ABOUT SAU

Rule 4 of Audit of Schemes Rules, 2011 stipulates that each State Government shall identify or establish an independent organization, “Social Audit Unit” (SAU) to facilitate conduct of the Social Audit of MGNREGS works. This Social Audit Unit may be either a Society or a Directorate, independent of the implementing departments/agencies. The Director/chief executive officer of the society/directorate shall be a person who has worked in the social sector for the rights of the people for at least 15 years. The work may also be outsourced to an outside agency preferably an NGO which is not involved in the planning and implementation of the Scheme but possesses adequate experience of having worked in rights and entitlement based programs. Accordingly, MoRD, Government of Jharkhand constituted Social Audit Unit vide Notification No – 10-3002/SA/2015/RD-(N) 794 dated 02/05/2016. 

WHAT IS SOCIAL AUDIT

Social Audit refers to the process by which citizens access relevant information from the Government, and disclose them to the public. This is done by comparing official records with actual ground realities with the participation of the community in the verification exercise and reading out the findings of the verification exercise aloud in a public platform. The social audit process goes beyond accounting for the money that has been spent to examine whether the money was spent properly and has made a difference to people’s lives. A social audit is directly linked to fundamental rights like the right to access to information and the right to public participation. A social audit is an ongoing process through which beneficiaries, elected representatives and the general public are involved at every stage of the implementation, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation.

The Social Audit Unit shall be responsible for building capacities of Gram Sabha for conducting social audit by identifying, training and deploying suitable resource persons at village, block, district and State level drawing from primary stakeholders and other civil society organisations having knowledge and experience of working for the rights of the people. The Social Audit Unit will create awareness amongst the community about their rights and entitlements under the constitution of India in general and will facilitate verification of records with primary stakeholders and work sites. The Unit will ensures that MGNREGA and other rights and entitlement based programmes are designed and implemented in a manner that is most suitable to the local conditions and reflects the priorities and preferences of the people affected by the said Act.

RULES AND POLICIES OF SAU

• The Social Audit Unit shall be responsible for building capacities of Gram Sabha for conducting social audit by identifying, training and deploying suitable resource persons at village, block, district and State level drawing from primary stakeholders and other civil society organisations having knowledge and experience of working for the rights of the people. The Social Audit Unit will create awareness amongst the labourers about their rights and entitlements under the Act, and facilitate verification of records with primary stakeholders and work sites.

• Trained resource persons should be identified to facilitate the process of Social Audit. These trained resource persons in turn train the village community in carrying out the verification process. The resource persons can be drawn from primary stakeholders, civil society organizations, SHGs, Mazdoor Munch, Nigrani Samiti, who have knowledge and experience of working for the rights of the people.

• The trained resource persons deployed for facilitating social audit in a Panchayat shall not be residents of the same Panchayats.

• The Social Audit Unit shall be responsible to prepare social audit reporting formats, resource material, guidelines and manuals for the social audit process.

• The Social Audit teams shall conduct door-to-door visits to meet beneficiaries of the MGNREGS under Audit and share relevant information with them. These teams shall also visit project sites and physically verify whether completed projects match information contained in the records of implementing agencies.

• The Social Audit Unit shall be responsible to host the social audit reports including action taken reports in the public domain.

• The Social Audit Unit shall facilitate smooth conduct of social audit by Gram Sabhas for reading out and finalising decisions after due discussions.

• The implementing agency shall at no time interfere with the conduct of social audit.

• The implementing agency of the scheme shall provide requisite information to the Program Officer for making it available to Social Audit Unit at least fifteen days prior to the date of commencement of the social audit.

GOVERNING BODY

Steering Committee constituted under the Chairmanship of Principal Secretary, Department of Rural Development, Government of Jharkhand as per following:

1. Principal Secretary, Department of Rural Development, Jharkhand – Chairman

2. Principal Accountant General (Audit), o/o AG (Audit), Jharkhand – Member

3. Representative from Planning-cum-Finance – Member

4. Commissioner MGNREGA, RDD – Member

5. CEO, JSLPS, Ranchi – Convener

6. Professor Ramesh Sharan, Ex. VC, Vinoba Bhave University – Nominated Member

7. Shri James Herenj, Convener, MGNREGA watch, Jharkhand – Nominated Member

8. Shri Haldhar Mahto, State Coordinator, SAU, Jharkhand