Indian accounting body to launch forensic auditing lab 

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) will launch an advanced forensic auditing lab at its Centre of Excellence in Hyderabad within the next two to three months, reported The Hindu Businessline, citing ICAI President Prasanna Kumar D’s interview with PTI.

ICAI’s initiative aims to support small and medium chartered accountant firms,

The facility is aimed at helping smaller practices take up forensic audit assignments, an area where many have been unable to compete for larger mandates because they lack access to specialised tools and capabilities.

“We are establishing an advance forensic auditing lab at the Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Hyderabad. In next 2-3 months, we will launch it,” Kumar said in the interview with PTI.

He said the lab would operate on a “pay and use model” and provide assignment-specific tools, allowing smaller firms to access forensic audit infrastructure without having to make large upfront investments.

ICAI, which has more than five lakh members, including a large base of small and medium practitioners, is positioning the lab as a capacity-building measure as forensic auditing gains prominence in the profession.

The move comes as the accounting sector adapts to wider changes in reporting and assurance, including growing demand for forensic audits, non-financial reporting, ESG disclosures, artificial intelligence and data analytics.

Separately, ICAI is also reviewing its education and training framework to align with these changes.

The institute has set up the Committee for Review of Education and Training, which is expected to submit recommendations in the coming months on curriculum changes.

According to Kumar, the revised curriculum will seek to incorporate emerging areas such as artificial intelligence, data analytics and other evolving professional requirements.

The Hyderabad lab initiative also comes amid broader efforts to strengthen domestic accounting firms.

In February, ICAI notified global networking guidelines intended to enable the creation of larger home-grown chartered accountant firms, while also allowing them to collaborate with international networks.

These measures are expected to create more opportunities for Indian firms as the economy expands and competition with global players increases.