Civil Service Institute in India
The Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA) is a central civil service training institute under the jurisdiction of Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Government of India for the central civil servants of the Indian Corporate Law Service cadre.
It fulfils various functions in the areas of corporate affairs regulation, governance, and policy. It was established in 2008 at Manesar, Haryana. It has been authorised by the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India to run a Graduate Insolvency Program. It also provides policy support to the Government for CSR and organizes various training programs in CSR. Additionally, it provides various services to corporations for CSR including impact assessments, needs assess1`ments, baseline surveys, and real time monitoring.
It houses the top cadre training academy of the Indian Corporate Law Service. ICLS is an organised Group A service, recruited through the All India Civil Service Examination. ICLS officers are posted across India.
IICA operates through various Schools and Centres. It has a School of Corporate Law, a School of Competition Law and Market Regulations, a School of Corporate Governance and Public Policy, and a School of Finance. It has a Centre for Business Innovation, a Centre for Insolvency and Bankruptcy, and a Centre for Environment and Sustainable Development.
IICA works to create opportunities for research, education, training and advocacy.[1]
History and establishment
The Ministry of Corporate Affairs in India had established the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA) to function as a think tank, action research, service delivery and capacity building support to the Ministry, corporate sector, professionals and related stakeholders.
Organisation and administration
The Institute is headed by the Director General. It has various Schools, Centres, Departments, Academies and Foundations under its ambit looking after different specialized disciplines and areas within the entire gamut of Corporate Affairs horizon.
In December 2021, Govt of India approved the appointment of Praveen Kumar, Retd IAS officer (TN:1987), Former Secretary, Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship to the post of Director General & Chief Executive Officer (DG & CEO), Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA).
Areas of work
IICA is providing support to the Ministry in review/revision of existing corporate laws, rule and regulations, as well as in framing of new ones, as per requirements of a dynamic economic environment. In addition, it is providing training to Indian Company Law Service (ICLS) and other officials working for the Ministry, and supporting organizational reform initiatives. IICA is also helping in continuous improvement of service delivery in diverse areas like MCA21, corporate governance, corporate social responsibility, investor education and protection, etc. The institute is promoting and encouraging innovation and entrepreneurship, particularly in small and medium enterprise. It is providing quality action research, consultancy and information services/support to all its stakeholders including the Government, companies, professionals, Directors of companies, investors, etc. IICA is helping develop and maintain a knowledge Management system, covering all aspects, issues, experiences relating to Indian and global corporate functioning/affairs, linked to internal and external information with speed and in formats designed for ease of access, navigation and utilization. The Institute will provide comprehensive coverage of all disciplines/subjects involved in, or impacting on, corporate functioning. The mandates for IICA mentioned above are not exhaustive.
The Indian Corporate Law Service(ICLS) Academy, one of the Wings of IICA, has been mandated for conducting the Induction & Advanced Training for probationary Officers (POs) belonging to the Indian Corporate Law Service recruited through the Common Exam of Civil Services Examination conducted by UPSC.[2]
Other Key activities carried out by IICA include capacity-building and training programmes, policy advisory functions, public outreach and stakeholder consultations through seminars, conferences and forums.
It also handles matters related to Corporate Social Responsibility as enshrined in the Companies Act 2013. IICA has also been mandated to handle the functioning of National Foundation for Corporate Social Responsibility, a program started by the Government of India in consultation with various stakeholders.[3]
