Monitoring Drought Plans through Social Audit Framework in India

Implementing Partner: Build Change

Project name:Monitoring drought plans through social audit framework in India

This project analyzed two community-driven models—National Rural Employment Guarantee Act Social Audits and Seva Mandir’s Gram Vikas Committee—for monitoring disaster-resilient infrastructure.

It identified key principles such as participatory water security monitoring, adaptive evaluations, and feedback loops to enhance learning.

By integrating these elements, the study strengthens resilience planning, ensuring drought-proofing measures remain effective, responsive, and aligned with local needs, ultimately fostering sustainable infrastructure development and informed decision-making in vulnerable communities.

India’s land area
affected by drought
in 2024
0 %
Days with extreme
weather events in
India (Jan–Sep 2024)
0 %

Impact and Key Findings

1

Active community participation strengthens early risk detection and adaptive learning, ensuring timely responses that enhance disaster resilience. By fostering local engagement, communities can implement effective preparedness strategies, improving long-term sustainability and responsiveness to evolving hazards. 

2

Tracking diverse indicators provides a holistic view of vulnerabilities, enabling informed decisions and strategic interventions in infrastructure and resource management. This approach enhances disaster resilience by ensuring proactive measures, adaptive responses, and sustainable risk reduction strategies. 

3

Sustained community engagement strengthens long-term infrastructure maintenance, ensuring water security and resilience for local populations. This commitment fosters lasting benefits, enhancing adaptive capacity and safeguarding communities against evolving environmental challenges through proactive, participatory solutions. 

Resources

Aishwarya Pillai

Lead Specialist

Alpana heads institutional partnerships, governance, and resource mobilization at CDRI, advancing cross-sector collaborations that drive resilient infrastructure programming across Member Countries and organizations. With over 25 years of experience spanning international development, global health, and the non-profit sector, she brings deep expertise in fundraising strategy, donor engagement, and delivering strategic change. 

At CDRI, Alpana has been pivotal in forging strategic alliances with governments, international organizations, and philanthropies. She also plays a key role in fortifying institutional systems and board governance mechanisms as the Coalition transitions into an international organization. 

Before joining CDRI, Alpana held senior leadership roles at The George Institute for Global Health, Plan India, WaterAid India, and SOS Children’s Villages, leading institutional fundraising and cultivating strategic partnerships for social impact. 

She holds a Master’s in Finance & Control from Aligarh Muslim University and completed Executive Education at Harvard Business School (CSR India). Her work is driven by a commitment to building enduring, values-based partnerships that accelerate sustainable development outcomes. 

Alpana Saha

Director, Partnerships, Governance, and Resource Mobilisation 

Alpana heads institutional partnerships, governance, and resource mobilization at CDRI, advancing cross-sector collaborations that drive resilient infrastructure programming across Member Countries and organizations. With over 25 years of experience spanning international development, global health, and the non-profit sector, she brings deep expertise in fundraising strategy, donor engagement, and delivering strategic change. 

At CDRI, Alpana has been pivotal in forging strategic alliances with governments, international organizations, and philanthropies. She also plays a key role in fortifying institutional systems and board governance mechanisms as the Coalition transitions into an international organization. 

Before joining CDRI, Alpana held senior leadership roles at The George Institute for Global Health, Plan India, WaterAid India, and SOS Children’s Villages, leading institutional fundraising and cultivating strategic partnerships for social impact. 

She holds a Master’s in Finance & Control from Aligarh Muslim University and completed Executive Education at Harvard Business School (CSR India). Her work is driven by a commitment to building enduring, values-based partnerships that accelerate sustainable development outcomes.