Social Audit: Accountability and Transparency

About the book

Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act has unique features such as  social protection, livelihood promotion, creation of sustainable assets but also strengths grassroots institutions with democracy depth with its transparency and accountability measures. For the first time in history the act has mandated social audit to be conducted where it has echoed the minds of the rural masses with the mantra of hamara paise hamara hisab. The National food security act 2013, and the rights of persons with disability Act 2016 also mandates social audits. Social Audit as a tool for transparency, has not only shaped the panchayati raj institutions towards record keeping, as a platform for grievance rederssal but also as paved ways for them to mature in a very systematic way.

MGNREG Audit of Scheme Rules 2011, enacted in consultation with CAG details the process of social audit which includes social audit facilitation by state government and creation of independent organization for conduct of social audits, and processes regarding social audit reinforcing it in Auditing standards in 2016.  In the meantime many states have come up with their own approaches, leanings, own set of challenges and insights. Pilots have been conducted under MGNREGA, NFSA and also under the rights of persons with disabilities.  This book brings together all such pilots and experiences of different stake holders, the pilots have been carried out by different state social audit units, both government and CSOs,   and Civil Society Organizations. The Pilots carried under MGNREGA from 2015 became strong foundation for the social audits units to take shape in the respective states, with revival in few states which brought many drastic changes in the  functions, and manage information systems. It was well thought to  pen down these unheard and unseen experiments ,  reflections of states with their own flavor  and recommendations. This book has also tried to give the possible rules, different state initiatives, prescribed standards that are presently governed at the end of the book. This edited volume aims to help the social audit units of all states, researchers, students of social sciences and general public at large.

About the authors

Dr. K. Anuradha, former social audit consultant, Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India, Social Audit expert and Researcher at National Institute of Rural Development and Panchayatiraj, formar Director Social Audit, Government of Assam, Social Researcher and Social Audit Practitioner having more than 18 years of experience in the development field with expertise in capacity building, social accountability, tribal development, disability and caregivers, working with community based organizations, nodal agencies, government and non governmental organizations. Presently working as an independent researcher.

Shri Bidyut Bhusan Mohanty, Secretary and founder of an Non governmental Organization, SPREAD (Society for Promoting Rural Education and Development www.spread.org.in) with more than 30 years of experience working for Land rights, tribal & displacement issues, child issues, Gender, Panchayatiraj institutions, disability, social accountability and right to work. He has been the members of many committees at state and national level networks for policy advocacy.

Foreword by 

Dr Nicholas Nisbett,

Health and Nutrition Research Cluster,

Institute of Development Studies,

University of Sussex, U.K.

Contributors

Arti Verma is working on the issues of social inclusion and gender rights in north India for last 10 years. She has been instrumental in building partnerships among civil society organisations and government to facilitate community led participatory and accountable mechanisms. ( worked as State Manager, PACS, Bihar)

Ash Bahadur Subba, Programme officer, Voluntary Health Association of Sikkim (VHAS), Sikkim, India

Bidyut Bhushan Mohanty, Secretary and Founder of SPREAD

Cisilia Susngi, Programm Officer SRES, government of Meghalaya, Previous team member of Meghalaya state social audit unit).

Dr. K. Anuradha, works in Odisha and based in Koraput. Social Researcher and social audit practitioner.

Nilesh Signh, Programme Support Head, JSPLS ( govt of Jharkhand)

Rajpal Yadav, has been working on issues of rural development and participatory governance more than a decade. He has experience on extensive engagement with Civil Society Organizations and state governments on establishing social audits across northern states of India. ( worked as National programme manager PACS)

Rashmi Ranjan Rout, Ex-PMRDF, Mayurbhanj

Ruchira Raha, Social Audit Expert, Social Audit Unit, West Bengal

S.W. Bangang, (S.W. Bagang) Assistant Director (RD & NRM), State Institute of Rural Development, Arunachal Pradesh

Shri Late D M. Wallang, PD DRDA government of meghalay, west jaintia hills

Shri Gurjeet Singh, Director, Social Audit Unit, Jharkhand, Jharkhand State