From The President

had a dream many years ago — it was to head the BCAS as its
President. About 12 months ago, that dream became a reality for me. For that
dream to turn into reality, I had to work hard. I also had to work smart. As
they say, it is not enough to place a ladder against the wall to climb higher —
the wall that is chosen must be the right wall or else you would be headed in
the wrong direction. The past decade and more have been well spent by me in the
service of the BCAS. This august organisation has given me what I could never
have dreamt of in the normal course. I am grateful to all the members of the
BCAS for elevating me to the top position and for reposing confidence in me for
leading the organisation in the year that has flown by. Throughout the year, I
have received overwhelming response from many of you in terms of feedback to my
messages, words of appreciation for some of the initiatives that we were able to
take and also lots of suggestions for improvements. The latter have been taken
up by the office bearers in right earnest and wherever possible, have been
implemented too. As I prepare to lay down office at the AGM on 6th July, I must
place on record my deep sense of gratitude to everyone who touched my life
during this year. Every core group member, every staff member, every person who
wrote to me or who spoke to me — to all of you, my heartfelt thanks.

During the year that has passed by, your office bearers and
other managing committee members have made every effort to bring about
substantial changes in the functioning of the Society. The various initiatives
taken by us were more attuned to raising the bar in terms of quality rather than
quantity. I am acutely aware of the various shortcomings at the Society. We have
a long way to go before we can proclaim that ours is an organisation that runs
smoothly in all respects. But the journey continues and I am optimistic about
the future. Here, I am reminded of a line — “It’s funny about life — if you
refuse to accept anything but the very best, you will very often get it. There
are no speed limits on the road to excellence.”

My fellow office bearer and current Vice-President Mayur
Nayak will be the next President of BCAS. I wish him and the other members of
the managing committee all the very best for a very successful and fulfilling
year. The ethos and the ethics at the BCAS are such that at all times, the
President stands fully supported by a large number of people around who are all
working selflessly and sincerely for a common goal — to serve the BCAS and its
members. I am sure that in the years to come, the BCAS will be steered into
uncharted territories with great finesse by its future leaders. BCAS is known
for its innovation and for its forward thinking. Our visionaries of the past
have drilled this into the minds of the younger members. Such an organisation
must succeed and should succeed. At the same time, we cannot afford to allow
complacency and arrogance to seep into our functioning. The future leaders must
ensure that the BCAS adapts itself to changing times and is flexible enough to
respond to the need of the hour and is also in a position to provide newer
services to the members. Without the will to change, no organisation can sustain
itself in the dynamic environment that we all are living in today.

This is my last communication to you through the BCAJ by way
of the President’s Page. It has been my privilege and honour to have been able
to communicate my ideas, thoughts and views with all of you. The responsibility
of writing for this journal was a very heavy one. I am acutely aware of the wide
reach of this journal and how, in the past, the illustrious Presidents of the
BCAS have adorned these pages with words of wisdom. I hope that I have done
justice to the position that I have occupied and all of you have found at least
something of merit in the messages that I have written.

I cannot proceed further without paying my respect to the
memory of late CA Hiten C. Shah, one of the BCAS managing committee members who
expired suddenly on 14th June. His quiet, selfless and commendable work — in
professional organisations like BCAS as well as social work in remote tribal
areas of Dharampur in Maharashtra — will be remembered by all of us for a long
time to come. We will miss him at the BCAS. May God grant everlasting peace to
the departed noble soul and may his family members get the strength to bear this
loss with fortitude.

The year ahead promises to be a very exciting and challenging
one for Chartered Accountants. Several new laws are expected to come into effect
in the next 12 months. The new Direct Tax Code, the GST Act and the IFRS all
would come into effect soon. The ICAI and bodies like the BCAS would need to
play a very important role in helping their members in coping with this change.
Unlearning the old law and learning the new law will be a challenge for all. At
the same time, the complex question of whether to allow foreign CA firms to
practice in India will also, in all probability find an answer in the coming
months. This too will provide new challenges to Indian CAs. On the other hand,
the increasing importance of India as an emerging economic power and the growing
recognition of the talent, skill and knowledge of Indians in all spheres of life
around the globe herald the oncoming boom in the demand for Indian CAs. Time
will tell how well we are able to respond to all these phenomena.

One aspect in which I feel that CAs are lagging behind and
where we need to focus upon is the use of information technology. The world has
made enormous progress in this direction. The kind of technological tools that
are available for each and every kind of business or profession are mind
boggling. We need to imbibe information technology in our daily lives. Today,
the speed with which young children — even infants — are able to start using
latest gadgets is amazing. If the older generation does not even start to use
latest technology, then the divide between the different generations would be
more stark and wide. As the Chairman of the Information Technology Committee of
the BCAS for the next year, it would be my mission to create an IT wave amongst
the BCAS members. I seek your support and assistance in this regard. The
committee will come up with a detailed action plan soon. And I promise that the
next year will bring with it lot of changes on the IT front as far as our
members are concerned. And you will definitely see more of BCAS on the Internet
and on the various professional and social networking sites.