International Centre for Environment Audit and Sustainable Development (iCED)

What is iCED?

The International Centre for Environment Audit and Sustainable Development (iCED) is the specialised training and research institution of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India for environment audit and sustainable development. It is located in the RIICO Industrial Area, Kant Kalwar, Jaipur, and functions as a centre of excellence that builds the capacity of auditors and government officials to examine environmental and sustainability issues.

According to the CAG of India, iCED delivers national, bilateral and international training programmes and has trained over 6,000 national and international participants to date. Its courses span areas such as the blue economy, renewable energy, biodiversity, climate resilience and the use of technology, including artificial intelligence, in auditing.

Importantly, iCED is not an individual-benefit scheme. There is no application form for a member of the public, no scholarship for students, and no cash payout. It is an institutional facility, and people take part in its programmes only when their department or audit institution nominates them.

iCED's role in international audit

iCED has a recognised global standing in environment audit:

• It has been the Global Training Facility for the INTOSAI Working Group on Environmental Auditing (WGEA) since 2011.
• It has been the Global Training Facility for the Working Group on Extractive Industries (WGEI) since 2016.
• It has established itself as a specialised Centre of Excellence on the Audit of the Blue Economy.

INTOSAI is the International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions, and these designations mean iCED trains auditors not only from India but from Supreme Audit Institutions across the world.

Who is eligible to attend iCED?

Because iCED is a training institution, "eligibility" is about who can be nominated for its courses, not who can claim a benefit.

Who can attend (through nomination):

• Officers of the Indian Audit and Accounts Department and the CAG's field offices.
• Government officials from other departments whose work touches environment and sustainability.
• Indian Forest Service officers and other services relevant to environment audit.
• International delegates from Supreme Audit Institutions of other countries, including under international training programmes.

Who cannot apply:

• Members of the public cannot apply for a personal benefit, there is no individual scheme, scholarship or grant.
• Students cannot enrol directly; iCED trains serving officers, not candidates seeking a degree or stipend.
• Anyone not nominated by an eligible department or audit institution cannot attend on their own initiative.

What documents are required?

How to apply, the institutional route

Since there is no public application, participation runs through official channels:

1. Course announcement. iCED and the CAG of India announce their training calendar and specific programmes, including international courses.
2. Departmental nomination. The officer's parent department, field office or Supreme Audit Institution nominates them for the relevant course.
3. Confirmation by iCED. iCED confirms the nomination against the course's seats and any participation criteria.
4. Attendance. The nominated officer attends the training programme at the iCED campus in Jaipur or through the mode specified for that course.

For international participants, nomination typically flows through the relevant Supreme Audit Institution and the sponsoring international programme rather than through an individual request.

Why iCED matters

Environment audit examines how public money and public policy affect natural resources — forests, water, air, biodiversity, climate and, increasingly, the blue economy of oceans and coasts. By training auditors to assess these areas rigorously, iCED strengthens accountability for environmental commitments. Its role as an INTOSAI Global Training Facility means the methods developed and taught at Jaipur influence how audit institutions across the world approach environment and sustainability audit.

Where to find more

• iCED / CAG of India: cag.gov.in/iced

A note on this guide

iCED is an institutional facility rather than a citizen-facing scheme, so this guide deliberately does not invent an application flow or a benefit amount. It records what can be confirmed: iCED's role under the CAG of India, its Jaipur location, its INTOSAI Global Training Facility designations from 2011 and 2016, its focus areas including the blue economy, and the fact that participation is by official nomination only. Readers looking for a personal benefit will not find one here, because none exists, and saying so plainly is the correct outcome.

How to check your application status

There is no individual application portal for iCED, so there is no personal "application status" to track online in the way there is for a benefit scheme. Because participation runs entirely through official nomination, status checks work through the nominating channel, not through iCED directly:

• Nominated officers (domestic): the nominee should follow up with their own department's or field office's establishment or training section, which raised the nomination in the first place. That office holds the record of whether iCED has confirmed the seat, and it communicates the confirmed course dates, venue and joining instructions to the officer once iCED finalises the batch.
• International delegates: status is tracked through the Supreme Audit Institution or the sponsoring international programme (such as the INTOSAI Working Group on Environmental Auditing) that put the nomination forward, since iCED corresponds with that institution rather than with the individual directly.
• Direct query to iCED: for a specific course, the nominating office or the officer can write to iCED, CAG of India, using the contact details on cag.gov.in/iced, quoting the course name, batch dates and the nominee's name and department.
• No SMS or helpline tracking: because this is a training programme, not a financial benefit, there is no SMS alert system, application reference number, or call-centre helpline for checking status, unlike welfare or subsidy schemes.

In short, confirmation of a seat is communicated back down the same official chain that raised the nomination, so the fastest way to check status is to ask the office that submitted the nomination, not to look for a public tracking tool.

Common reasons for rejection

Since iCED does not run an individual-benefit scheme, "rejection" here means a nomination not being accepted for a particular course rather than a welfare application being turned down. The real reasons nominations fail to convert into a confirmed seat include:

• Seats already full. iCED's courses run in fixed batches with limited capacity, particularly its INTOSAI Global Training Facility programmes, which draw international demand. A late nomination for a popular course can simply miss the cut once seats are allocated. Fix: nominate as soon as the course calendar is announced, and confirm the nomination deadline with the department's training section rather than waiting until close to the course date.
• Nomination does not match the course's target audience. Some courses are designed for specific cadres, for example officers of the Indian Audit and Accounts Department, environment-focused departments, or Supreme Audit Institution delegates under a particular international programme. A nominee whose role does not fit the course's stated audience may not be accepted.
• Nomination not routed through the correct channel. iCED accepts nominations from departments, field offices or Supreme Audit Institutions, not from individuals applying directly. A request sent by an individual officer without institutional backing, or sent to the wrong office, will not be processed as a valid nomination. Fix: route the nomination through the officer's own department or, for international participants, through the relevant Supreme Audit Institution.
• Incomplete nomination details. A nomination missing the officer's service identity, department confirmation, or the specific course and batch being applied for can be sent back for correction, effectively delaying or losing the officer's place in that batch. Fix: ensure the nominating office includes complete identity and service details and names the exact course and batch when submitting the nomination.
• Course-specific eligibility not met. Certain international or specialised courses, such as those tied to a particular INTOSAI working group's programme, carry participation criteria set by the sponsoring programme rather than by iCED itself. A nominee who does not meet those external criteria will not be confirmed for that specific course, even if otherwise eligible for iCED's domestic training.
• Mistaking iCED for a public scholarship or grant. Members of the public or students sometimes attempt to apply for a personal benefit, scholarship or stipend from iCED. These are turned away by definition, not due to any error in an application, because iCED does not offer an individual public benefit at all.