{"id":3509,"date":"2026-08-11T22:11:30","date_gmt":"2026-08-11T16:41:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/notes\/comptroller-and-auditor-general\/"},"modified":"2026-08-11T23:01:37","modified_gmt":"2026-08-11T17:31:37","slug":"comptroller-and-auditor-general","status":"publish","type":"psir_note","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/notes\/comptroller-and-auditor-general\/","title":{"rendered":"Comptroller and Auditor General"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"n-wrap\">\n<div class=\"n-shell\">\n<div class=\"n-crumb\"><a href=\"\/psir\/psir-notes\/\">PSIR Notes<\/a><span class=\"sep\">\u203a<\/span><a href=\"\/psir\/psir-notes\/#i-b\">I-B Indian Government and Politics<\/a><span class=\"sep\">\u203a<\/span><span>Comptroller and Auditor General<\/span><\/div>\n<header class=\"n-head\">\n<div class=\"n-eyebrow\">Paper I \u00b7 Indian Government and Politics<\/div>\n<h1 class=\"n-title\">Comptroller and Auditor General<\/h1>\n<div class=\"n-syl\"><b>Syllabus \u00b7 Paper I-B \u00b7 6<\/b> \u2014 Statutory Institutions\/Commissions : Election Commission, <span class=\"cur\">Comptroller and Auditor General<\/span>, Finance Commission, Union Public Service Commission, National Commission for Scheduled Castes, National Commission for Scheduled Tribes, National Commission for Women; National Human Rights Commission, National Commission for Minorities, National Backward Classes Commission.<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"n-grid\">\n  <main class=\"n-body\"><\/p>\n<h3 id=\"comptroller-auditor-general\">Comptroller &amp; Auditor General<\/h3>\n<p><em><span class=\"n-law\">Articles 148\u2013151<\/span> \u00b7 the guardian of the public purse<\/em><\/p>\n<p>The supreme audit institution of India, created under <span class=\"n-term\"><span class=\"n-law\">Articles 148\u2013151<\/span><\/span> and the <span class=\"n-term\">CAG (DPC) Act, 1971<\/span>. Head of the Indian Audit &amp; Accounts Department; external auditor of government companies.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"n-quote\">\n<p><em>The most important officer in the Constitution of India, with duties far more important than the duties even of the judiciary.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><cite>B.R. Ambedkar, on the CAG<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote class=\"n-quote\">\n<p><em>It is impossible to keep honey at the tongue and not to taste it.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><cite>Kautilya, Arthashastra (on public finance)<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span class=\"n-term\">Constitutional scheme<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"n-tw\">\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th><\/th>\n<th><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><span class=\"n-term\">148<\/span><\/td>\n<td>CAG \u2014 appointment, oath, service conditions<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span class=\"n-term\">149<\/span><\/td>\n<td>duties and powers<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span class=\"n-term\">150<\/span><\/td>\n<td>form of accounts (President on CAG\u2019s advice)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span class=\"n-term\">151<\/span><\/td>\n<td>reports to President \/ Governor \u2192 tabled in legislatures<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"n-term\">Parliamentary financial control.<\/span> <em>Audit \u2192 answerability.<\/em> <span class=\"n-term\">CAG audit &amp; report<\/span> \u2192 <span class=\"n-term\">PAC \/ COPU scrutiny<\/span> \u2192 <span class=\"n-term\">Parliament &amp; the people<\/span>. <em>CAG = friend, philosopher &amp; guide of the PAC \u2014 its reports are the basis of PAC scrutiny.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"n-term\">Audits<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Consolidated Fund (Union, States, UTs w\/ legislature), Contingency Fund, Public Account;<\/li>\n<li>receipts &amp; expenditure; government companies; bodies substantially financed by government;<\/li>\n<li>certifies <span class=\"n-term\">net proceeds<\/span> of taxes &amp; duties;<\/li>\n<li>reports: Appropriation Accounts, Finance Accounts, Public Undertakings.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span class=\"n-sch\">Rameshwar R. Iyer:<\/span> the CAG is the institution through which the accountability of all who spend public funds \u2014 to Parliament, State Legislatures and through them the people \u2014 is ensured. Accountability is not the same as accounting; it really means <span class=\"n-term\">answerability<\/span>.