The Indian Audit and Accounts
Service (IA&AS) is one of the Group ‘A’ services. The officers from this
cadre are absorbed in the top and middle-level management of Indian Audit and
Accounts Department. Comptroller & Auditor General (CAG) heads this
department. This article throws light on the objectives, advantages, pay scale
and career growth associated with Indian Audit and Accounts Service
(IA&AS).
Accounting and auditing of Central
Governments, State Governments, and Public Sector Undertakings (PSU’s) are the
2 main objectives of this Group ‘A’ Civil Service cadre. They have offices in 3
different countries – US, UK, & Malaysia. The reason behind having a
presence in overseas location is to carry out auditing of Global Multilateral
organisations.
What are the eligibility
conditions?
The
eligibility criteria for the Indian Audit and Accounts Service exam are the
same as for other services. Once the candidate clears the civil services and
gets allotment to the service as per his rank and has to undergo through
specified training.
What kind of training are
offered for IAAS ?
The officers
recruited to the IAAS are trained at the National Academy of Audit and Accounts
(Shimla) for a duration of 1.5 years. The training is in two phases: Phase 1:
It covers the theoretical background on concepts of government and commercial
accounting and auditing. Phase 2: practical exposure is given to the officers
wherein they are attached to institutes like the RBI, the National Institute of
Public Finance and Policy, the Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow and the
Bureau of Parliamentary Studies. The trainees are given international exposure
through attachment with the London School of Economics and Political Science.
What
are the posting offered after training?
After the training, they are posted
as Deputy Accountant General (DAG)/Deputy Director (DD) at field offices. The
highest post of promotion is Deputy CAG of India (equivalent to Secretary to
Government of India). The Hierarchy in IAAD is as follows:
·
Deputy
Accountant General (DAG)/Deputy Director (DD)
·
Senior
DAG/Director
·
Accountant
General (AG)/Principal Director (PD)
·
Principal
Accountant General (PAG)/Director General (DG)
·
Additional
Deputy CAG (Seven Posts)
·
Deputy
CAG (Six posts)
Besides, IAAS Officers are also
posted at overseas offices of CAG at London, Washington, Rome, New York and
Kuala Lumpur. Moreover, they frequently audit various United Nations offices
around the world in addition to Indian Embassies in different countries. In
addition to the posting in IAAD, IAAS Officers are of high demand in government
departments for deputation as Financial Advisers and other executive posts
generally held by Indian Administrative service officers. They are also posted
on deputation to various overseas offices of United Nations institutions, IMF
and World Bank. The biggest attraction of IAAS compared to other All India and
Central Civil Services is its independence.
Major Advantages:
- For people who are not big fans
of publicity that the IAS exposes one to, the IAAS is a good option. You
can lead a quieter life.
- Not a lot of political
interference in your work.
- This is an excellent option for
people interested in Accounting.
- According to a government
survey, amongst all the three All India Services and the seven central
services, the IA&AS had the highest percentage of job
satisfaction amongst its officers.
- IA&AS officers even get
overseas postings in the IA&AS.
- All postings would be in metro
cities or state capitals. One would hardly get any rural postings here.
Career Growth:
- Reports to Comptroller and
Auditor General (CAG) of India.
- This is one of the most sought
after services in India. IA&AS cadre officers get a plethora of
opportunities to serve within the country and on deputation to foreign
countries.
- CAG offices are present in
Washington, London, Kuala Lumpur; IAAS cadre officers have the opportunity
to be posted in offices in these locations.
- The work done by these officers
in this cadre is of extreme importance as their audit reports are tabled
in the Parliament.
Grade and
Salary:
Before joining any career it is
advisable for the candidates to have an awareness of the benefits offered by
the concerned line of work.
The below table gives information on
the Grade and Payscale of Indian Audit & Accounts Service (IA&AS)
|
Designation |
Pay Scale (Rs.) |
Grade |
|
Assistant Director |
8000-275-13500 |
Junior Time Scale |
|
Deputy Director |
10000-325-15200 |
Senior Time Scale |
|
Director |
12300-375-16500 |
Junior Administrative Grade |
|
Director |
14300-400-18300 |
NFSG of Junior Administrative
Grade |
|
Principal Director |
18400-500-22400 |
Senior Administrative Grade |
|
Director-General |
22400-525-24500 |
|
|
Additional Deputy CAG |
24050-650-26000 |
|
|
Deputy CAG (6 posts) |
26000 (fixed) |