Rbi Panel To Review Auditor Norms

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has set up a working group to review the norms for empanelment of statutory auditors, appointment of statutory central auditors (SCAs) and other matters for public sector banks (PSBs) in wake of the changes in the financial and banking sector.

The terms of reference for the nine-member group are to review the existing norms for empanelment of SCAs of PSBs, seven all-India financial institutions and the RBI. The group has also been charged with the responsibility to review the number of audit firms that are presently allotted to each PSB in a team of SCAs.

It will review the existing marking system adopted by the RBI for fixing inter se the seniority of new audit firms (appearing in the panel received from the office of the comptroller and auditor general every year) for the purpose of assigning SCAs.

Further it has to review existing ratio of 9:1 in which available vacancies of SCAs in the PSBs, financial institutions and RBI are filled in every year out of experienced and new audit firms.

The group has to look into the existing categories/ norms prescribed by the RBI for determining the seniority of audit firms applying to the Institute of Chartered Acountants of India (ICAI) for the purpose of their empanelment as branch auditors for PSBs.

It will also review the position on reckoning the audit experience of the Jammu & Kashmir Bank Ltd gained by audit firms.

The members of the group are: C R Muralidharan, chief general manager (CGM) (DBOD), RBI; K B L Mathur, economic adviser, Union ministry of finance; A K Awasthi, principal director, CAG; S L Daga, chairman (professional development committee), ICAI; B D Sumitra, CGM (accounts & compliance), SBI; C P Swarankar, GM, Punjab National Bank; V Santhana Raman, general manager, Indian Bank; K Unnikrishnan, executive (Banking Operations), Indian Banks' Association and R M Thakkar, DGM (DBS), RBI.