Budget Analysis and Policy Advocacy

Abstract

Independent review of government budgets in India by the non-governmental sector is a comparatively recent phenomenon. Until recently, budget analysis was confined to the media and academic experts, while lobbying on specific aspects of budget proposals was dominated by business interests. The priorities and needs of the poor were rarely highlighted in the process, and received little recognition in budget debates in state and national assemblies. In the mid 1990s a number of NGOs saw the need for independent scrutiny of government budgets from the perspective of the poor. Groups like DISHA in Ahmedabad and the Centre for Budget Studies in Mumbai began to analyse state government budgets to determine the expenditure commitments for anti-poverty programmes and how far these were reflected in actual investments on the ground. This work enabled them to scrutinise budgets at state, district and local levels, and to draw attention to anomalies in government accounts. Their reports proved to be an invaluable resource during budget debates and were frequently reported in the press, thereby highlighting issues of concern to the poor, especially women, tribals, and dalits.