Team Herald
PANJIM: The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has expressed its desire to associate with village panchayats in the State to introduce world recognised double entry accounting system.
After meeting the Panchayat Minister Mauvin Godinho on Thursday, ICAI president Chandrashekhar Chitale said. “We met the Panchayat Minister and explained to him how the chartered accountants can associate themselves in strengthening the functioning of village panchayats in garnering resources for them and also making management more meaningful.”
Chitale said that the Panchayat Minister has assured them that he would look it and subsequently the Goa Branch of Western India Regional Council of ICAI will take up all the aspects of financial and overall management of local-self bodies with the government.
According to Chital, the village panchayats are subjected to various regulatory requirements such as filing of Income Tax, TDS and GST returns and if that is delayed it leads of various late fees and penalties and crore of rupees are spent on these payments. If professionals like chartered accountants associate with the local-self bodies then the pilferage can be arrested and the monies can be utilised for the betterment of the society, he added.
Chitale said that presently accounting is not on world recognised double entry accounting system. If accounts are made on this world recognised system then there will be better financial control over the functioning of village panchayats and will give all the details.
Panchayat Minister Mauvin Godinho said that he has already moved a file to introduce double entry accounting system for village panchayats.
“Ultimately when we call them local-self bodies they should also learn to stand on their own feet in the long run. We are ready to collaborate with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India,” he said.
Godinho said that he will soon convene a joint meeting of the Goa Institute of Public Administration and Rural Development (GIPARD), Director of Panchayats and chartered accountants to work out some schedule.
“Double entry accounting system is a reform and we have to move with the times and see that things are done properly. Village panchayats of Maharashtra have implemented it and only Goa is lagging behind,” Godinho said.
Manish Gadia, chairman of WIRC of ICAI and Pradip Kakodkar, chairman of Goa Branch of WIRC of ICAI were also present.
