Subscribe to the Bombay Chartered Accountant Journal Subscribe Now!

Category: From The President

From the President

Dear BCAS Family,

Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, the beloved former President of India, once remarked, “Dream, dream, dream. Dreams transform into thoughts and thoughts result in action.”

I start my journey as the 75th President of this august association, the Bombay Chartered Accountants Society, with my first interaction through this message with you all, fellow professionals. I take this opportunity to thank all of you for having reposed trust and confidence in me to assume this responsibility. The responsibility comes with the onerous duty to chart a path for BCAS to reach greater heights not only in the coming year but also through its reaching centenary and which we, too, consider as the Amrit Kaal of BCAS to coincide with that of our motherland India.

As we entered our 75th year, a special logo has been designed for this memorable milestone. The Logo depicts multiple elements of our Society, the Book at the top signifies the symbol of knowledge sharing, the tree represents the BCAS as a community/family and the globe represents the overall development of professionals, which is the vision and mission of the Society. The blue colour in the logo represents a commitment to professionalism, expertise in financial matters, and maintaining high ethical standards and the green colour symbolises financial prosperity, trustworthiness, and a focus on sustainable business practices.

I have expressed in my opening speech at the AGM, that from this year onwards BCAS Managing Committee shall be presenting a 5-year plan for the Society with a vision to increase its Reach, Professional Development of its members, Networking opportunities, Advocacy, Yuva Shakti and Chartered for Change initiatives.

To achieve the above, we plan to invite 75 Sherpas in 75 cities who would be entrusted with the task of coordinating the events in their cities and spreading various other initiatives of BCAS. The technology initiative committee is entrusted with the task of increasing the presence of the Society on all its social media handles with the help of experts. Increase the reach of the journal of the Society, which is one of the most  sought-after monthly publications amongst professionals.

Professional Development (harnessing talent) is the mission of our Society. It is always at the forefront as a think tank of the profession. All committees of the Society have planned several new initiatives to ensure that our members remain at the forefront in practice, in industry and are updated with the latest regulatory developments. Multiple events, seminars, lecture meetings, and online courses shall be planned to disseminate knowledge and the jewel in the crown would be the Mega Event – ReImagine which is planned on 4, 5, and 6th January, 2024 at the Jio World Centre, BKC, Mumbai to commemorate the 75th year of BCAS.

We plan to launch a members-only digital networking and crowdsourcing queries web-based community application. It shall be a networking platform for our members, wherein BCAS members can post their queries, seek advice and engage in knowledge-sharing discussions. Members can also post their achievements on their walls. In the future, it will also have a job search, membership renewals, work sharing, and many more features. This will be a real game changer for the members as it will increase the networking and visibility of members as thought leaders and domain experts. This will also provide a platform for young professionals to interact with ease with veterans of the profession.

To ensure that our members do take time out of their busy schedule for extracurricular activities and to provide opportunities to network, the Society shall be planning specific events like youth mixers, hackathons, cricket and also provide an organised platform to young Chartered Accountants to improve their soft skills.

The Managing Committee for the current year has planned 4 quarterly themes,  namely Technology and other updates (July to September 2023), Change – Leaders – Charity (October to December 2023), Future Ready – Innovation, Growth & Succession  (January to March 2024), Partnering in Business Growth – Industry Focus (March to June, 2024).

This year at the 75th Founding Day, we had leading industrialist, Mr Sajjan Jindal as the Guest Speaker, sharing his vision of India @ 2030.  He highlighted several reforms which the present government has undertaken, like GST, Swachh Bharat, IBC, and Digitization which have resulted in greater awareness and responsible behaviour amongst  citizens. He spoke about India’s demographics and young population, the digitisation drive, the energy transformation from fossil fuel to renewable energy, financial sector reforms undertaken, and the increasing global leadership role that would drive India towards a USD 30 trillion economy. He also appreciated CAs playing a very important role in providing a governance control mechanism to industry, which is of critical importance to be on the constant growth trajectory.

The first lecture meeting of the year was held on 12th July, 2023, on a very relevant topic of the “Role of Professionals in Governance” by CA Nawshir Mirza. He explained the importance of professionals in ensuring better governance. Accordingto him, protecting the environment and ensuring social security are important elements of society, however, governance is a process by which both can be achieved successfully. It was a very interesting and interactive session.

