ICAI Chandigarh Branch Vision 2014

Dear Friends,

As I address you from this august chair, a profound feeling of responsibility and deep gratitude takes over, and I thank you all for your love and kind support. Yes, I do feel honoured on assuming the Chairman’s office, and yet I am humbled by the trust that has been vested in me by you all. I pray to Almighty for strength to be able to uphold your faith and wisdom to live upto your expectations.

I take this opportunity to congratulate CA Jaswant Dhawan, Vice Chairman cum Treasurer and CA Naveen Soni, Secreatary and other Managing Committee Members. It is indeed a moment of pleasure and pride for all of us. I am privileged to take over this responsibility from my very competent compatriot CA Krishan Joshi who has brought his inimitable style of leadership to the Branch, serving its members and profession with great zeal and dynamism. Life is such a race in which there is no finishing line… To continue the good work done by all my predecessors, life has now chosen me – a duty which I accept in all humility.

Success is the inevitable fallout of sustained and focused effort. I am sure, with able support from my team and you all, we will be serving our fraternity, profession and society to the best of our intentions. We shall be fulfilling promises, conducting programs, undertaking projects and organizing events – all with the combined effort of our worthy team members and support from the Central and Regional Councils, for which I express my sincere gratitude to begin with.

Let us aim high, wanting to do great things, yet, not ignoring the tiny little bits which can add beauty and depth to our lives. As Mother Teresa reminded us, “We all can surely do small things with great love.” I do wish to steer our Branch to a position of eminence. I have my vision as Chairman of the Chandigarh Branch, which I am sharing with you all at the outset. This will not just serve as Our Road Map but also manifests my transparent commitment, for which I am ready to shoulder all accountability.

· We work for our families and indeed we are nothing without their caring love and unquestioned support. If and when such a need arises, we should be in a position to help our member families in distress. A Family Welfare Fund for members of Chandigarh Branch is on the anvil, so that a corpus be created to help any member during an hour of need.

· Health is wealth and nothing is more valuable than human life. We have witnessed some unfortunate instances over the past which is indeed a matter of concern. But our concern should not remain mere lip service. With increase in the spread of deadly diseases among members, the need for Medical Insurance has arisen. Steps will be taken to procure suitable policy for members. Plus, the coverage under Term and Accidental Insurance Policies will also be enhanced.

· Time and knowledge are both precious and crucial for all CA Professionals. Efforts will be made to organize Focused Seminars and Workshops on subjects and topics which are more relevant and useful to all the members.
· Continuing Education : Our endeavour would be to help our fraternity stay on an ever learning track, always on the lookout for opportunities to upgrade themselves. We shall facilitate them to saturate themselves with as much wisdom possible from the vast ocean of knowledge, information, and skills available – adding value to each one of us individually and to our profession on the whole. Planning and Organizing Residential Seminars for the members would also be on the agenda.

· Time is our primary resource, we turn it into wisdom, wealth or waste. Punctuality will be given utmost preference and Seminars would be held strictly as per time schedule. Also, to help inculcate the right values, a gentle request to all our senior professionals to set the right example for younger members by adhering to schedules and timelines.

· Planning for Sports activities, am reminded of the Olympics motto – Citius, Altius, Fortius. In the same spirit, whether it be games/sports or in our professional lives we should aim to be ever Faster, Higher and Stronger. Only then can we stay ahead and on top of life situations/professional challenges. Organising of Sports Fest for members and students and other Co-Curricular Activities shall be undertaken with zest.

· Another need of the hour is Updation of Members Data. We are committed that the new Members’ Directory will be compiled during this year and made available to all.

· The e-Library project has already been undertaken by my predecessor CA Krishan Joshi. The incomplete work will be undertaken further so that the e-library project can be completed for the enrichment of all members, branch and profession.

· It’s high time that we focus on Branding of the CA Profession. Liaisoning with different Govt. Deptts. would be further enhanced so as to sensitize them and make them recognize the necessity and importance of CA Professionals.

· A good faculty needs to encourage and motivate, is required to impart knowledge and skills, should be able to lead from the front, must be inspiring and keep the session lively too. With this vision and objective, Revamping of the Faculty Pool will be undertaken, so that each faculty member is able to add maximum value and students can benefit to the utmost. This revamping will be done for faculties of various courses being run by the Chandigarh Branch for students which include ITT, Orientation, GMCS-I and GMCS-II

Friends, it is not because things are difficult that we do not dare; It is because we do not dare that things are difficult. The first and most important step towards success is the feeling that we can succeed. In this noble cause, I would call upon my team members for their unflinching and active support all through. This 1% inspiration will undoubtedly require 99% perspiration.

Needless to say, God and luck favour the well prepared. I shall leave no stone unturned to prepare for the fulfillment of my humble dream of making Chandigarh Branch a star on the CA horizon. But, for accomplishing all this, I do seek blessings from my seniors and good wishes from all of my fraternity, members, friends, their families and students.

Looking ahead into the future, I wish to have the satisfaction of having given my best… Of having attempted and tried, one who was not afraid of falling and failing… Of having touched as many lives as possible and brought smiles on as many faces as I could… Of having left footprints on the sands of time… Footprints, such that maybe a brother low on morale, seeing, may take heart again…

As Kipling had said —
When the last scorer comes,
To write against your name;
He writes not that you won or lost,
But how you played the game.

Jai Hind!