empowerment of SMPs, which cover majority of accounting professionals in India, had been at the core of my all-inclusive growth agenda this year. We effectively approached the authorities and secured favourable results regarding various crucial provisions of the Companies Act, 2013 while resources were dedicated to facilitate enabling framework, networks, knowledge- upgrade and guidance to leverage emerging opportunities for Members in Practice. |
5. Women Empowerment-Taking them in a New Dimension |
Today we boast of women comprising more than 21% of our total membership. Complementing this figure, girls today have 36% share in our active studentship. The Year 2014-15 witnessed special initiatives to tap the immense potential that lie embedded in these encouraging numbers in the interest of Indian accounting profession, society and the nation. The highlights included formation of a new Women Member Empowerment Committee, a flexi-working portal for women members, equipping them to perform as women directors and a series of special programmes including the recent high-profile 2-day World CA Women Summit at Dubai, which excellently showcased CA Women power with participation of hundreds of women professionals from across the world. |
6. Young Members Empowerment-Paving their Path to Success |
Pragmatic and multi-dimensional, the ICAI young members were given special attention to help them forge uniquely effective career paths across various domains. In order to pave the practical pathways to their success, special initiatives were taken to help them set up practice and empower them through a new Young Members Empowerment Committee, Young Members Practitioners Kits, mentorship programmes, an exclusive web-portal for them and facilitating outsourcing opportunities to them in accounting, auditing and management consultancy services, etc. |
7. Student Initiatives-Reviewing Education and doubling of Stipend |
ICAI’s students had been one of my topmost priorities this year with a vision to reset ICAI future priorities and revitalise and re-align Indian accountancy education with the emerging imperatives and global best practices. This was done through a new Committee on Review of Education and Training and a new CA Curriculum which has been approved by the Council and will be exposed for public comments shortly. Our Cloud Campus initiative and setting up of 125 Reading Rooms and ITT Centres have attracted global attention. In the latest move to serve the cause of our students, we have doubled their stipend and organised the first ever Google Hangout for them. |
8. Technology Initiatives-A Path-Breaking Year |
Information Technology has been my professional forte and as the President I was keen to harness technology for the benefit of the profession. Today I am happy to say that in this process, the 2014-15 has turned out to be a path-breaking year so far as technological initiatives are concerned, with many milestones to ICAI’s credit. With personal push from me, IT was put to optimum use for efficient delivery of services and betterment of the professional capabilities this year to give Indian accounting profession a winning edge and raise a new generation of global professionals. |
9. Infrastructure and Governance-Strengthening our Base to Rise |
I ensured that sufficient measures were taken to implement good and robust corporate governance and best HR practices to bridge the perceived expectation gap among the ICAI stakeholders. To this effect we formed a dedicated non-standing HR Transformation Committee in the Institute, launched the ICAI Branch Employees Scheme-2014 and training programmes on leadership, RTI, etc., to empower the Institute’s staff. |
10. Branding and Capacity Building-Launching New Certificate Courses |
To disseminate the brand Indian CA in the country as well as across the world, we worked tirelessly through all national and international professional forums. We were able to launch four new Certificate Courses in relevant domains including CSR and Information Security Systems to develop our members’ expertise. I am happy to share with you that we organised 200 plus Seminars and Conferences and 200 plus training programmes across the country. |
11. Member Support and Benefits-CABF Receives More than 1 Crore |
The agenda of Member Support and Benefits has been very dear to me and I have very passionately worked for this initiative. It is commendable that the Fund has already collected more than 1 crore in the Council year 2014-15. More particularly, I feel elated to acknowledge here that a member from Bangalore, CA. T. V. Mohandas Pai, made a very generous contribution of 50 lakh to our Chartered Accountants Benevolent Fund from out of his commitment of one crore. |
12. Research Initiatives-Encouraging Academics through Recognitions |
This year we focused on research in contemporary domains and tied up with leading institutions in the fields of Accounting, Auditing, Taxation, Finance and Assurance. A MoU was signed with the Employees Provident Fund Organisation to support them in migrating to accrual-based accounting system and very recently started a pilot study project with Indian Railways to support in its Accounting Reforms initiatives. Under the project ICAI ARF will perform a Validation of Accounting Reform’s Report and related Pilot Study from Accrual Accounting perspectives for Indian Railways. |
Govt. Accepts ICAI Roadmap for Ind AS converged with IFRS |
I take great pride to inform you that the Government has accepted our recommendations with regard to the roadmap for implementation of Indian Accounting Standards (Ind AS) converged with IFRS for Companies other than Banking Companies, Insurance Companies and NBFCs. We had recommended a new roadmap to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs in August 2014, subsequent to the Budget statement of the Hon’ble Finance Minister to implement the Indian Accounting Standards converged with International Financial Reporting Standards on voluntary basis from 1st April, 2015 and on mandatory basis from 1st April, 2016. |
We Welcome and Support Prospects of GST |
It is welcome that the Centre and States finally reached a consensus on the contours of the Goods and Services Tax (GST). India is all set to roll out the largest indirect tax reform since the introduction of the Value-Added Tax in 2005. Our Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley is expected to table the Constitution Amendment Bill in the current session of Parliament to meet the deadline of 1st April, 2016, for its introduction. We at the Institute whole-heartedly support this move, which will create a single, unified Indian market to make the economy stronger besides boosting tax collections. It is estimated that India will gain $15 billion a year by implementing GST as it would promote exports, raise employment and boost growth. A study by the National Council of Applied Economic Research estimated that roll out of the tax would boost the GDP growth by anywhere between 0.9-1.7%. |
New ICDS under our Active Consideration |
The Finance Ministry has proposed the new Income Computation and Disclosure Standards (ICDS) chargeable under the head ‘Profits and Gains of Business or Profession’ or ‘Income from Other Sources’ to ensure consistency as well as clarity on taxation issues. |
Profession Aggrieved at Loss of CA Rameshwar Thakur |
The accountancy profession in India lost one of its leading lights and a prominent and veteran figure in public life when Past President of Institute of Chartered Accountants of India CA. Rameshwar Thakur passed away on 15th January 2015. He was about 86. He was President of the ICAI during the year 1966-67. Freedom Fighter late CA. Thakur was an active member of the profession and had held responsible positions in public life like Governor of Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Union Minister of State. |
As I Bid Adieu, I Feel Overwhelmed by your Love.... |
As I sign off as President of ICAI, I feel overwhelmed by the love and affection showered on me and the confidence reposed in me by all of you. My tenure as President, which completes a long professional journey of 24 years since 1990, has been full of special moments, which I would cherish for all times to come. I would particularly remember the great warmth demonstrated by members during my branch visits and the love and respect shown by about one lakh students whom I met at different programmes and who thronged to take my autograph and selfies with me. The most satisfying and rewarding thing was the loud accolades I received for my path-breaking and offbeat initiatives. All this has been the source of my strength and has energised me to work aggressively for the cause of the profession. |
Adieu! |
CA. K. Raghu President, ICAI New Delhi, January 22, 2015 |
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