The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) is supporting efforts to strengthen accountability, audit quality, and governance across India’s cooperative sector.
Through its Cooperation and NPO Committee, ICAI reviewed the draft Multi-State Co-operative Societies (Auditor’s Report) Order, 2026, and submitted an audit checklist to the Ministry of Cooperation.
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The ministry notified the order, known as MSCARO 2026, last month.
It establishes a statutory audit framework for multi-state cooperative societies. The framework is intended to strengthen accountability and transparency in the sector.
Cooperative societies provide members with access to credit, livelihoods, and other economic opportunities.
“Strengthening their audit framework can contribute to greater institutional credibility, help build public confidence and promote responsible management of members’ collective resources,” a statement from ICAI said.
ICAI is also developing a Guidance Note on MSCARO 2026.
The proposed note will provide auditors with a structured reference for key audit considerations.
It is also intended to support consistency in audit practices and compliance with statutory and regulatory requirements.
The institute is complementing this policy work with training programmes for cooperative societies and departmental auditors.
ICAI organised capacity-building programmes for cooperative societies in Leh and Kargil.
The sessions addressed financial management, governance, and regulatory compliance in Ladakh’s cooperative sector.
The Cooperation and NPO Committee also held a programme for departmental auditors in partnership with the Cooperation Department of the State Government of Mizoram.
The programme focused on developing auditors’ technical knowledge and professional skills to support audit quality and financial oversight.
ICAI president Prasanna Kumar D said: “Introduction of MSCARO, 2026 will give a more structured approach to audit reporting, is expected to help auditors examine critical aspects of a cooperative society’s financial functioning, flag potential irregularities and identify governance-related concerns.
“This can support the timely detection of financial and compliance risks, strengthen oversight and encourage corrective action wherever necessary.”
