• Investment World
• eWorld
• Catalyst
• Mentor
• Life
• Canvas
• Praxis
• Urban Pulse
• Brand Quest

THUS far the only `announcements' in the ICAI's Web site have been either for members or for students. There is a new addition now — a call for tenders. There are three items listed under "tenders on paper, printing of ICAI certificates and printing services", and one can get a glimpse of the Institute's paper requirements from the documents on the site. For instance, the number-crunching body needs per annum, about 40,000 reams of paper and art cards of varied specifications, plus about 400 tonnes of map litho reels. A virtual printing institute.

Likewise, the specification of the certificates "with defined security features in six colours on front side" plugs the yearly requirement at 25,000 and upward revision is likely. Break-up is: Associates — 9,500; Fellows — 3,500; Associates COP (relax, this is jargon for certificate of practice) — 7,500; and Fellow COP — 3,500. The testimonials are printed on `Sinarmas' matt art cards, using `Fugitive' ink, as if to justify the escapist tendencies of most auditors. "Logo in the background should be printed in invisible Ink that can only be read in Ultra Violet Lamp and there should be Micro Numbering (Magnetic Ink Character Recognition)." There would be hologram of "larger security type". For students these statistics may provide a clue about how many the ICAI wishes to have in the passing-out parade.

The third on the list of tenders relates to printing services on web on order basis for study material and other publications. For the Net savvy, this web has nothing to with the Web, but refers to web offset, which is printing on a continuous roll of paper.

For PE-I (the earlier Foundation course) the yearly projection of number of enrolments is 40,000; for PE-II (the old Inter), it is 30,000; and Final, 13,000. Prima facie, attrition rate — that is the rate of shrinkage in size or number — works out to 25 per cent between lap1 and 2, while at the next level, it is more than 50 per cent. In the absence of official numbers on dropouts, perhaps the tender documents are revealing the tender underbelly of the Institute.

hindubusinessline@hotmail.com

D. Murali

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication

Stories in this Section
Sweat, not sweet equity

Copyright © 2003, The Hindu Business Line. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu Business Line