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"n-term\">CAG as an institution of good governance<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"n-sch\">Mahatma Gandhi<\/span>\u2018s test \u2014 do the policies help the poorest and weakest? \u2014 frames the office\u2019s purpose. Visibility came through audits of <span class=\"n-term\">2G spectrum<\/span>, <span class=\"n-term\">coal block allocation<\/span>, <span class=\"n-term\">Commonwealth Games<\/span>, Bofors, KG-D6, Adarsh, MPLADS and environmental projects. <span class=\"n-sch\">T.N. Chaturvedi<\/span>: not a mere accountant but a <span class=\"n-term\">constitutional conscience-keeper<\/span> of public funds. <span class=\"n-sch\">Vinod Rai<\/span> (<em>Not Just an Accountant<\/em>) argued for audit down to PRIs and ULBs.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"n-term\">Performance audit<\/span> (Regulations 2007: financial \u00b7 compliance \u00b7 performance) tests economy, efficiency, effectiveness and value-for-money \u2014 it does <span class=\"n-em\">not<\/span> question the legislature\u2019s intention, only whether implementation failures defeated objectives. Plus environmental, social-sector and MGNREGA social audits.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"n-term\">Limitations &amp; the \u2018activism\u2019 critique<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span class=\"n-sch\">Durga Das Basu<\/span>: unlike the British CAG, India\u2019s does <span class=\"n-em\">not<\/span> control release from the Consolidated Fund \u2014 it audits <span class=\"n-term\">after<\/span> expenditure (no real comptroller function).<\/li>\n<li>post-mortem audit; secret service expenditure outside detailed audit; PPP\/BOT and many local bodies under-covered; no penalty for denial of records; reports tabled late; findings not self-executing.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span class=\"n-sch\">Paul Appleby<\/span> criticised the role as \u201chighly pedestrian and narrow.\u201d The <span class=\"n-term\">Economic Survey 2017\u201318<\/span> flagged the <span class=\"n-term\">\u201c4Cs\u201d<\/span> \u2014 CBI, CVC, Court and CAG \u2014 as a source of policy hesitation.<\/p>\n<p>Reforms: transparent appointment &amp; fixed criteria; time-bound tabling; penalties for denial; audit of PPPs\/regulators\/local bodies; independent investigative capacity. <span class=\"n-sch\">B.P. Mathur<\/span> (<em>Reimagining CAG of India<\/em>) urges procurement audit of major defence purchases; the <span class=\"n-term\">2nd ARC<\/span> recommended strengthening local-fund audit under the CAG.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"n-quote\">\n<p><span class=\"n-term\">UPSC 2002<\/span> \u00b7 <span class=\"n-term\">UPSC 2014<\/span> \u00b7 <span class=\"n-term\">UPSC 2019 \u00b7 15m<\/span> \u00b7 <span class=\"n-term\">UPSC 2020 \u00b7 20m<\/span> \u2014 CAG comment \u00b7 CAG &amp; good governance \u00b7 CAG as watchdog of finances \u00b7 ECI &amp; CAG over two decades.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div class=\"n-next\"><a href=\"\/psir\/notes\/election-commission\/\"><em>Previous<\/em><b>Election Commission<\/b><\/a><a class=\"r\" href=\"\/psir\/notes\/finance-commission\/\"><em>Next<\/em><b>Finance Commission<\/b><\/a><\/div>\n<p><\/main><\/p>\n<aside class=\"n-rail\">\n<h4>On this page<\/h4>\n<p><a href=\"#comptroller-auditor-general\">Comptroller &amp; Auditor General<\/a><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Comptroller and Auditor General for the UPSC PSIR optional \u2014 PSIR Notes \u203a I-B Indian Government and Politics \u203a Comptroller and Auditor General Paper I \u00b7 Indian Government and Polit<\/p>\n","protected":false},"template":"","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"fx_note_key":"I-B.6.2","fx_note_sec":"I-B","fx_note_point":"6","fx_note_desc":"Comptroller and Auditor General for the UPSC PSIR optional \u2014 PSIR Notes \u203a I-B Indian Government and Politics \u203a Comptroller and Auditor General Paper I \u00b7 Indian Government and Polit","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-3509","psir_note","type-psir_note","status-publish","hentry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/psir_note\/3509","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/psir_note"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/psir_note"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/psir_note\/3509\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3702,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/psir_note\/3509\/revisions\/3702"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3509"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}