A GP may receive taxes or fees under law, state assignments, grants and scheme funds. Accounts should connect each receipt to its permitted purpose, approved work and actual payment. Financial records alone do not prove a public asset exists or works; physical inspection and community review help close that gap. Where a programme provides for a social audit, residents can examine records, discuss exclusions and test whether a reported work or benefit reached them.

Separate four documents: a village priority or resolution; a technical estimate and sanction; a measurement or delivery record; and a payment/account entry. If a road is said to be complete but residents report a missing culvert, the measurement, geo-tagged work record where applicable and field inspection are more probative than a budget speech. A social audit does not replace formal accounts or statutory audit; each has a different purpose. A candidate should be able to explain both transparency and legal authority.

Worked example: A Gram Panchayat votes for a road and receives a grant. The cash entry alone does not prove the road exists. Follow the resolution, technical estimate, sanction, tender, measurement, payment and social-audit record. Residents can compare the physical road with the recorded length and quality. The audit trail is useful because elected approval, administrative payment and actual service are distinct facts.

Active recall: Put priority, sanction, completion evidence and payment in a sensible order. What can a social audit reveal that an accounts total may miss?