My Dear Members,
This is my first
communication to you through this column and I must tell you that I feel
honoured and humbled on being elected President of our Society for the
year 2020-21. I assure you with a deep sense of commitment that with such an
enthusiastic team of Office-Bearers and Managing Committee members, I will do
my best to continue the good work done year after year by Team BCAS in
the best interests of our members. I also convey my deep and sincere thanks to
all past presidents and seniors for reposing their trust and faith in me and
considering me fit to take up this prestigious and responsible position. Some
of my thoughts for the year are elaborately expressed in the Annual Plan
published elsewhere in this Journal.
I consider myself and my
team to be extremely fortunate that our term started with the 72nd
Founding Day lecture delivered by the incomparable Mr. Deepak Parekh, CA
and Chairman of HDFC Limited. He showered accolades on us by stating that
- 72 years is a very long
period for a voluntary organisation, not just to exist, but to thrive
- You have all stayed
true to your vision of BCAS. I was surprised to see how apt is your
vision statement of being a principle-centred and learning-oriented organisation
which is proactive to change, and
- It is this vision
that has held this group together over the years.
So motivating and
encouraging! His statement that he is not the owner of HDFC but just an
employee till recently was so humbling. It is such simplicity, ethical
entrepreneurship and vision that can create large and globally-respected
organisations and brands.
Since mid-March, 2020, we
have conducted almost the entire range of events from lecture meetings and
panel discussions to workshops, and even virtual Residential Refresher / study
courses (including group discussions), in this manner. It is observed that
digital makes the contents and the participants much more systematic,
structured and disciplined. The faculties are at ease with knowledge-sharing
from their own location without hectic travelling and logistics issues. The
personal touch and warmth, fellowship and recreation is surely missed in case
of RRCs and other residential programmes, however, the commitment, dedication
and hard work of the volunteers remain the same with the change of platform
from physical to digital.
In retrospect, how true
are the words of the wise who said: Reinvention is never easy. One must devise
an entirely new way of working, without the reassurance that comes with
replicating already existing best practices. This isn’t just about finding new
applications for the technology; India needs to anticipate its impact as well.
Yet, this is precisely how every previous transformation has played out
and it is this attitude of flexibility, courage and judicious risk-taking that
will let India be in the forefront of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.*
The CA exams for May, 2020
were postponed and finally cancelled, to be merged with the November exams.
This raises the issue of preparedness for the future possibilities of
conducting CA exams online. I am sure the regulators have moved into action
mode to convert this challenge into an opportunity.
August is full of
festivities like Janmashtami, Ganeshotsav and Independence Day. It would be
advisable to restrict ourselves and celebrate within the family. Today, the
health, safety and well-being of one’s self as well as of others are of utmost
importance. We can pray to Lord Ganesha to free us from this unprecedented
situation so that next year we would celebrate in a normal manner. For
Independence Day we can seek our independence – physical and psychological –
from the lockdown situation so that normalcy returns to our lives.
Friends, please feel free
to write to me at president@bcasonline.org.
- Bridgital Nation –
Solving Technology’s People Problem, by N. Chandrasekaran and Roopa Purushothaman
With Best Regards,
CA
Suhas Paranjpe
President