Technology is the theme of the quarter. I would like to state that role of technology in modern India has a strong focus on science and technology, realising that it is a key element for economic growth. India ranks third among the most attractive investment destinations for technology transactions in the world. With more and more multinational companies setting up their R&D centres in India, the sector has seen an uptrend in investment in recent years.

Recently I came across Compendium on “Responsible Artificial Intelligence” by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, which defined the use of Artificial Intelligence in Audits; in Public sector management and it also dealt with AI – tools and technology frameworks. According to Mr Girish Murmu, Comptroller and Auditor General of India, AI could contribute up to USD 15.7 trillion to the global economy by 2030. It has the potential to lead socio-economic growth and can be used to benefit citizens and the country through targeted and timely interventions. As organisations increasingly rely on technology to manage their business processes, there is a strong perspective among the auditing fraternity too to review our role in this change and to align ourselves with the changing technological environment.

The compendium also states that Auditors can use the AI technology in many ways like classifying the transaction into high and low-risk categories, clustering transactions having similar characteristics, summarisation of transactions, identifying related entities across multiple levels, predictions, and Image Analytics. The AI technology can be used to identify circular trading transactions in taxation or to detect non-existent beneficiaries claiming benefits from government schemes.

Before concluding, I would like to invite all, to the Mega Event of 75th year Celebration – ReImagine. Let us all celebrate this significant milestone with joy, gratitude, and a renewed commitment to our shared values.

All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them.” ~ Walt Disney

From The President

Dear BCAS Family,

On 6th July, 2023, I will complete my term as President of this esteemed institution. My heart is overwhelmed with emotions while I am writing this last communication. It looks as if just yesterday, I assumed the august office of the President of the BCAS. On the one hand, there is an emotion of joy that I could give my best to fulfill the promises made to the best extent possible, on the other hand, there is a hollowness on realising that I will miss out on the energy effervescing out of the 24X7 commitment to the BCAS. It was this energy that kept pumping adrenalin to my brain, driving it to work harder, longer and smarter. There is also an emotion of gratitude for having received so much love, affection and support from such a large community of seniors, stalwarts, colleagues, staff and members. As I look back, I realise that this was a journey of joy, learning, giving and, above all, self-discovery.

Having spent more than fifteen years with the BCAS in different positions, when I became President, I felt that there was a need to make certain things ‘easy’ for the members to help achieve the BCAS vision better. That is how I happened to choose the theme for the year 2022-23 as “EASE”, which promised to bring about required systemic changes. The idea behind this theme was to empower the members to have easy access to knowledge, emerging opportunities, as also ease of networking and reskilling. I am happy to say that I bid farewell to all of you with a great sense of satisfaction that I could fulfill most of the promises made. During the year gone by, we took a number of initiatives, various committees organised excellent events that aligned well with the theme. The events like Income Tax ki Paathshala, Online 5th Long Duration Course on the GST, Workshop on Practical Aspects of Audit for SME Practitioners, M&A Masterclass, Lecture Meeting on “Inflation Dynamics – India v/s USA Approach” and many such events were aligned to give easy access to the knowledge. Many bespoke events were also organised on emerging areas like ChatGPT, Process Automation under GST, Use of Technology in Audit, ‘Value Investing’ etc., for members to embrace the emerging opportunities. For providing ease for networking and reskilling, several residential conferences were organised. Also, for the new members, felicitation and mentoring sessions were organised to help them in their careers and expand their networks.

In addition, numerous initiatives were also taken to achieve the desired goal. During the year gone by, BCAS was certified as an ISO 9001:2015 compliant organisation, hybrid facilities were made available for meetings, engagement with existing and new organisations with a similar vision as BCAS was enhanced, social media presence increased with calibrated strategy and the beta version of the new website and mobile app was launched. Entire journal archives were digitized, and focus was given on making past premium events available to members at a reasonable cost. Under the auspices of the BCAS Foundation, we could carry on good humanitarian work by equipping some schools in backward areas with the facility of digital education through pre-loaded software on the television screens. Tree plantation and blood donation drives were also carried out with great zeal, matched by an equally enthusiastic response. This year BCAS published its long-awaited publication on ‘FAQs on Charitable Trust’, which was very well received by the readers.

