Rural development is the process of improving the quality of life and economic well-being of people living in rural areas, often relatively isolated and sparsely populated areas. Rural development has traditionally centered on the exploitation of land-intensive natural resources such as agriculture and forestry.
Main Aims of Rural Developement are:-
- Providing livelihood opportunities to those in need including women and other vulnerable sections with focus on Below Poverty Line (BPL) households.
- Providing for the enhancement of livelihood security of households in rural areas by providing at least 100 days of guaranteed wage employment in every financial year to every household demanding it.
- Provision of all weather rural connectivity to unconnected rural habitations and upgradation of existing roads to provide market access.
- Providing basic housing and homestead to BPL household in rural areas.
- Providing social assistance to the elderly, widow and disabled persons.
- Providing urban amenities in rural areas for improvement of quality of rural life.
- Capacity development and training of rural development functionaries.
- Promoting involvement of voluntary agencies and individuals for rural development.
- Restoring lost or depleted productivity of the land. This is done through watershed development programmes and initiating effective land reform measures for providing land to the landless rural poor.
Mains Schemes for Rural Development by Central and Chhattisgarh Government are:-
The following major programmes are being operated by the Ministry of Rural Development in rural areas,
- Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) for providing wage employment:-Permissible works include water conservation and water harvesting; drought proofing including afforestation; irrigation works; restoration of traditional water bodies; land development; flood control; rural connectivity; and works notified by the Government. Horticulture development in private and public land can be taken up. Inland fisheries, development of pond, etc., can also be taken up.
- National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM) for self employment and skill development,
- Housing for All : Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana – Grameen (PMAY-G) for providing housing to BPL households,
- Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) for construction of quality roads,
- National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP) for social pension,
- National Rural Health Mission:-The scheme provides fnancial assistance up to 90% of the project cost for running and maintenance of day care centre, old age home, mobile medicare unit, etc.
Besides increase in amount of fnancial assistance, several new projects have been added to the scheme like maintenance of Respite Care Homes and Continuous Care Homes, Running of Multi-Service Centre for Older Persons, Running of Day Care Centres for Alzheimer Disease/Dementia Patients, Physiotherapy Clinics for Older Persons, Disability and hearing aids for older persons, Helplines and Counselling Centre for older persons, etc. - Integrated Watershed Management Programme (IWMP) for improving the productivity of the land.
- Mahila Jagriti Shivir:-Information dissemination of woman/ girl related schemes including shishu mela, bal mela, health check up and legal awareness
- Mukhyamantri Kishori Shakti Aahar Sabla Yojana:- Instill self confdence and empowerment among adolescent girls. Provide nutritious food and encouraging out of school girls to continue their education. Spreading health, hygiene, sanitation and nutrition related information. Providing Ready to Eat Food (RTE) Packets of 990 grams once a week.Eligible benefciaries: Out of school girls between 11 – 14 years, out of school girls and school going girls between 14 – 18 years of age.
- Phulwari Scheme:- Community based malnutrition reduction among infants in the age group of 6 months – 3 years.
- Shakti Swaroopa Yojana:- Promotion of self employment and empowerment among widowed and divorced women. Free of cost education to women who are interested to study after Standard XII. Eligible benefciaries: Women should belong to BPL family and between 18 – 50 years of age. In case, the women in Above Poverty Line (APL), then the annual family salary should not exceed Rs 60,000.
- Chhatisgarh State Wide Area Network:- E-governance for efcient delivery of services to citizens in the felds of transport, health care, education, employment etc.
- Chhattisgarh Mahila Kosh:- Skill development of women Self Help Groups (SHGs) and loan disbursement @ 3% per annum simple interest. First loan amount to be sanctioned is Rs 50,000 and second Rs 2 lakh.Formation of women Self Help Groups (SHGs). Providing SHG concept management training and selection of income
generating activities. Activity related training also provided. - Akti Beej Samwardhan Yojana:- Production of good quality and certifed rice, wheat, kodo kutaki and ragi seeds.Subsidy: Rs 500 per quintal for seed production and distribution. Eligible benefciaries: Farmers to be registered with Chhatisgarh Seed Corporation.
