Social Audit

1
Social Audit

• Presentation
• by
• Amitabh Mukhopadhyay

2
Objective of the Presentation

• To highlight the importance of social audit as a
  means to generate a DELIBERATIVE DEMOCRACY

3
MKSS Critical Episode

• JAWAJA JAN SUNVAI, January 1995
• MKSS obtained order from Collector give records
• Dharna by Gram Sewaks first at Collectors office
  and then across Rajasthan
• Records to be given ONLY to government auditors
• Though records were denied to MKSS, the Jan
  Sunvai was held on January 7, 1995.
• People from seven panchayats gathered to give
  oral evidence. Within two days of the hearing the
  sarpanches and gram sevaks started paying back
  the pilfered money. Many workers received full
  payment of wages.

4
Prior to RTI

• Human rights activists had been agitating for the
  direct right of access to information for
  political detainees agitations about Union
  Carbide episode, Narmada, Enron etc.
• Rights of access by common citizens were crowded
  out by rights of intermediary institutions ie.
  Courts, Parliament, CAG, Press
• It is from this Jan Sunvai in 1995 that the
  concerted movement of several organisations for
  right to information began

5
After RTI

• Created public space to ensure TRANSPARENCY in
  governance
• Foregrounds ACCOUNTABILITY as a process that does
  not follow but begins with any act of governance
  from planning stage itself
• Created conditions for social audit

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What is Social Audit ?

• Social audit is a process of collectively
  investigating the DETAILS of planning and
  implementation of any act of public or corporate
  governance and deliberating on issues related to
  accountability
• It is DELIBERATIVE in nature does not even
  accept any immutable definition of accountability
  

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The Process of Social Audit

• Study by a small group of the original and
  subsidiary books of accounts
• Investigation of matters
• Sharing the results of investigation with a wider
  group
• Conducting a Jan Sunvai
• When accounts presented at Gram Sabha, take note
  of evidence at Jan Sunvai

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Example Social Audit and NREGA

• We had anti-poverty programs as charity doled out
  by government so far NREGA is first step which
  recognises RIGHTS of the unorganised rural
  workers
• Our concern is not program delivery which is a
  management concern our concern is enabling rural
  workers to assert this new RIGHT
• Assertion of this right can root out corruption
  that converts anti-poverty programs into
  political slush funds

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Lessons from EGS, Maharashtra

• It is a telling fact that under EGS in
  Maharashtra not a single rupeee has ever been
  paid to any rural worker as compensation in lieu
  of work !
• Since I cannot believe that all workers were
  invariably given work at piece rates, the only
  explanation is that they achieved this by
  stifling demand and rights through excessive
  paper work form filling etc.

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Social Audit Statutory Audit

• Statutory auditors rely only on documents to
  certify final accounts of offices/companies/local
  bodies as true and fair to provide an assurance
  to stakeholders --- classification is an
  important concern along with checking consistency
  of final accounts with original/subsidiary books
  of accounts
• In social audit we focus more on authenticity of
  original books of entry and bills/vouchers and
  check them in a process of oral evidence at
  collective gatherings

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Social Audit Statutory Audit

• Statutory audit by Examiner, Local Funds Audit
  should include hearing complaints of residents or
  taking note of deliberations at Jan Sunvais
• Statutory audit reports to a hierarchy of
  officialdom social audit reports directly to
  sovereign people

12
Create Deliberative Democracy at Gram Sabhas

• Thank You