Focus was also put on improving the administration by continuous monitoring and training of the staff. You may find the complete details of the activities and the initiatives in the Annual Report which can be downloaded from the site. To summarise, we did find fruition with ‘EASE’.

You will agree that we are at a very exciting time in the history of our institution. BCAS is entering the 75th year of its foundation and this historical feat holds a special place in the heart of all its members. The sheer fact of our society’s meaningful existence for more than seven decades and its successful transformation into a modern, progressive and digital institution speaks a lot about it. Appreciating the importance of the milestone, great plans are on anvil to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee with programmes befitting the occasion. Several events are planned on the bespoke themes throughout the year, culminating with a Mega Event in the month of January 2024. There will also be a special entertainment programme for the members to participate on this joyful occasion. We are surely looking at the exciting year ahead.

Just as I conclude my message, I convey my gratitude to the Chairmen and Co-Chairpersons of the ten committees through which BCAS’s activities were carried out throughout the year. Their dedication and guidance enabled us to provide very relevant and critical events and publications throughout the year. Under their able leadership, the conveners of each committee left no stone unturned to leave a mark of excellence and ensure smooth functioning. I would like to thank all the Past Presidents who have been pillars of strength and a source of inspiration throughout the year. A big thank you to the BCAS staff who have dedicatedly performed their duties and co-operated for new initiatives embarked on during the year for the effective functioning and serving the members of the Society. The year has been made memorable by my Office Bearer colleagues, who spearheaded various goals set at the start of the year. I thank all members and readers of the President’s message, who have, from time to time, showered their compliments, expressed their disagreement, pointed out anomalies and gave their suggestions to make it more effective. I have no hesitation in admitting that without their feedback, I would not have been inspired to do better. Lastly, I thank Almighty to have put me in this privileged position to know and interact with some of the best minds in the country. I hope I have been able to meet their expectations.

There will be a change of guard on the 6th July which also happens to be the 75th Founding Day. I wish incoming President Chirag and his new team all the very best for the coming year. I am sure under his able leadership and creative visualisation, backed up by the youthful energy and mature experience of his team, BCAS will achieve greater heights.

Goodbye to you all, and a big THANK YOU for your support and affection.

Thank You!
Best Regards,

CA Mihir Sheth
President

From The President

Dear BCAS Family,

We have been hearing about the government’s protracted efforts to bring about “Ease of Doing Business” in India for the last few years. However, do we know that this is a country where apart from agriculture, business was regarded as a holy cow? India was one of the leading exporters in the world, with various Indian kingdoms giving due respect to its businessmen vying to make things easy for them to facilitate trade and commerce. It will be interesting to examine how the wheel has turned a full circle from the ugly past of colonial rule in terms of ease of doing business in India.

I recently stumbled upon an authoritative report from an eminent British economist Angus Maddison who established India as the wealthiest country in 1 AD, with 34% of the world’s GDP. In 1700, plundering and exploitation sent India’s share down to 24.5% — interestingly UK’s GDP then was a minuscule 2.1%. By 1800, India’s GDP declined to 20%; in 1900, it had plummeted to 1.7%. The systematic wealth stripping and exploitative initiatives by colonial powers and invaders, interspersed with a string of severe famines, took a deadly toll on India’s economic exuberance. Ease of doing business? Yes, but only for the trade that was against the interest of India and her citizens.

Decades of an exasperating freedom struggle, coupled with the unwavering adoption of socialist policies, kept India’s economic growth lacklustre and stunted. It was only in the early nineties, when India was gasping for foreign exchange, that a modicum of sense sprouted and the economy was gently opened. The shackles of protectionism and red tape were shattered, but it took decades to shift the gears of a lugubrious economy. After much pruning and finetuning, the economy got into a slow trot. With the change in government and a massive revamping of numerous archaic policies and procedures, the economy is back on track and coasting from one milestone to another.

Gauging the necessity of nurturing businesses across all sizes, the government adopted a minimum government and maximum governance policy. Pivotal to streamlining the lumbering economy was the arduous task of rationalising and decriminalising 25,000 compliances and repealing 1486 union laws. The government had no choice but to switch to widespread use of digitisation of manual processes to accelerate services across multiple geographies.

