Salaries of CAs hit the roof, winds of change blowing

New Delhi, Mar 20: Winds of change are blowing in the profession of Chartered Accountancy. Soon a Chartered Accountant will be able to use a logo -- hitherto prohibited.

Also a larger number of aspirants will be able to complete their articleship.

And what is more, salaries of CAs now almost match that of MBAs.

To ensure that the aspirants are able to do articleship, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) -- the regulatory body-- has recommended to the Central Government changes in the eligibility criteria for firms which train them.

''There are many more students who would be able to do articleship as a consequence of the changes in this criteria,'' ICAI President Sunil Talati said, while highlighting the decisions of the International Affairs Committee of the ICAI.

Chartered Accountancy, a profession run on highly conservatives lines, is now opening up.

At present, a CA cannot issue advertisement relating to his firm, nor put a board indicating that he is a Chartered Accountant. Nor use any logo on his visiting card.

This paradoxically is not the practice anywhere else in the world.

But all these will be things of the past.

Mr Talati eluded to the bright prospects of students who wish to pursue Chartered Accountancy as a profession and the lowest cost of training for the course -- Rs 17,000 per annum.

The head of the Institute, the alma mater of 1,35,000 CAs in the country, said the salaries and perks match those of freshers who have done MBAs.

Citing an instance, Mr Talati said the highest renumeration package offered during the latest campus placement programme was Rs 38 lakh (85,000 dollars) per annum to four candidates, two each at Delhi and Chennai centres.

The average salary at various centres all over the country at which the candidates are getting placements is Rs 6 lakh.

During the last round of campus interviews held in August- September last year, many freshers were able to get a salary up to Rs 27 lakh per year.

''All this indicates that the value of the accounting profession in India and abroad has gone up. An Indian CA is a most sought after professional because of the wide domain of his knowledge, competence and ability to perform,'' Mr Talati said.

Mr Talati said campus placement programme organised by the Institute will be held later this month for candidates who have qualified in November 2006 examination. The 14 centres where interviews will be held are Baroda, Bhilai, Coimbatore, Indore, Jaipur, Kanpur, Pune, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai and Delhi.

More than a hundred reputed companies, including some from overseas, will interview nearly 4,300 candidates.

The companies are from sector like business process outsourcing, banking, insurance, IT, manufacturing, infrastructure, telecom, oil and gas, FMCG and non-banking financial institutions.

Mr Talati said the Institute will launch its logo on July 1, the Chartered Accountants' Day.

The logo will represent the profession, whose design is based on alphabets and signs connected with the work of accountancy.

It will carry the symbol tick mark -- symbolising the task performed by chartered accountants and auditors.

A chartered accountant can use the logo in his visiting card, letter head or wherever else he likes to display.

Asked why it took so long for the Institute to workout the logo, Mr Talati quipped: ''Give me the credit for this. This is a way I will be able to make a mark as President. But now there is pressure on the Institute to do the rest like permitting accountancy firms to advertise.'' He said the Finance Ministry had asked the Institute to improve the Outcome Budget, which is presented in Parliament in June or July.

The well-known chartered accountant from Gujarat said a multi disciplinary committee will go into this issue.

''The problem with government programmes and projects is the dismal record of their implementation. If the Institute can suggest meaningful ways of correcting this, we would have performed a great national task,'' he added.

UNI