For Dholka and Daskroi talukas of Ahmedabad District, 12 camps to facilitate the filing of applications under the Right to Information Act were carried out. As part of regular monitoring, the third phase of a six monthly study was conducted to understand the process of implementation of NREGS and the role of panchayats. The data generated is used for local level advocacy. ‘Bhavais’ have been conducted to generate awareness in the community for demanding work through the NREGS.

The Ministry of panchayati Raj is preparing a report on the Status of Panahayati raj in the country. This responsibility has been given to the Institute of Rural Management, Anand (IRMA). As part of this process, two state level workshops were facilitated: one for Gujarat at Ahmedabad in collaboration with IRMA and the other for Rajasthan at Jaipur in collaboration with IRMA and PRIA. A chapter on the process of social audit has been contributed by UNNATI.

2. Urban Governance

In Gujarat, in collaboration with the Gujarat Urban Development Company Ltd, a capacity building workshop was organised for elected representatives and officials – Chief Officer, President, Executive Committee Chairperson, Vice President and Engineers for 7 municipalities to enable them to implement the city level Solid Waste Management plans. In collaboration with the Centre for Environment Planning and Technology (CEPT) and Surat Municipal Corporation, 12 ward level consultations covering 36 wards of Surat city were conducted with various stakeholders. The aim was to enable the citizens to articulate their issues/concerns at the ward level and demand for better delivery of services. The findings from these consultations will be fed into the revised city development plans. On behalf of PRIA, an exposure visit was facilitated to Gujarat for the women councillors of Haryana and Rajasthan.

In Rajasthan, for Jodhpur City, 32 households were linked to government schemes.