Anugraha Narayana Das becomes CGDA; Vishvajit Sahay takes over as Secretary (Defence Finance)
Anugraha Narayana Das, a 1991-batch Indian Defence Accounts Service officer, took charge as Controller General of Defence Accounts on 1 May 2026, the same day his predecessor Vishvajit Sahay assumed charge as Secretary (Defence Finance) in the Ministry of Defence.
Summary
Anugraha Narayana Das, a 1991-batch officer of the Indian Defence Accounts Service (IDAS), assumed charge as Controller General of Defence Accounts (CGDA) on 1 May 2026; he previously served as Principal Integrated Financial Adviser at Army Headquarters and Special CGDA. On the same day Vishvajit Sahay, a 1990-batch IDAS officer who was serving as CGDA, assumed charge as Secretary (Defence Finance) in the Ministry of Defence. The CGDA heads the Defence Accounts Department, which handles financial advice, payment, accounting and internal audit for the Defence Services; the department was renamed from the Military Accounts Department on 1 October 1951, when its head was designated CGDA, and came under the Ministry of Defence from August 1983.
Key facts
- New CGDA
- Anugraha Narayana Das (IDAS 1991), from 1 May 2026
- Secretary (Defence Finance)
- Vishvajit Sahay (IDAS 1990), earlier CGDA
- CGDA heads
- Defence Accounts Department (DAD)
- DAD named
- 1 October 1951 (earlier Military Accounts Department)
- Under MoD since
- August 1983 (earlier Ministry of Finance)
Practice MCQs 3 questions
Who assumed charge as Controller General of Defence Accounts (CGDA) on 1 May 2026?
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Correct answer: A — Anugraha Narayana Das
Anugraha Narayana Das, a 1991-batch IDAS officer, became CGDA; his predecessor Vishvajit Sahay became Secretary (Defence Finance).
Consider the following statements about the Defence Accounts Department (DAD), headed by the CGDA: 1. The Military Accounts Department was renamed the Defence Accounts Department on 15 August 1947. 2. The DAD has always functioned under the administrative control of the Ministry of Defence since Independence. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
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Correct answer: D — Neither 1 nor 2
Neither is correct. The renaming took place on 1 October 1951, when the head was designated CGDA; for over three decades after Independence DAD was under the Ministry of Finance, and came under the Ministry of Defence only from August 1983.
Vishvajit Sahay, who became Secretary (Defence Finance) on 1 May 2026, belongs to which service?
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Correct answer: B — Indian Defence Accounts Service
Vishvajit Sahay is a 1990-batch officer of the Indian Defence Accounts Service (IDAS) and was serving as CGDA before the appointment.