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In his new book The Audit Trail: How the Audit Trail Heralded Financial Accountability and International Supreme Audit Institutions, P. Sesh Kumar, former Director General of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG), presents a bold reimagining of how technology can reshape the very idea of accountability. Kumar, a seasoned public audit practitioner, argues that blockchain technology—often dismissed as a byproduct of cryptocurrency hype—could serve as the foundational infrastructure for integrity in public finance. He demonstrates how blockchain’s tamper-proof ledger could make fund flows from the Centre to states, districts, and villages traceable in near-real time. Misuse, diversion, or delay of funds would no longer emerge years later in audit reports but could be detected as they occur. At its core, The Audit Trail envisions a shift from traditional, retrospective audits to real-time, preventive oversight. Kumar illustrates how blockchain could be applied to procurement, land records, and direct benefit transfers, transforming the audit function from reactive and punitive to proactive and transparent. However, Kumar cautions against viewing technology as a cure-all. Referring to the 2022 collapse of FTX, he notes that even blockchain’s incorruptible record-keeping cannot guarantee ethical conduct. “Blockchain records transactions faithfully,” he writes, “but it cannot ensure those transactions are legitimate.” Kumar’s roadmap for the CAG includes pilot projects in procurement and welfare programmes such as MGNREGA, creation of a Blockchain and Emerging Tech Audit Lab, and comprehensive retraining of auditors to interpret smart contracts, read code, and identify algorithmic bias. His book traces the evolution of audit and transparency—from Sumer and the Han dynasty to Venice, Kautilya’s Arthashastra, and the Gupta era—before proposing a framework for the digital age. The author also surveys global experiments with blockchain auditing in China, Pakistan, the UK, and the US, observing that while technology offers incorruptibility, public accountability still relies on ethics, judgment, and governance—elements no algorithm can replace. Written in analytical yet accessible prose, Kumar bridges technology, policy, and public finance without romanticising decentralisation. He highlights the paradoxes of decentralised finance, where “there is no helpline when things go wrong,” and questions how Supreme Audit Institutions can oversee systems designed to operate without authority. Ultimately, The Audit Trail is about rebuilding public trust in the digital era. Kumar situates the CAG—and by extension all Supreme Audit Institutions—at the frontier of governance transformation, urging auditors to evolve from “accountants of the past” to “architects of digital accountability.” Published by The Browser, the book also offers a ringside view of the CAG’s functioning and key moments that shaped its prominence. Kumar advocates harnessing technology to turn the CAG into a real-time auditor of India—strengthening transparency in governance and empowering citizens in the process.
