New Delhi, Feb 18 (IANS): President Pranab Mukherjee Wednesday said the Indian Audit and Accounts Service should "constantly upgrade" the skills of its officers.

Addressing a group of 24 Officer Trainees of the Indian Audit and Accounts Service, including two Officer Trainees from the Royal Audit Authority of Bhutan, who had called on the president at Rashtrapati Bhavan, Mukherjee said the audit and accounts service was one of the "most important services" in the country.

"The character, content and size of the Indian economy has vastly changed over the years and this requires that the service constantly upgrades the skills of its officers," said Mukherjee asking the officers to "uphold the highest professional standards".

"The Indian constitution envisages the CAG as an independent constitutional authority and has given the CAG a mandate to help the legislature to keep eye on the executive," Mukherjee said.

"In our parliamentary democracy, the CAG advises the legislature by pointing out mistakes and deviations in expenditure," he added.

The Officer Trainees are presently undergoing their professional training at the National Academy of Audit and Accounts, Shimla.