(This story originally appeared in on Apr 19, 2015)

NEW DELHI: Banners with "janta ka budget" printed on them hang on the gates of many colonies in Mayur Vihar phase-II-one of the three places where the experiment to involve people in budget-making starts on Sunday. Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, his cabinet and MLAs of the 11 assembly constituencies that are part of the programme this year will attend the inaugural sessions.

AAP had promised Swaraj (self-rule) in its manifesto and this exercise in "participatory budgeting" is seen as the first test of its plan. All three places selected for the launch are part of deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia 's Patparganj assembly constituency.

On Saturday, TOI found residents curious and enthusiastic about the programme, but the mood seemed tempered by skepticism arising from disappointments under previous governments. Some people said they were ready with presentations and proposals, others had lined up suggestions for better security and recreational facilities, but some were also ready with complaints about garbage dumps and lack of playing grounds.

At the three polling stations where discussions will be held on Sunday, 28,526 voters are enrolled. West Vinod Nagar polling centre has 10,675 voters, Sanjay Jheel 9,540 and the F Block centre in Mayur Vihar phase-II 8,311. The entire constituency will be covered through 36 sabhas over a month.

Many residents said they had received invitation letters titled "Janta ka Budget" and others pointed towards the banners on the colony gates as their source of information. However, there were some who had no clue about the sabhas. DM (east) Kunal told TOI that invitations had been sent to all voters and banners had been put up at prominent places to create awareness.

Invitations to voters have been sent out in the name of the MLA-in this case Sisodia. The letters mention the polling centre under which the resident's "mohalla" or neighbourhood lies. The polling centre location is called "sabha".

During meetings, people's views will be recorded in three categories: public grievances and suggestions, demands for minor development works that can be resolved by deputy commissioners, and works that require considerable expenditure. Voting will be required for the third category of demands. People will be allowed to vote on all projects that are listed. At the end of a meeting, the works will be listed in the order of votes polled.

Within a week after each meeting, officials will be expected to prepare estimates for the projects and allocate money out of the Rs 20-crore fund proposed for each of the 11 assembly constituencies.

If the money is not sufficient for all the projects people want, the most important ones will be taken up first.