New Delhi, Nov 16 — Vice-President C.P. Radhakrishnan on Sunday underscored India’s growing global reputation in public auditing, noting that the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) now serves as the external auditor for prominent international organisations such as the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the International Labour Organisation (ILO).
Speaking at the fifth Audit Diwas celebrations in New Delhi, the Vice-President observed that the CAG currently chairs major international bodies, including the Asian Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (ASOSAI) and key committees under the International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI), such as the Working Group on IT Audit. This, he said, reflects Bharat’s journey from being a follower to emerging as a global leader in auditing standards.
Calling the CAG the “guardian of the public purse,” Radhakrishnan highlighted its crucial role in safeguarding public funds and fostering good governance. He praised the 165-year legacy of the institution, which dates back to the establishment of the Auditor General’s office in 1860.
He commended the CAG for introducing the “One Nation, One Set of Object Heads of Expenditure” for both Union and state governments—a reform aimed at boosting transparency and comparability in public spending.
The Vice-President also emphasised India’s rapid strides in emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data, blockchain, and machine learning. He expressed satisfaction that the CAG, through initiatives like the One IAAD One System and AI-based audit frameworks, has integrated predictive analytics and generative AI into public financial management. He also appreciated the CAG’s collaborations with institutions such as IIT Madras to enhance capacity in data science, cybersecurity, and deep learning.
Radhakrishnan noted that the development of a customised Large Language Model to process more than 20,000 annual inspection reports will significantly strengthen data-driven auditing. Technology adoption, he said, will improve risk detection, efficiency, and evidence-based decision-making.
The Vice-President urged civil servants to continuously update their skills to build a citizen-centric, future-ready governance system.
The event was attended by CAG K. Sanjay Murthy, Deputy CAGs Subir Mallick, Krishnan Sagaran Subramanian, and Jayant Sinha, along with retired CAGs and IA&AS officials.
