Rural Development In India

Todays socio-economic scenario is highly volatile and risky. To sustain the growth and development is a big challenge for various national economic entities. After liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation, most of these entities including national and multinational firms targeted the urban population for growth. It has been more than twenty-five years, and these urban markets are showing signs of maturation and saturation. This resulted in agencies and organisations looking for new avenues in order to sustain themselves. In such a scenario, Indias rural markets have emerged as a new hope for them. The hinterlands in India consist of more than 650,000 villages, which represent approximately 850 million consumers. This number is roughly equal to 70% of the total population. These rural consumers contribute to approximately half of the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Since 2000, Indias rural sector showed a tremendous growth in its per-capita Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as compared to its urban counterpart (6.2% CAGR versus 4.7%). By the end of 2018, rural GDP is estimated to reach US$ 20 billion and touch US$ 100 billion by 2025. According to McKinsey Global Institute, the annual real income per household in rural India would rise to 3.6% by 2025 from the 2.8% over the last 20 years. Normally, it is assumed that urban consumers have more disposable income and their spending pattern is different from that of rural consumers. But the last decade has witnessed a change in this trend, with rural consumers exhibiting similar consumption patterns to that of their urban counterparts. This change is the result of various government initiatives such as the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Act (MGNRA), Swarnjayanti Gram Swarozgar Youjna and the National Social Assistance Program that have increased the purchasing power of rural India. This has led to higher spending by rural consumers (US $69 billion between 2009 and 2012), and this is significantly more than the US $55 billion spent by urban consumers. Owing to a favourable changing consumption trend as well as the potential size of the market, rural India provides a large and attractive opportunity for companies. The rural market is highly vibrant in nature, and the business organisations are performing both as the carrier and bearer of the results of this change, which is happening at an accelerating pace. In the initial years, rural consumers were on the receiving end, and now they are gradually getting into position to dictate the terms. A significant rural market share can be achieved by focusing on execution excellence by implementing novel strategies to serve rural consumers, and it must be drawn on a deep understanding of consumers cultures and needs. Research related to rural development in India is almost non-existent, and this book provides a window into the challenges that are faced in rural India. This book presents a window into the need for education in this subject at the same.

In 1952, India launched a massive and enthusiastic effort to reach the 360 million people in its 550,000 villages with a national program of economic and social reconstruction. Known as Community Development, the program provided an innovative model of rural development for both Third World nations and the aid-giving countries of the West. Although the program achieved its goal of providing service coverage to the nation, its many implementation problems and the lack of quantifiable cost-effectiveness led critics to label it a failure and resulted in its submergence into the Ministry of Food and Agriculture in 1966. More recently, however, partly as a result of the social dislocations following the "Green Revolution," there has been renewed interest in Community Development as the Indian government searches for ways of effectively implementing a strategy of integrated rural development. It is recognized that a repeat of the CD program is not the answer; but an analysis of the program allows the identification of the elements critical to good administration--and political survival. Drawing on extensive interviews with Indian and American participants, this book critically appraises the Community Development program. Dr. Sussman examines the successful pilot project at Etawah, then documents the many problems--organizational, political, and logistical--that were encountered in the attempt to replicate it on a nationwide scale, and that eventually led to its demise. From his analysis emerges the question of what kind of government strategies can best equip rural populations to participate in development. Admitting the difficulties still to be faced, he concludes on a note of guarded optimism based on recent efforts in both India and the U.S. that combine a systems approach with the use of a range of development strategies.

This work is an indepth analysis of the entire gamut of problems afflicting the rural economy. Some of the questions specifically looked into are: With how much of sincerity the plans were prepared, and how these were implemented? What were the effects on productivity and expansion of activities in different sectors of the rural economy? How much of attention was given to the problems of the weaker sections, and what improvements came over the years? What were the state of social and economic infrastructure? Did human resource development receive the attention it deserved?

Contributed articles with special reference to Northeastern India.

Balanced Regional Development Has Been One Of The Major Objectives Of Planning In India. Its Desirability, Rather Indispensability, Has Been Emphasised In Each Successive Plan Document Right From The First Plan. The Emphasis Became More Pronounced Since The Third Plan Which Stressed Continuous Strides In Regional Development. The Differential Strategy For Backward Area Was Put In Operation Since Third Plan For According Special Care And Treatment To The Development Of Backward Regions (Which Led To Techniques Of Area Planning And Sub-Plan For Backward Areas) As Distinct From The Integrated Strategy Adopted Till Then. In Spite Of The Pronounced And Pious Objective Of Reduction In Regional Disparity, The Area Of Planned Development Presents A Picture Of Uneven Growth In India. Eastern India, Comprising Bihar, West Bengal, Orissa And Eastern U.P. Has Lagged Much Behind In The Race Of Economic Development Vis-À-Vis The Rest Of India.Eastern India Has The Highest Incidence Of Poverty As It Constitutes Half Of The Population Of India Living Below The Poverty Line. Thus, Both The Economic Feature And The Economic Future Of The Region Are Intimately Linked To Rural Development. The Question Of Rural Poverty Can Be Effectively Tackled By The Sustained Growth Of Agriculture. Poverty Eradication Programmes, In Terms Of Wage And Self-Employment Schemes Hitherto Launched, Were Ill-Conceived And Clumsily Implemented.In View Of All These Disquieting Features Enveloping The Region, The University Of Bhagalpur Arranged A Two-Day Workshop (22-23Rd Dec. 1993) Organised By University Department Of Rural Economics And Co-Operation. This Book Is The Compilation Of The Lectures Delivered By The Participants Mainly On The Following Agenda.1. Anatomy Of Rural Development.2. Socio-Economic Features Of Eastern India And The Strategic Significance Of Rural Development.3. Pace And Problems Of Rural Industrialization In Eastern India.4. Rural Eco-System In Eastern India.5. Rural Poverty Alleviation Programmes In Eastern India: Pace And Problems.6. Rural Public Administration Institutions In Eastern India Their Efficacy And Problems.7. Jawahar Rojgar Yojna: Problems Of Implementation: State Experiences.

Papers presented at the National Seminar on Rural Development in India: Prospects and Retrospect, held at St. Joseph's College, Jakhama in Nagaland, India; organized by St. Joseph's College, Jakhama, India; sponsored by University Grants Commission, North Eastern Regional Office, at India.