These initiatives have seen results – the World Bank has recognised India’s efforts and has seen India advance spectacularly from 142 in 2015 to 63 (out of 190 economies) in 2020 in ease of doing business. Very enthusiastic on the subject Prime Minister said, “Our target is to push India into $5 Trillion ‘Economy Club’. For this, every sector of the economy has to upscale. AI & IT have become vitals of our manufacturing ecosystem and the Government is working on the new ‘Industrial Policy’ to accommodate the realities into development.”

The focus has been comprehensively thought through, efforts are being made to develop manufacturing facilities as well as to gain and penetrate global markets. In recent years, there have also been serious efforts and reforms in the sphere of trade facilitation. These concrete measures have borne fruit – India’s global ranking has escalated from 146th in 2018 to 68th in 2020. Initiatives such as the paperless compliance system and greater clearances through Risk Management System have enabled lower dwell time and transaction costs for both exporters and importers.

A good start has been made, but it is critical that the pace of reform be continued – particularly in continued digitisation and ensure speedy clearances of cargo. Even the task of introducing uniformity of customs procedures across geographical locations; and enhancing grievance redressal mechanisms should be tackled on a war footing.

What key challenges must India address to make it truly the most sought-after manufacturing and trading hub? Here are a few…

Ease of Doing Business

In some countries, it takes just half a day for a new business to register and commence operations. In contrast, a new company can take anywhere from one to four months to begin operations in India.

Land Acquisition & Registration

Land registration is one of the biggest hurdles for businesses in India. There are several difficulties in establishing legal ownership, litigation due to inheritance, demand for cash payments by sellers, fragmented holdings, etc.

Electricity Connection & Shortages

The time has dropped to 45 days, but it involves lengthy waiting time and complicated fire-safety procedures.

Complicated Tax Laws

The tax laws and their implementation leave much to be desired. They not only need to be simplified but administered fairly.

Uneven Infrastructure Development

India is a vast country. As a result, infrastructure development has not progressed uniformly across the country. The government’s focus on boosting road and rail connectivity is commendable, but much more needs to be done.

Bribery and Corruption

India currently ranks 81 on the Global Corruption Perception Index and this is a significant challenge faced by businesses at all levels, with malpractices like corruption and bribery. The government has taken multiple steps to thwart these malpractices and provide firms with a safe and transparent working environment.Enforcing contracts and resolving insolvency are two more areas of concern which have not escaped the eye and efforts of the government.With an economy that’s performing well above the average and a proactive government at the helm, improving the ease of doing business is not a distant dream, but a reality that is gaining rapid ground!

Developments

There are a few important developments that have impacted our profession. First is the inclusion of CAs under PMLA as reporting entities necessitating due diligence of their clients and reporting of specific categories of transactions. As we know, penalties and prosecution are extremely harsh for any offence under this act. So we need to be very careful about the compliances. Secondly, bringing credit card transactions in foreign currency under the ambit of TCS at 20% if they exceed Rs seven lakh. This steep charge will likely block funds in refund cases for a long time until the income tax assessment is finalised. Also, for corporate executives spending for business travel, there will be an anomaly where TCS credit will be in their personal name showing as recoverable in their employer records at the yearend unless paid by the cardholder. We must remember that corporate cards are not easy for the SME sector.BCAS is releasing its publication on FAQs for Charitable Trust. This exhaustive book covers issues pertaining to Charitable Trust regarding direct and indirect tax, Maharashtra Public Trust Act, FCRA and CSR. I highly recommend that all CAs who deal with their Charitable Trust clients to have this book in their library.

Events

Exciting events are coming up in June 2023. There is a Residential Study Course on Indirect Tax, lecture meetings on Will and Succession Planning, TDS and TCS provisions, Decoding ESG through an Internal Auditor’s Lens, Use of Technology in Audit and many more such events. Please keep a tab on the announcement to participate in the meetings of your preference.Finally, June is a month when rain gods shower their blessings. May I sign off with prayers for good rains in our country!

