Smt Alka Nangia Arora, a 1991-batch officer of the Indian Defence Accounts Service (IDAS), assumed charge as the Controller General of Defence Accounts (CGDA) today, on August 1, 2026.
An alumnus of Garhwal University, Dehradun and IIT Roorkee, Smt Arora has tenanted key appointments in the Government of India, including as Additional Secretary & Financial Adviser in Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE) under the Ministry of Agriculture, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises, Managing Director of Central Cottage Industries Corporation of India Limited, and Additional Development Commissioner for Handicrafts under the Ministry of Textiles. Bringing over three decades of extensive experience in defence financial management and public service, she has led several initiatives in promotion of handicrafts, agricultural research, procurement policy and public finance, supported by advance training from premier institutions, including IIM Bangalore and ISB Mohali.
Smt Arora began her career in the Ministry of Defence at Dum Dum Ordnance Factory in Kolkata, and since then has held key appointments in the Defence Accounts Department (DAD). She has served with all three armed forces, including as FA to Admiral Superintendent of the Naval Dockyard (ASD) in Mumbai, FA to the Army Eastern Command and head of the Area Accounts Office in Kolkata, as IFA to the Western Air Command (WAC) and Army Hospital Research & Referral (AHRR), and Principal IFA to the Air Force Headquarters. She has held the post of Additional & Special CGDA at the CGDA Headquarters, steering policies concerning Audit, IT & Systems, IFA & Training.
