What is the full form of CAG

CAG: Comptroller and Auditor General of India

CAG stands for Comptroller and Auditor General of India. It is an authority that is established under Article 148 of the constitution of India. Its primary role is to audit all the expenditures of the central government, state government, and organizations that are financed by the government. Its headquarters is in New Delhi, India.

On August 7, 2020, Girish Chandra Murmu was chosen to serve as India's new Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG). He formerly served as the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir's Lieutenant-Governor. On September 25, 2017, Rajiv Mehrishi took over the CAG position in his place.

CAG is ranked 9th in the Indian order of precedence and has the same status as a judge of the Supreme Court of India. CAG is also the head of the Indian Audit and Accounts Department. It is one of the most powerful bodies to investigate financial frauds in India, such as the coal mine allocation scam and the 2G spectrum allocation scam.

CAG is appointed by the President of India on the recommendation of the Prime Minister of India for a term of 6 years. As of 2016, Shashi Kant Sharma is the CAG of India. He was appointed on 23 May, 2013, and he is the 12th CAG of India.

Powers of CAG

As per the Companies Act 1956, the CAG is empowered to:

• Appoint and reappoint the auditor of a government company
• Direct the audit of the accounts of a government company
• Give instructions to the auditors regarding any matter related to the audit
• Conduct a test audit of the accounts
• Supplement the audit report of the statutory auditors

Functions of CAG

Some of the major functions of CAG, as prescribed by the Parliament and Constitution are given below:

• To audit the accounts regarding expenditure from the consolidated fund of India and the consolidated fund of each state and union territory.
• To audit the accounts related to expenditure from the contingency fund and public account of India and each state.
• To audit balance sheets, trading, manufacturing and profit and loss, or any other account of any department of the central or state governments.
• To audit the receipts and expenditures of government companies and other organizations financed from the central or state revenues.
• To submit audit reports of the accounts of the centre to the President.
• To submit audit reports of the accounts of the state to the Governor.

CAG's role in India

This office's responsibility is to respect the financial administration laws passed by Parliament as well as the provisions of the Indian Constitution. Through CAG reports, the executive's (i.e., the council of ministers') accountability to the Parliament in the area of financial administration is ensured. With regard to expense audits, the office supervises and represents the Parliament.

• The CAG is required to determine whether the funds indicated in the accounts as having been distributed were legitimately available for and applicable to the service or the purpose for which they have been applied or charged, as well as whether the expenditure complies with the authority that governs it.
• The agency has the authority to conduct a propriety audit, in which it examines the "wisdom, faithfulness, and economy" of government spending and makes recommendations regarding its wastefulness. Contrary to the legal and regulatory audit, which the CAG is required to do, the propriety audit is at the CAG's discretion.
• The secret service expense places a restriction on the CAG's ability to conduct audits. In this regard, the CAG cannot request specifics of the expenses incurred by the executive agencies; instead, he must accept a certificate from the appropriate administrative authority attesting to the fact that the expenses were incurred as stated under his supervision.

Structure of CAG's Office

The Comptroller and Auditor General of India are in charge of the Indian Audit and Accounts Department (IAAD). Five Deputy Comptroller and Auditors General of India support him. The head of the Audit Board is also one of the Deputies. Four Additional Deputy Comptroller and Auditor General of India are listed below the Deputy CAG. The following people are in this office's hierarchy:

Directors General Principal Directors Directors/Deputy Directors Additional Deputy CAG Directors

Field office formations are led by officers with the titles of DG/PAG/PD/AG, and they answer the relevant DAI/ADAI.

The operational and regulatory responsibilities of the CAG at the state level are carried out by a variety of Accountants, General at the regional level in a number of different states.

One Director serves as the current CAG's secretary.

What Obstacles does the CAG's Effective Operation face?

As corruption and bad administration become more prevalent, audits are becoming more difficult to conduct.

In addition to their long-standing responsibility of closely monitoring the Central and State governments, CAG is currently auditing a number of public-private partnerships (PPP) projects.

CAG of India has discovered itself in this scenario surrounded by both previously unheard-of opportunities and problems.

The Constitution and the law contain no criteria or guidelines for the nomination of the CAG.

As a result, the executive now has sole authority to choose who will serve as the CAG. This contravenes universally accepted international best practises.

Any government office may be inspected by the CAG, and it has the power to request any accounting. In reality, the supply of records is frequently refused. Furthermore, key records are frequently and unreasonably handed to the auditors towards the end of the audit programme with the express purpose of preventing effective audit of those records.