Biography of “Pooling of Interest Method” in Accounting for Amalgamations -January 2007

Article written for Bhavan’s Management Research Journal[1] Abstract ‘Pooling of interest method’ of accounting for amalgamations is a unique concept among accounting practices. Its uniqueness is in ignoring the historical cost concept, a fundamental concept for recording transactions in accounting. In this practice the evidence of cost provided by the transaction of amalgamation is ignored in accounting for the amalgamation. Defined in Indian Accounting Standard 14 para 10 as “Under pooling of interest method, the assets, liabilities and reserves of

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The Science of Embezzlement -44 techniques in Arthasastra

This is an extract from the book titled “Corporate Disclosures: The Origin of Financial and Business Reporting 1553—2007 AD” by Shankar Jaganathan and published by Taylor & Francis Books India Pvt. Ltd. / Routledge India in 2008 Arthasastra, written by Kautilya in the third century BC identified forty different ways to embezzle the Treasury. This is one of the earliest records documenting the science of embezzlement. The logic for listing them out is probably to educate supervisors on what to

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Demonetization -What Next?

Contrary to popular belief, Lorem Ipsum is not simply random text. It has roots in a piece of classical Latin literature from 45 BC, making it over 2000 years old. Richard McClintock, a Latin professor at Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia, looked up one of the more obscure Latin words, consectetur, from a Lorem Ipsum passage, and going through the cites of the word in classical literature, discovered the undoubtable source. Lorem Ipsum comes from sections 1.10.32 and 1.10.33 of “de

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Independent Directors -The Holy Cow of Corporate Governance

An article written in 2009 post publication of my book Corporate Disclosures 1553-2007 This is the time for questioning. After the disclosure of the self-confessed fraud in Satyam, almost every individual involved with the company has been questioned – the promoters, the Chief Financial Officer, the auditors and the independent directors. As the individuals are being probed, the sanctity of some of these roles itself surprisingly has not come under the scanner. In fact the popular belief holds more discerning

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