The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) is the constitutional authority that audits the accounts of the Union and the States and reports the results to the legislatures. The President appoints the CAG, and the office can be ended only by the procedure used for a Supreme Court judge. The duties and powers are set by Parliament, mainly through the CAG's (Duties, Powers and Conditions of Service) Act, 1971.
Last reviewed: 17 October 2026. Facts checked. We searched for and opened pages on cag.gov.in that reproduce Articles 148 to 151 (the Nagpur Accountant General page and the CAG constitutional-provisions page) and a CAG page on the audit provisions of the 1971 Act. India Code and the Act's PDF returned an access error, so we did not open the Act's text. The six-year or age-65 term comes from secondary explainer sites, not the statute.
What the CAG is
The CAG is an office created by the Constitution, not by an ordinary law and not by a ministry. It is the head of the Supreme Audit Institution of India. Its staff work in the Indian Audit and Accounts Department, which has offices in the capitals of States and in other centres. The name is simply the full title of the office, as in Article 148.
In plain terms, the CAG checks whether public money was spent as the legislature approved, in line with law, and with value for money. The results go to Parliament or the State Legislature, not to the executive.
The constitutional articles
Four articles do most of the work.
| Article | What it provides |
|---|---|
| 148 | The office, appointment, oath, pay protection, bar on later government office, staff rules and expenses |
| 149 | Duties and powers in relation to the accounts of the Union, the States and other bodies, as Parliament prescribes |
| 150 | The President prescribes the form of Union and State accounts on the CAG's advice |
| 151 | Reports on Union accounts go to the President, and reports on State accounts go to the Governor, who lay them before the legislature |
Until Parliament made a law under Article 149, the CAG kept the powers the Auditor-General had before the Constitution began.
How the CAG is appointed
The President appoints the CAG by warrant. Before taking office, the CAG takes an oath or affirmation in the form in the Third Schedule. That oath includes performing the duties of the office without fear or favour, affection or ill-will.
Secondary sources state a term of six years or until age 65, whichever comes first. Check Section 3 of the 1971 Act if you need to quote the term.
What keeps the office independent
Article 148 builds in several protections:
- Removal. The CAG can be removed only in the manner and on the grounds that apply to a Supreme Court judge.
- Pay. Salary and service conditions are set by law, and they cannot be changed to the CAG's disadvantage after appointment.
- No later office. After leaving, the CAG cannot hold any further office under the Government of India or of any State.
- Expenses. The administrative expenses of the office, including salaries, allowances and pensions, are charged on the Consolidated Fund of India.
- Staff. Service conditions for the Indian Audit and Accounts Department are set by rules the President makes after consulting the CAG.
These are features of the legal design. We describe them as written and make no comment on how any office-holder has used them.
What the CAG audits
Section 13 of the 1971 Act makes the CAG responsible for auditing expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India and of each State and Union Territory with a legislative assembly. It also covers the Contingency Fund and the Public Account. A CAG page describes the audit under Section 13 as covering:
- audit against provision of funds,
- regularity,
- propriety,
- efficiency-cum-performance (value for money), and
- systems.
Other provisions of the Act reach receipts, stores and stock, grants and loans, and bodies that are substantially financed from the Consolidated Fund. Government companies are audited under the Companies Act, 2013.
Powers in practice
The CAG audits on the basis of an annual plan built from a risk analysis (a CAG FAQ page lists factors such as expenditure, internal controls, past findings and schemes). Audit offices write findings up as inspection reports and draft paragraphs. The department being audited gets time to reply before anything goes into a report to the legislature.
Two limits are worth knowing:
- The CAG reports. It does not decide policy or pass orders on departments. Follow-up is by the legislature's committees and the government.
- Audit of grants and loans is, on a CAG page, "restricted to the records available in Government offices" unless the Act extends it to the receiving body.
CAG and the legislature
Reports reach Parliament through the President under Article 151. Once laid, they are referred to a committee, usually the Public Accounts Committee.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who appoints the Comptroller and Auditor General of India?
The President appoints the CAG by warrant under Article 148. The holder takes an oath in the form set out in the Third Schedule.
Can the CAG be removed easily?
No. Article 148 says the CAG can be removed only in the same manner and on the same grounds as a judge of the Supreme Court.
What law sets out the CAG's powers?
Article 149 leaves duties and powers to Parliament. The main law is the Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers and Conditions of Service) Act, 1971, which came into force on 15 December 1971 and has been amended since.
Does the CAG audit private companies?
Not as a general rule. The CAG's reach covers government accounts, bodies owned or substantially financed by government, and government companies under the Companies Act. Ordinary private companies are audited by chartered accountants appointed by their members.
To whom does the CAG report?
To the President for Union accounts and to the Governor for State accounts, who lay the reports before Parliament or the State Legislature.
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