Sachin Malik Lucknow: The 12th meeting of the Governing Body of the Social Audit Organisation was held under the Chairmanship of Chief Secretary S.P. Goyal. The meeting witnessed detailed discussions on the Progress of social audits, improvement in their Quality and bringing Schemes of various departments under the ambit of Social audit, among other important Issues.
The Chief Secretary directed that social audits be made more effective and Strengthened further, with continuous improvement in their Quality. He said that the objective of social audit is to ensure transparency, accountability and Public Participation in the implementation of Government Schemes. He laid special emphasis on making the social audit Process more effective and ensuring necessary action based on the findings of the Audits.
Principal Secretary, Rural Development, Saurabh Babu, informed the meeting that the initiative to bring Schemes of other departments under the ambit of social audit would not only ensure transparency and accountability in the implementation of Schemes but also further Strengthen the Directorate of Social Audit. The Chief Secretary directed that necessary action be taken to conduct social audits of Schemes implemented by other Departments.
The meeting also discussed the Quality of Social audits, effective use of digital Platforms, bringing various Schemes under the ambit of social audit and ensuring effective compliance based on the findings of social Audits.
The Director, Social Audit, also apprised the Governing Body of the current Progress of social audits. It was informed that, besides the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), Social audits of the National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP) are also currently being conducted by the Directorate. In addition, the social audit of the Samagra Shiksha Scheme will be commenced Shortly.
The meeting was informed that under the MGNREGS, social audits of a total of 56,736 Gram Panchayats were completed during the financial Year 2025-26. In the financial Year 2026-27, social audits of 14,612 Gram Panchayats have so far been completed. Of these, Social audits of 9,642 Gram Panchayats were conducted digitally through the Panchayat Nirnay App.
Similarly, during the financial year 2026-27, the social audit Process is underway in 10 districts under the NSAP and in 18 districts under the Disability Pension Scheme.
The meeting was attended by the Principal Accountant General, Commissioner, Rural Development and other Members.
