HPH Rural Development by Dr. I. Satya Sundaram

Rural Development has been receiving increasing attention of the governments across the world. In the Indian context, rural development assumes special significance for two important reasons. First, about two-thirds of the population still lives in villages and there cannot be any progress so long as rural areas remain backward. Second, the backwardness of the rural sector would be a major impediment to the overall progress of the economy. The industrial sector cannot think of sufficient demand for its products so long as the rural incomes are low. The rural areas suffer from poor infrastructural facilities. The villages are yet to emerge as the main centres of production activity. The proclivity is to produce goods in urban areas, even to meet the basic needs of rural consumers. This apart, the rural population requires not one but a few inputs and services. These have to be provided at the right time and in the right sequence. This demands the right kind of co-ordination amongst agencies extending help to the rural sector.