(MENAFN- KNN India) New Delhi, Nov 17 (KNN) Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) K Sanjay Murthy on Sunday announced new national audit priorities aligned with India's long-term development goals of improving ease of living, ease of doing business and reducing logistics costs.

The updated audit focus will cover key areas such as urban governance, MSME facilitation, foundational education and multimodal logistics, including a special emphasis on the Indian Railways.

With India expected to have over half its population living in urban areas by 2047, the CAG has launched an audit of urban local bodies across 101 cities to assess infrastructure quality, environmental sustainability, service delivery and local economic growth.

“Our findings will offer actionable insights on urban issues affecting over 40 crore citizens,” Murthy said, reported FE.

A separate audit has been initiated for the MSME sector to evaluate ease of doing business through paperless systems, digital platforms and grievance-redressal efficiency. The review will identify procedural gaps affecting small enterprises.

Human capital development forms another key priority. To support foundational learning goals, the CAG has launched a nationwide audit of Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN).

On infrastructure, a comprehensive audit of multimodal logistics under the PM Gati Shakti initiative will examine coordination between ports, railways, freight operators and terminal agencies to gauge the effectiveness of integrated logistics planning.

Consultations for this audit involved various stakeholders, including the Ministry of Railways, port authorities and private sector operators.

To enhance its audit capabilities, the CAG is expanding training in emerging technologies. In collaboration with IIT Madras, it has introduced a certification programme in data science, AI and cybersecurity for IT audits.

(KNN Bureau

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