- Kisan Samridhi Yojana:- To increase the area under irrigation by using groundwater sources.
Subsidy:Rs 43,000 for ST/ SC, Rs 35,000 for OBC and Rs 25,000 for General category for tubewell construction and pump installation.Eligible beneficiaries: All categories of farmers but priority given to small and marginal farmers. - Skill Development of Farmers:- Skill development of labour farmers.
Grant: Labour farmers will be getting farm equipments worth Rs 42,000 per group. The equipments include: Seed cum fertilizer drill (2), Marker (2), Paddy weeder/ rotary weeder (10), Cycle wheel plough (10), Seed treating drum (1), Sickle (10), Hand/ foot sprayer (3), Power sprayer (1), Dora (2), Fertilizer broadcaster (2)
Rs 3000 per farmer on training and maintenance of farm equipments. Eligible benefciaries: Labour farmer groups having minimum 10 members. Priority given to SHGs having female labour farmers. - PM Grameen Awas Yojna:-Under the scheme, fnancial assistance worth ₹ 70,000 in plain areas and ₹ 75,000 in difcult areas (high land area) is provided for construction of houses. The houses are allotted in the name of the woman or jointly between husband and wife. The construction of the houses is the sole responsibility of the benefciary and engagement of contractors is strictly prohibited. Sanitary latrine and smokeless chullah are required to be constructed along with each IAY house. The houses are allotted to BPL families.
- National Rural Drinking Water Programme (NRDWP):- Under the scheme, drinking water facility is provided to unserved, partially served and slipped back villages, public places including school, anganwadi, public building, PRI ofce, community halls, markets, temples, religious institutions, market places, mela ground, cremation ground, etc.
- Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana:- Under PMGSY, all-weather road connectivity is provided to unconnected rural habitations so as to enable access to the nearest market centre. Habitations having a population of 250 or more are eligible for support from the scheme.There is also provision for upgradation of existing rural roads to the prescribed standards in those districts where all habitations of the designated population size have been provided all-weather connectivity.Support is also extended for rural road network.
- Mukhyamantri Gram Gaurav Path Yojana:- Construction of concrete road (length of road: upto 500 metres). Priority given to those Panchayats who are not having existing concrete road and also to Panchayats who have weekly village haat bazars.
- Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana (DDUGJY ):- Rural Electricity Distribution Backbone (REDB): Creation of REDB with at least one 33/11 kV (or 66/11 kV ) sub-station in each block. Village Electrifcation Infrastructure (VEI): Creation of VEI with at least one distribution transformer in each village / habitation. It also consists of LT Lines / LT AB Cables Household connections. Free of cost service connection to all families Below Poverty Line. Decentralised distribution-cum-generation (DDG): Creation of DDG systems in villages where grid supply is not feasible or not cost-efective from conventional or renewable resource.
- Gaun Khanij Yojana:- Civic infrastructure including community halls, buildings for SHG federations, playgrounds and burial grounds/ crematoria
- Atal Khetihar Majdoor Bima Yojana:- Benefts: Rs 75,000 in case of accidental death, Rs 30,000 in case of natural death, Rs 75,000 in case of complete disability,Rs 37,500 in case of partial disability and Rs 100 per month as scholarship to be provided to the children in the family (maximum 2) if they are in class 9 – 12 or in I.T.I Eligible benefciaries: Benefciary should have agricultural land less than 2.5 acres and should be between 18 – 59 years of age Benefts: Rs 300 per month.
- Aajeevika – National Livelihood Mission:-Under this provision, Village Organisations, NRLM, Cluster level federation can be formed. The broad functions of the committee are as given below:
Collective Problem Solving.
Collective management of certain community services. Collective lobbying for access to programme funds. Creating a platform for sharing of experiences, by holding monthly or quarterly meeting of group representatives at cluster level for comparing notes on the working of groups in respect of recoveries, loans, use of idle funds, etc.
Collective knowledge building.
Collective business activities e.g. purchases of agricultural inputs.
Provision of social security schemes eg. Life assurance,
cattle insurance, health care schemes, economic security schemes for women.
Inter-group assistance (both fnancial and other support
especially in identifying and strengthening the weaker groups).
