Budget Work in India Civil Society Experiments in Democratic Engagement In recent years, budget work has emerged as an effective tool through which civil society organisations can push the state in directions more transparent, accountable, responsive and, vitally, pro-poor. The methodology of budget analysis uses hard quantitative data accessed from government sources; its analyses, using universally accepted and respected research techniques, lend the initiative a high degree of credibility with the state, thereby strengthening its potential to influence policy. Despite its importance, budget work has not been able to transcend the boundaries of professional development organisations to form alliances and networks necessary to provide the cutting edge to social action groups, media and other civil society actors.
