Sarkari Yojana
Information-Monitoring, Evaluation, and Social Audit (I-MESA): Social Audit
About Information-Monitoring, Evaluation, and Social Audit (I-MESA): Social Audit
Launched by the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment (DoSJE) under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MoSJE), Govt. of India, the “Information, Monitoring, Evaluation and Social Audit (I-MESA)” scheme has a “Social Audit” component whose purpose is to closely check how schemes are being carried out at the ground level, keeping the process transparent and accountable. Social auditing here means reviewing a scheme with active public participation, matching official records against on-the-ground realities, and pulling the resulting evidence-backed issues into a consolidated report. Implementation happens through Social Audit Units set up in every state under MGNREGA, with support from the National Resource Cell for Social Audits-DoSJE housed at the National Institute of Social Defence, New Delhi.
Scheme Overview
Central Government
Ministry Of Social Justice and Empowerment
Individual
Scheme Details
Eligibility Requirements
To qualify for Information-Monitoring, Evaluation, and Social Audit (I-MESA): Social Audit, applicants must satisfy the following conditions:
The candidate must have at least 2 to…
The candidate must have at least 2 to 3 years' experience working with a Social Audit Unit.
The candidate must have facilitated social audits of…
The candidate must have facilitated social audits of schemes other than the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act.
The Team Coordinator heading the team should ideally…
The Team Coordinator heading the team should ideally have finished a 30-day certificate course in social accountability and social audit.
The candidate must make sure Scheduled Castes, Other…
The candidate must make sure Scheduled Castes, Other Backward Classes, and persons with disabilities are represented on the team.
Women should ideally make up 50% of the…
Women should ideally make up 50% of the team. Desirable Criteria
Experience working with elderly people, children, substance-abuse survivors,…
Experience working with elderly people, children, substance-abuse survivors, and time spent in rehabilitative institutions is preferred.
Anganwadi workers, Accredited Social Health Activists, Civil Society…
Anganwadi workers, Accredited Social Health Activists, Civil Society Organization representatives, or local para-legal volunteers may be brought onto the team to help with community outreach and mobilization.
Trained students/interns from academic institutions can also serve…
Trained students/interns from academic institutions can also serve as members of the Social Justice Cell.
Benefits Provided
Information-Monitoring, Evaluation, and Social Audit (I-MESA): Social Audit provides the following benefits to eligible applicants:
Exposes gaps and shortcomings in how a programme…
Exposes gaps and shortcomings in how a programme is being carried out, enabling improvement.
Builds public awareness of the programmes being run
Builds public awareness of the programmes being run.
Opens a channel for dialogue among different stakeholders…
Opens a channel for dialogue among different stakeholders to improve the scheme.
Gives rights-holders a route to timely grievance redressal
Gives rights-holders a route to timely grievance redressal.
Keeps scheme implementation transparent and accountable
Keeps scheme implementation transparent and accountable.
Gathers input from primary stakeholders based on ground…
Gathers input from primary stakeholders based on ground realities to correct course and shape policy.
Encourages people's participation at every stage of programme…
Encourages people's participation at every stage of programme implementation. Conditions
Costs of conducting social audits are drawn from…
Costs of conducting social audits are drawn from the administrative budget of the respective scheme.
Funds flow to Social Audit Units via the…
Funds flow to Social Audit Units via the National Institute of Social Defence, New Delhi, using budgets worked out and reviewed by the National Resource Cell for Social Audits.
Half the total budget (the first installment) is…
Half the total budget (the first installment) is released after the social audit calendar is submitted.
The remaining tranche follows once all audits are…
The remaining tranche follows once all audits are complete, findings are uploaded, and the annual analytical report is prepared.
Documents Required
Applicants should keep the following documents ready before starting the application:
Required for Verification (Provided by Implementing Agency to Social Audit Team)
Every relevant record, handed over to the Social…
Every relevant record, handed over to the Social Audit Team well before the audit begins.
Records showing how funds were spent
Records showing how funds were spent.
Records giving details of the beneficiaries
Records giving details of the beneficiaries. Required for Reporting (Generated by Social Audit Team / Implementing Agency)
Evidence for the draft report in the form…
Evidence for the draft report in the form of official records, testimonies, photographs and videos.
A Social Audit Calendar, which is needed for…
A Social Audit Calendar, which is needed for funds to be disbursed.
Social Audit Reports meant for submission to the…
Social Audit Reports meant for submission to the concerned departments.
An Annual Analytical Report, required before the second…
An Annual Analytical Report, required before the second tranche of funds is released.
An Action Taken Report, filed by the implementing…
An Action Taken Report, filed by the implementing department or institutions on the basis of the panel's decision.
How to Apply
Online Application
Applicants can apply for Information-Monitoring, Evaluation, and Social Audit (I-MESA): Social Audit through the online application process outlined below.
Initiation and Preparatory Phase - The Department of…
Initiation and Preparatory Phase
The Department of Social Justice and Empowerment (D/oSJE) writes to the Social Audit Units (SAUs), spelling out audit protocols, processes, targets, and which institutions or villages are to be covered for the financial year.
SAUs then form a Social Justice Cell (SJC) by picking resource persons, and must lock in the calendar, targets, and budget for the whole social audit exercise.
The implementing agency is required to proactively hand over all scheme-related documents and information to the Social Audit team 15 days before field verification begins.
Orientation and Sensitization Meeting - An Orientation or…
Orientation and Sensitization Meeting
An Orientation or Entry Point Meeting takes place at the State or District level exactly 15 days before the field audit actually starts.
Called by the social welfare department at the SAU's request, this meeting briefs institution heads and department officials on what the social audit is for and how it works.
SAU representatives use it to explain the audit parameters, the target villages/institutions, the verification documents needed, and the proposed dates for the Social Justice Assembly.
Field Verification and Draft Report Creation - The…
Field Verification and Draft Report Creation
The Social Audit team runs an extensive field verification covering three strands: record checks, worksite/infrastructure checks, and beneficiary verification through direct interaction.
Personal interviews and focus group discussions with beneficiaries, staff, and stakeholders help the team weigh ground reality against official records and gauge service/facility quality.
Drawing on these findings, the team drafts a report in the prescribed format, backed by evidence and written in the local language.
Validation and District Assembly - A Validation meeting…
Validation and District Assembly
A Validation meeting (Beneficiary Sabha or Gram Sabha) is held at the village/institution level, where the audit team reads out draft findings for stakeholders to discuss and confirm.
Here beneficiaries get a shared platform to raise their concerns, seek clarifications, and hear responses from those implementing the scheme.
The validated report then goes before the Social Justice Assembly at the district level, held in the mandatory presence of concerned department representatives, where a constituted panel examines it and decides on next steps.
Action Taken and Reporting - The Social Audit…
Action Taken and Reporting
The Social Audit Unit records the decisions taken at the District Social Justice Assembly and sends this record to all concerned Departments and Institutions within 7 days.
Those departments and institutions must then submit an Action Taken Report (ATR) reflecting the panel's decisions to the social welfare department and the SAU within 15 days.
The implementing department/institution must upload the full ATR to the social audit Management Information System (MIS) within 30 days of the District Social Justice Assembly concluding.
Official Application & Website
Verify the latest eligibility, dates and instructions before applying.