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Spectators or Participants?
How does a hierarchical, top-down state respond to efforts to become directly accountable towards its citizens? This article analyses this question through India's experience with implementing social audits for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act in Andhra Pradesh. Drawing on an intensive survey with MGNREGA wage-seekers, it examines the role of social audits in providing a platform for citizens to engage with the state; the state's ability to respond to grievances raised through the audit; and the effects of the audit on the local corruption market.
We would like to thank our study team, comprising Radhika Desai, Adarsh Namala, Vibhu Tewary, and Intellecap, who managed our fi eld surveys. The article benefi ted from discussions and comments provided on preliminary drafts by an anonymous reviewer, Farzana Afridi, Vasudha Chhotray, Ambrish Dongre, Jonathan Fox, Vegard Iversen, Reetika Khera, Gulzar Natarajan, Aishwarya Panicker, Salimah Samji, and Shekhar Singh. We also thank Sowmya Kidambi, Director SSAAT, and her team for patiently walking us through the social audit process, assisting us with data and reports, and giving us valuable feedback.
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