Open Forum

New Delhi, 4 October 2023

Remembering Gandhi

REAL INDIA IN VILLAGES!

By Dhurjati Mukherjee 

The nation celebrated Gandhi Jayanti on October 2, paying homage to Mahatma Gandhi on his 154th birth anniversary and pledging to fulfil his dreams. And while there’s no denying the country has made strides becoming the fifth largest economy in the world, it is worth recalling his vision that ‘the future of India lies in its villages’, among others. Questions thus rightly continue to be raised about what has changed for the 64.13% of population in rural India, how much progress has been made in reconstructing villages and whether the conditions of the deprived and backward sections of society continue to reek of despair? 

Addressing virtually a ‘Kshetriya Panchayati Raj Parishad’ of local body members drawn from several States, Prime Minister Modi had recently said the lamp of development has to be lit up in every village, tehsil and district to make India a developed country by 2047. And that ‘sabka saath, sabka vikas’ is not merely a slogan for the BJP and development initiatives must be turned into a mass movement. 

Whether he gave what could be termed a political speech without delving into the problem or whether he genuinely wanted to change his strategy with a rural thrust remains to be seen. Modi did not spell out the government’s priorities and plans in this regard and the possible steps that were intended to be taken in future to improve the condition of the villages. The neglect of the rural sector has been highlighted by economists’ time and again as also the urban bias in Indian planning. 

It has been stated that the government’s policies helped 13.5 crore people out of poverty but what has not been stated is the addition of population during this period and the percentage decline in poverty rates. Moreover, those who have crossed the poverty line are obviously in the EWS group, whose conditions are also not very encouraging. Though statistics reveal that under the Modi government’s MUDRA loan scheme, Rs 23 lakh crore has been distributed to create eight crore new entrepreneurs, out of which about 51 percent of the beneficiaries are from SC/ST or OBC categories, it has been found that this has had little effect on the lowest tiers of society, specially in rural areas. 

There is a tendency to forget how much of the Indian population lives in villages. If that is taken into consideration as also the conditions existing in the backward districts and sub-divisions of the country, the Union budget without any doubt would have to allocate more resources to rural areas. Sadly, the Rural Development Ministry was allocated Rs 1,57,545 crore for 2023-24, around 13% less than the estimated expenditure made by it. Besides, fund allocation for Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Scheme (MGNREGS), which provides guaranteed 100 days of wage employment per year to at least one member of every household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work, too was cut by almost one-third. This is inadequate when wages are increasing and, as per calculations, the funds allocated to States can’t provide employment for not more than 35-40 days. 

Additionally, there was no raise for Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna which remained as last budget at Rs 19,000 crore, while there was only a marginal increase for National Livelihood Mission – Ajeevika to Rs 14,129.17 crore, compared to revised estimate of Rs 13,336.42 crore in last budget. Regrettably, the arm-chair economists and planners oppose what is called welfare expenditure and try to draw parallels with the Western world without realising that in our country there is a very large segment who are either below the poverty line or marginally above it. The present allocation of funds for rural areas will not make the villages self-sufficient, as envisaged by Gandhiji and leaves much to be desired. 

At the same time, in the past decade adequate while attention has been given towards improving overall infrastructure specially for roads and railways, the social infrastructure, specially health and education, has remained neglected in the remote villages and backward areas of the country. A well-planned strategy with financial support is imperative at this juncture to bring about the much-needed socio-economic transformation of the villages and improve the incomes of the rural masses.  

Rural transformation signifies a major shift in rural formation. Such transformation may be defined as process of transition which signifies a major shift in the entire rural formation. This denotes the successive changing patterns conceived in rural settings -- in its structure, form and character, both in positive and negative directions. Sociologists as well as economists are of the opinion that the pace of social restructuration, the emergence of new classes, decline of traditional cultural institutions also rural incomes are quite significant phenomenon that needs to be seriously investigated. 

In evolving a policy of transition in rural society, it is vital to delve deep into the vision of our late President, Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam relating to PURA that is, Providing Urban Facilities in Rural Areas, which is very much in the Gandhian spirit. He visualised that India needed 7000 PURAs covering more than six lakh villages. The theme of PURA has been focussed on agro processing, developing local crafts, dairy farming, fishing and silk production so that non-farm revenue could be enhanced, based on the core competency of the region. Moreover, he pointed out that the economy would be driven by sources of renewable energy such as sun, wind, biofuels and the conversion of municipal waste from power. The entire plan of Dr Kalam has been geared towards increasing micro-scale manufacturing in rural areas to achieve sustainable development, using the core potential of the rural sector. 

At this juncture, the question is how much of it has been accomplished? As pointed out earlier, the government’s thrust has unfortunately not been on the scale necessary to improve social and physical infrastructure in the villages. No doubt renewable energy has got a thrust but what about ensuring better livelihood for the masses? What about energising the agricultural sector and making it a key area of exports? 

Another aspect of the rural transformation process to be effective calls for putting an end to discrimination and deprivation, specially among castes. The relationship of peasantry caste with the agricultural working classes, the lowest castes and the Harijans is increasingly that of aggressiveness and antipathy. This is being reciprocated by the lower castes and working classes as well, leading to a sharp decline in the cultural ethos of rural society. This is indeed tragic that there is conflict in policies of protective discrimination and the weaker sections do not accept the legitimacy of the so-called reform measures. 

There is thus an urgent need for rethinking in formulating our socio-economic strategy with focus on invigorating the rural economy, as envisaged by Gandhiji long back. There must be a thrust on making the villages self-sufficient and promoting agro-based and cottage industries in a bigger way that could generate employment. With population increasing at a rapid pace, the economic strategy should focus on the rural sector where micro-level units could ensure employment. Additionally, rural health and education need to be upgraded so that the lower segments of society can avail the benefits of growth. A holistic plan, rather than piecemeal schemes, would be the best tribute to the father of the nation. Real India is in the villages.---INFA 

(Copyright, India News & Feature Alliance)