As compliances like GST rise, Goa sees acute shortage of CAs

PANAJI: As tourism and other industries grow in Goa and there is an increase in mandatory compliances like GST, businesses in the state are dealing with a peculiar problem - a short supply of chartered accountants.
Companies often find themselves meeting their requirements by hiring CAs from outside the state. Many, unable to find those who have cleared their CA final exams, simply opt to employ candidates who have cleared the intermediate stage exams, said Thomas Andrade, chairperson, ICAI-Goa branch of the Western Region of Institute of Chartered Accountants (WIRC).
"With GST and other new compliance requirements, businesses require financial experts more than ever, either part-time or full-time," Andrade told TOI.
‘Nine candidates qualifying is a rarity for Goa’
T hose who have qualified as CAs are being offered a starter package on par with the best in the industry in the campus interview itself. Even someone who has qualified in the intermediate exams gets paid well, more than any other regular graduate,” said Andrade. “Currently, we are seeing huge demand and less supply for CAs in Goa. We have seen several private employers struggle to find CAs for their companies,” said treasurer, ICAI-Goa, Vaibhav Bale. ICAI’s Goa branch rejoiced when the recent results of the CA final exams were announced and nine qualified from Goa. While a few will be practicing independently, most were absorbed by the industry immediately.
Nine qualifying, and some at first attempt, is a rarity for Goa, with the average for the state being five to six of those clearing the CA finals held every six months, Andrade said. The association is of the view that either many students are not aware of CA as a career option, or they are unwilling to dedicate their full working hours until they qualify as CAs. Students see that their peers are already working and earning, and so the percentage of those giving up after not qualifying in an attempt is very high, said Andrade. “The Goa branch recently covered around 4,000 students across schools and colleges of Goa and tried to create awareness by conducting career counseling, as some don’t even know this is a career option available to them.
Also, parents may have limited knowledge about options available, and if a child is doing academically well, they immediately send them to the science stream,” Andrade said. He said that Goa’s colleges offering only day-time classes and stressing on 75% attendance also acts as a deterrent for students in completing their articleship with a practicing CA, which leads to many aspirants moving to other cities like Pune to pursue chartered accountancy, as many colleges offer more flexible timings there.
The Goa branch’s secretary, Vinayak Dhumatkar, said that the CA course is among the most affordable. Andrade said that the association is also trying to tieup with the directorate of higher education to help train faculty to standardise some of the syllabus and to promote commerce education. The branch’s vice-chairperson Milind Shirodkar said that nine new CAs having qualified from all parts of Goa will hopefully inspire more local youth to take up the profession.