The Hindu Business Line : In the well

AMONG the latest announcements from the ICAI is an invitation to participate in various research projects of the Institute. This is a routine exercise that is also eternal, as any research ultimately turns out to be, because the Research Committee looks for `experts' to send in CV plus a project synopsis. Subjects listed for possible research include accounting of lottery business, enterprises involved in entertainment and event management, ink industry, surface transport industry, and so on.

Well, expertise is one thing, but research, different. So, there is always the possibility that some of those who chip in with their papers will have a great idea not peppered with the right ingredients of a research project, while some academics who have trodden the dark alleys of research are able to get their proposals okayed even if ultimately they are out-of-sync with reality.

For a profession that is quite old, if not the oldest, there is enough specialisation in different pockets of practice. Since CAs, in general, tend to be secretive, much of this knowledge may trickle down to but a few, within the firm or the family, unless one is vocal as a speaker at conferences, where too, it is the unseasoned who share real info.

"Consistently good academic record, aptitude for research and good written communication ability would be the relevant factors in selection," says the ICAI. But what is more important is for the candidate to have his feet firmly in the chosen area of research, even if he lacked other skills.

CA course does not teach its students to write project reports as churned out by PG students at the nearest photocopy/ DTP shop, nor are there many among the qualified who choose to adopt a frog-in-the-well campus life.

When the ICAI is crowing about `Virtual Institute Project' it would make eminent sense for it to deploy a knowledge management (KM) software to document expertise, rather than expect experts to write, or researchers to don the mantle of pseudo-experts.

hindubusinessline@hotmail.com

D. Murali

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