Thank You!
Best Regards,

CA Mihir Sheth
President

PREPARING FOR ‘THE NEW NORMAL’

My Dear Members,

 

This is the third consecutive
month that I am writing to you from the confines of my home. It is almost
unbelievable that the lockdown was announced more than 70 days ago. Who ever imagined
that 2020 would be such a nightmare of a year for the entire planet? On an
individual level there has been pain of loneliness, illness, fatigue, mental,
financial and emotional stress for many victims of the virus and their family
members. We must remain optimistic that these dark days will end sooner rather
than later and we will be allowed to open up in a phased manner. However, one
thing is very clear – life as we knew it till just a few months ago will change
for the foreseeable future. We will all have to get used to what is being
called ‘The New Normal’. As we all look at reopening our offices, social
distancing, wearing of masks, increased emphasis on good hygiene practices,
building our immunity and avoiding physical interaction will be of utmost
importance. This highly contagious but not so fatal virus is not going to be
beaten in a hurry; the onus is on us to protect ourselves and our loved ones by
changing our habits and following certain rules.

 

INDIA TO UNLOCK AND BOUNCE BACK

With each passing day of the
lockdown, the Indian economy is being dragged deeper towards a recession.
Recently, two rating agencies cut India’s GDP for the current year to minus 5%,
equalling the dubious record low achieved 40 years ago. It is indeed a worrying
situation and we are staring at difficult times. There is a global slowdown and
we are amongst many countries facing a recession. India seems to be in a spot
of bother because the structure of this recession is different and not
comparable to anything we have seen in the past. India is facing a
pandemic-induced recession, where the medical infrastructure is under severe
strain with huge shortage of hospital beds and medical facilities. Some sectors
are facing huge shortage of demand, such as hospitality, air travel, etc. So we
need to handle the situation differently.

 

What is worrying is that in
spite of the total lockdown for more than 70 days, our number of infected cases
are not flattening or coming down; on the contrary, they are rising. It seems
that the continuous total lockdown has impacted the economy very, very
adversely. Has the lockdown been effective? Has it worked the way we wanted it?
It seems it has not had the effect we were wishing for. What has happened due
to the lockdown is that our economy has crumbled and has been almost crushed.
In my view, the government has now taken the correct decision to open up and
unlock the activities in a phased manner. We need to do the right things in the
days to come and the government should shift the focus to creating awareness on
hygiene and how to live with this virus. This virus is not likely to go away in
a hurry and has to be managed without panic and hysteria.

 

I remain very optimistic
about our capabilities, abilities and power to bounce back. Our recovery rate
is rising and mortality rate due to Covid-19 remains very low as compared to
other countries. We are a resilient and self-reliant nation and I am sure that
once we reboot our economy, both domestic and global investors and capital will
flow back into our economy. Let us also play our part in restarting the economy
in whatever way we can.Let us start our economic activities in earnest because
little drops of water make a mighty ocean. If we start consuming, demand will
go up, exchange of money will lead to rolling of working capital which, in
turn, will lead to investment and overall growth will return. In these times,
the sheer size of our population and our domestic demand has the capability to
inject the much-needed stimulus into our economy.

 

Let us stand up once again on
our feet, not overreact to fear and at the same time learn how to live in the
changed environment.

 

Take care, stay safe and go
digital!

 

 

 

CA Manish Sampat

President

Dear members of BCAS family,

fiogf49gjkf0d
The other day I was watching the swearing in ceremony of our 15th Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi. Being from the corporate sector, I immediately wondered how the HR would communicate such news to the stakeholders of a company, were Mr. Modi be appointed as the CEO of a company. I began day dreaming and in my imagination, I visualised a letter which would probably read something like this:

 “Dear Stakeholders,

As you already know, as of 26th May 2014, we have on-boarded the new CEO for our Company, Mr. Narendra D. Modi (also famously known as NaMo). He was short listed for the role a few months back and the decision to induct him for the role was taken on 16th May 2014. We are fortunate that after ages, majority of the recruitment team members have concurred on the choice of our CEO. Happily, the stakeholders across interest groups have also lent their vote to Mr. Modi. By doing so, we have strengthened his hands to enable him to steer the fortune of our company with confidence and without bottlenecks.

