{"id":59309,"date":"2025-11-17T21:29:03","date_gmt":"2025-11-17T15:59:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=59309"},"modified":"2025-11-18T15:16:33","modified_gmt":"2025-11-18T09:46:33","slug":"5th-audit-diwas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/17-11-2025\/5th-audit-diwas","title":{"rendered":"5th Audit Diwas\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS2\/Indian Polity; Constitutional Body<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Recently, the Vice-President of India lauded the <strong>Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) <\/strong>as the <strong>\u2018guardian of the public purse\u2019<\/strong> during the <strong>5th Audit Diwas<\/strong> celebration, commemorating the establishment and legacy of CAG.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>About\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Origins of India\u2019s Audit Institution: <\/strong>The <strong>Supreme Audit Institution (SAI) of India<\/strong> is <strong>among India&#8217;s oldest governance bodies<\/strong>.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Its origins date back to <strong>1858<\/strong>, when a dedicated department led by an <strong>Accountant General<\/strong> was created.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It was responsible for maintaining accounts and auditing financial transactions of the <strong>East India Company.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Government of India Act, 1858:<\/strong> It brought a new system of presenting an <strong>annual budget of Imperial Income and Expenditure (1860)<\/strong>, laying the foundation for <strong>Imperial Audit<\/strong>.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>First Auditor General: Sir Edward Drummond<\/strong> became the <strong>first Auditor General of India<\/strong> on <strong>16 November 1860<\/strong>, marking a <strong>formal beginning<\/strong> of institutionalized auditing in India.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Since then,<strong> \u2018November 16\u2019 <\/strong>is celebrated as <strong>Audit Diwas.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Evolution After Independence: <\/strong>The <strong>Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India<\/strong> was recognized as a <strong>constitutional authority<\/strong> with the adoption of the <strong>Constitution of India in 1950<\/strong>.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The responsibilities and authority of the CAG evolved through various practices and legislative changes, both during British rule and in post-independence India, strengthening its role as a guardian of public accountability.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Highlights of 5th Audit Diwas (2025)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Theme:<\/strong> \u2018Guardian of the Public Purse\u2019, marking the <strong>166th year of the CAG\u2019s institution<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>From \u2018Examination\u2019 to \u2018Partner in Governance\u2019: <\/strong>The audit processes aim to support good governance and strengthen executive accountability, and to become <strong>\u2018a forward-looking instrument of reform, foresight, and innovation\u2019.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Pillars of Transformation:<\/strong> Stakeholder Engagement, Digital Transformation, Alignment with Viksit Bharat 2047, and Capacity Building.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Urban Governance and \u2018Ease of Living\u2019 Audits: <\/strong>CAG K. Sanjay Murthy announced <strong>plans to assess 101 major cities<\/strong> on infrastructure; environmental sustainability; and local economic growth;\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It marks a shift toward citizen-centric auditing, focusing on urban development and service delivery.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-background\" style=\"background-color:#fff2cc\"><tbody><tr><td><strong>About Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India<\/strong><br>&#8211; <strong>Constitutional Mandate: Article 148,<\/strong> which guarantees CAG\u2019s independence and authority. The CAG is tasked with:<br>1. Auditing all receipts and expenditures of the Union Government and the State Governments.<br>2. Reviewing accounts of <strong>bodies and authorities<\/strong> substantially <strong>financed by the government.<\/strong><br>3. Reporting <strong>audit findings to the President of India or Governor of respective states<\/strong>, which are then tabled in Parliament or State Legislatures.<br>&#8211; <strong>Vision and Values: <\/strong>The CAG\u2019s mission is to promote <strong>accountability, transparency, and good governance<\/strong> through high-quality auditing. Its core values include <strong>Integrity, Objectivity, Professional Excellence and Public Interest.<\/strong><br>&#8211; <strong>Types of Audits:<\/strong><br>1. <strong>Compliance Audit:<\/strong> Ensures adherence to rules and regulations.<br>2. <strong>Financial Audit: <\/strong>Verifies accuracy of financial statements.<br>3. <strong>Performance Audit:<\/strong> Evaluates efficiency and effectiveness of government programs.<br>4. <strong>Environmental Audit: <\/strong>Assesses ecological impact of public projects.<br>(a). These audits are conducted through a <strong>nationwide network of State Audit Offices<\/strong> and specialized wings.<br>&#8211; <strong>Advisory and Governance Functions: <\/strong>The CAG chairs the <strong>Government Accounting Standards Advisory Board (GASAB)<\/strong>, which develops accounting norms for public sector entities.<br>1. It convenes the <strong>Audit Advisory Board<\/strong>, comprising experts from various fields to refine audit methodologies.<br>&#8211; <strong>New Initiatives by CAG: <\/strong>The CAG has approved the creation of <strong>two new specialized cadres, <\/strong>aimed to be <strong>operational from January 1, 2026<\/strong>, within the <strong>Indian Audit and Accounts Department (IA&amp;AD):<\/strong><br>1. Central Revenue Audit (CRA) Cadre;<br>2. Central Expenditure Audit (CEA) Cadre;<br><strong>International Engagement<\/strong><br>&#8211; The CAG of India is an active member of the<strong> International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI)<\/strong>, contributing to global standards in public auditing.<br>&#8211; It undertakes international audits and collaborates with other SAIs for capacity building.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.newindianexpress.com\/nation\/2025\/Nov\/17\/v-p-radhakrishnan-hails-guardian-of-the-public-purse-on-5th-audit-diwas\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source: New IE<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Context<\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Recently, the Vice-President of India lauded the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) as the \u2018guardian of the public purse\u2019 during the 5th Audit Diwas celebration, commemorating the establishment and legacy of CAG.<\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><strong>About\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Origins of India\u2019s Audit Institution: The Supreme Audit Institution (SAI) of India is among India&#8217;s oldest governance bodies.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Its origins date back to 1858, when a dedicated department led by an Accountant General was created.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">It was responsible for maintaining accounts and auditing financial transactions of the East India Company.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Government of India Act, 1858: It brought a new system of presenting an annual budget of Imperial Income and Expenditure (1860), laying the foundation for Imperial Audit.<\/li>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/17-11-2025\/5th-audit-diwas\" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read\u00a0More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-59309","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59309","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59309"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59309\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":59322,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59309\/revisions\/59322"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59309"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59309"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59309"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}