(Premium) Gist of Kurukshetra Magazine: February 2013

Premium - Gist of Kurukshetra Magazine: February 2013

Contents

LAB-TO-LAND INITIATIVE-AN INTRODUCTION

The government implements a wide range of programmes for the welfare and development of rural population. The Ministry of Rural Development also has a large number of schemes and programmes. The investment under these programmes has grown at a compounded annual rate of growth of 26.8% from Rs. 7169 crores in 2001-02 to Rs. 76376 crores crores in 201213. These programmes aim to improve the quality of life of rural households by providing them infrastructure for roads, housing, drinking water and sanitation, opportunities for income, employment, skill development, social security and support for proper management of natural resources. People’s institutions like Gram Sabhas/ Ward Sabhas are assigned a pivotal role in planning and implementation of these programmes along with the Panchayati Raj Institutions.

AWARENESS

A plethora of measures are required to educate the people about their rights, entitlements and procedures to avail them under various programmes, forge partnerships between the people and government institutions, strengthen inter-departmental coordination, prepare village development plans, monitor and audit their implementation in accordance with the provisions of the programmes, and reinforce village unity and harmony by eliminating barriers of caste and class. It is also imperative to build the capacity of the implementing agencies to expand their outreach and become more responsive to the needs of the people in order to make the utilization of programme resources more efficient and meaningful.

Department of Rural Development, Government of India provides financial assistance to National Institute of Rural Development, Hyderabad, 28 State institutes of Rural Development (SIRDs) and 89 Extension Training Centers (ETCs) in the States. These institutions are responsible for training and capacity building of the implementing agencies including the Panchayati Raj “Institutions, officials, resource persons, members of Self Help Groups and volunteers. NIRD conducts action research, training programmes, both off and in campus, and organizes workshops, conferences and seminars to facilitate implementation of rural development programmes. The SIRDs have five core faculty members who are fully paid by Government of India. Because of the progressive expansion of the rural development programmes, the training needs have grown considerably. NIRD needs to increase its role in organization of off campus training programmes in the States and work in closer partnership with SIRDs to meet the training needs of the flagship programmes.


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