The new CEO is a visionary, taskmaster, focused individual and master innovator. Having appointed him for the role, we can now step back from debating between ourselves as to how the company must run, so that he could do his job effectively. For those of you who have voted for his appointment, our request is to not crush him with a mountain of expectations. For those of you who did not want his appointment, our request is to accept the wishes of the majority and join hands with him to build our company.

 Having said that, we urge you not to disrupt the growth process and allow graceful functioning of his board. Make your points eloquently and forcefully, but you may want to avoid staging dharnas, walkouts or strikes. We have had enough of that in the last few years.

Mr. Modi has been chosen for the role because of his exemplary performance in our Gujarat branch. It is expected that he will carry that experience forward and upscale it to make our company a model for others to emulate. He has assured that the top lines will grow, costs will come down, productivity will rise, leakages will be plugged, resources will be optimally used, the treasury reserves will rise and the company will have funds for future investments and contingencies.

But it is expected that his biggest achievement would be the significant increase in our bottom-line and thus, the earnings per share. There has been wide discontent in the past on account of inequitable distribution of the company’s profits. It is hoped that each shareholder will benefit under the new management, both financially and socially. But you should also be mindful of the fact that all this cannot be achieved single-handedly. We all need to chip in. Our role would be to focus on our own jobs and roles in the company, share his vision, work our hearts out and be united in our efforts.

As you would have all witnessed, Mr. Modi has extensively travelled to most of our regions and branches before he was appointed. He has already interacted with numerous stakeholders and interest groups and is likely to have gained a deep understanding of and insights into the issues and problem areas.

The CEO is cognizant of the support he has from all quarters and will surely work in the interest of all stakeholders under the parent banner of Hindustan United Family. The stakeholders from the Middle Class Co-operative, the Poor People’s Collective, the Shetkari Sanghatna and Sons, the Youth Unlimited, the Women’s Equality Society, The India Inc. and others can be hopeful of having their grievances addressed this time round.

In return, you are just expected to be patient and give him space to work out his priorities. While he has hit the ground running and hit some home runs in building relations with other CEOs and has taken some phenomenal decisions, please do not expect the world to turn upside down in the first 100 days. The damage done by the weak management of his predecessor will take time to undo. The good days have begun and will only get better. Don’t parrot it, but believe in it.

He already has a plan in place. We have given him a free hand to choose his team and are confident he will select the best person for each job. The process has already been set in motion and from the looks of it, his team has already started taking visible actions. We are hopeful that his team will not only achieve their Key Result Areas but also enter into Service Level Agreements with all their stakeholders. We are sure he is aware that it is important that not only does he himself remain above board but more importantly that he is able to inculcate the same values in his team members. So much so that good governance becomes a culture and does not remain a mere virtue, in all of us. He has gained a reputation of a workaholic. He has no familial or outside pressures nor does he have any known material hobby, interest or greed (the reasons why we are confident he will neither waver, compromise nor succumb to temptations).

Our brand name has taken a serious beating in recent times. Interest of investors and clients was on the wane. It is here that we are very excited to see Mr. Modi not only regain lost ground but to rebrand our company such that others sit up and take notice with envy and awe.

Lastly, for those of you from the business and finance units, there’s a lot to cheer. We are aware that hopes are riding high on him urgently bringing in long awaited bills (e.g. GST), taking a relook at painful laws (e.g. Companies Act, 2013), improving tax administration (where honest tax payers are not penalised and defaulters don’t go scot free) and rationalising the indirect taxes (apply Pareto’s Principle for Service Tax and Excise so that 20% of items that fetch 80% of the revenue are retained and small items which don’t generate significant revenue are exempted).

We request you to join us in welcoming our new CEO and gear ourselves to work alongside him.
As someone famously said “Achche din aanewale hai”.

Yours truly Team HR”

Closer home, BCAS too has a new CEO in Nitin Shingala. An excellent human being, a fine professional and a devoted BCAS volunteer of many years. Having worked with him as my VP for a year I can assure you that 2014-15 will be a golden year in the journey of BCAS. Please join me in welcoming Nitin as the BCAS President for the year 2014-15.

Here’s wishing everyone happiness and love.

With Warm Regards

Naushad A. Panjwani

levitra