GBPSSI to conduct social audit of MDM scheme in UP

The Prayagraj-based Govind Ballabh Pant Social Science Institute (GBPSSI) will undertake a comprehensive social audit of mid-day meals (MDMs) in Uttar Pradesh.

Under the initiative entrusted to it by the UP government, the experts of the institute will audit the meals being prepared and served in 210 schools of 10 districts of the state including Prayagraj and Amethi, stated the state education department officials.

Director general (school education) Vijay Kiran Anand has sent a missive in this regard to director of GBPSSI Prof Badri Narayan, they added.

The MDM scheme covers over 1.15 lakh primary schools and 55,000 upper primary schools including government-run, government-aided institutions and madrasas in the state.

Around 1.28 crore students of these primary schools and another 58.45 lakh students of these upper primary schools are getting the benefit of the MDM in UP.

In the missive dated October 4, a copy of which is with HT, Anand has asked GBPSSI to undertake the special social audit of MDMs at 25 schools each of Prayagraj and Amethi besides social audit of 160 schools including 20 schools of two developments blocks each of Varanasi, Chandauli, Jaunpur, Ghazipur, Fatehpur, Kaushambi, Pratapgarh and Sultanpur.

As per the missive, the social audit would be undertaken in schools that have a record of average to least performance in this regard and have never before undergone a social audit process. Moreover, at least one unaided school or madrasa is to be selected in every development block where the schools have been selected for the exercise.

The final selections of these schools are to be made on the recommendations of the district magistrate concerned by the basic siksha adhikaris (BSAs) of those districts, the letter says.

The exercise would be undertaken by the social audit team by contacting all stakeholders including schoolteachers, students, cooks, members of the school management committees, parents/guardians as well as the gram pradhans and even the owner of the fair price shop from where the ingredients for the MDMs are procured, officials shared.

Social audit is a democratic process that ensures public accountability of agencies through a systematic demand of information by the community in response to the works or programmes that have already been implemented by the government or other agencies for that particular area or community.

Social audit is not only an audit of expenses or decisions but also covers the issues of equity and quality in programme implementation. It is an empowering process for the people to be informed regarding the plan, to participate in the process of implementation and make the implementing agency accountable for the work. Thus, it helps maintain transparency, ensures participation and culminates in accountability.