To End Extreme Poverty, Learn from a Small Village in India
Sri mulyani indrawati.
Photo: Nandita Roy / World Bank
I was sitting on the floor, across from Devi, a mother of eight, who belonged to one of the most vulnerable and socially excluded castes in India. She recalled how when her husband got injured and lost his job a few years ago, the family was pushed over the brink — from subsistence to hunger and poverty. At the time, Devi took a bold step for a poor woman used to living in the shadows of society. She joined a women's self-help group in her village and took a small loan to raise goats. With the income she generated, she repaid her first loan and took another one — this time to lease land to produce grain. She borrowed again when her family faced a health crisis. Today, Devi has several sources of income. She is also planning ahead. She wants to open a food outlet on a busy road. And now, with two of her sons married, she wants to find a larger living space for her growing family.
To be sure, Devi and the women in her self-help group still have a long way to go. Yet this is a remarkable story of empowerment through collective action. To me, the confidence these women had cultivated over time carries as much currency as their earnings. It inspired them to organize themselves and work hard toward building a better future. And this is precisely the objective of the World Bank-supported project in Bihar : to empower rural communities where the poverty rate stands at a staggering 55%. Since 2008, some 700,000 households have joined self-help groups under the program.
The story of Bihar itself is a remarkable one. With a population of 100 million people, Bihar is India's poorest state. Average income is $294 per year, less than all but two Sub-Saharan African countries. For many years, Bihar was known for poverty, corruption, and a society deeply divided by the caste system. Then in 2005, under the leadership of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, the government launched an ambitious development program. It invested in roads, public health care, and school systems. It even gave bicycles to girls as a reward for staying in school, which resulted in a fall in dropout rates. And economic growth outpaced the national average, reaching 13%.
But despite these impressive achievements, Bihar continues to face daunting challenges. During my visit, Kumar, now in his second term, told me that more rural roads were needed to connect smaller communities to markets. He also wanted to invest in secondary education for girls. Maternal mortality rates remain stubbornly high, with far too many women dying during childbirth. And more than half of children under 3 suffer from malnutrition. Furthermore, the government’s capacity to implement the programs continues to be weak.
Despite the fact that India remains home to one-third of the world's poor, I believe that the country — and especially Bihar — is proof that development works. India’s story of economic growth and human development in recent years shows how millions can be lifted out of poverty. In April, World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim put forward an ambitious goal to end extreme poverty — people living on $1.25 or less a day — by 2030. This will require enormous global efforts — not just in poor countries, but also in emerging economies where large numbers of the poor are concentrated. And it cannot be done without India .
That is why the World Bank will focus its efforts and resources on states like Bihar. Responding to the challenges Kumar described requires tailoring our approach to meet the specific needs of low-income states by developing innovative programs; deploying experienced staff in those states; and working closely with local institutions to help them deliver the services their citizens need.
India's success in lifting its people out of poverty matters to the rest of the world. Other developing countries can draw from its experience on what works and what doesn't in public policies, governance and accountability frameworks, and development practices. They can learn from the transformation of lives — like those of Kunti Devi and others in her self-help group. Only when we can help replicate their stories will we be able to see a world without extreme poverty — in our lifetime.
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- Life in an Indian Village Essay
Essay on Life in an Indian Village
The villages are the souls of our country, and more than 60% of the population lives in villages. There are more villages and small towns in India than in metropolitan areas. Census 2011 reports the number of villages in our country is 6,49,481. In this essay on Life in an Indian Village, we will further explore the life one leads in a village and how it is different from city life and the advantages and disadvantages of the same.
Short Essay on Life in an Indian Village
The villages of India are major contributors to agriculture, thus making India an agricultural land. Life in an Indian village is called rural life and city life is considered urban life. Life in an Indian village for students and children is different from those growing up in urban households. The children are often led to their family occupation of agriculture and work as farmers. Farmers are the most undervalued people in our society. They work doubly hard to supply food on our plates and don't even get paid half of what they deserve. They work without any modern machines, for long days starting even before sunrise and end their days long after dusk. They toil in the scorching heat and in the rain. The most difficult aspect of a farmer's life is mostly dependent on climatic conditions. Also, one of the other ways of earning a living in the villages is by housing cattle like cows, sheep, goats, and poultry.
People's attraction to rural life
The agricultural lands and open fields and rustic lifestyle makes the villages more scenic and peaceful. People living in metropolitan areas often go on holidays to such scenic countryside locations where they can breathe fresh air due to its unpolluted environment. The village life is slower and not steadfast, unlike the city life, this is one of the main reasons for millennials now who when on holiday from work prefer this kind of lifestyle for a short period of time and take such breaks. On the other hand, organic food has now gained much popularity and this also encourages others to adapt to the countryside way of living where one eats more nutritious food and lives a healthier lifestyle.
Long Essay on Life in an Indian Village
Life in an Indian Village for Students and Children
There are other aspects of living in an Indian village where one has to deal with scarcity on a regular basis. Scarcity, be it lack of electricity, good connecting roadways, transportation; homes built with mud or clay which can be unreliable, along with lack of proper healthcare facilities. Life in an Indian Village for Students and Children is especially hard as along with the aforementioned problems, they are also deprived of basic education, due to which they lack career opportunities.
In some parts of India, there is only one primary school that children from the nearby villages attend. Even gaining primary education is very difficult because the parents are not very keen to send their children, especially girls and want them to join them in their family's line of occupation to earn some extra money for their livelihood and girls are held back from attending school as they are required to support their mothers in household chores.
The importance of primary and secondary education should be spread in villages, highlighting the fact that it creates several career opportunities for both boys and girls. There is not much growth in the agricultural sector as well due to lack of education and training in modern ways to enhance the agricultural produce.
Cultural & Traditional Values
Unlike the cities, the villagers don't live their lives secluded; they enjoy getting together, living like a close-knit family, and helping each other in adversities. This sense of community and belonging is greatly valued. Even with so many problems, life in an Indian village is one to look forward to, as the Indian culture is very much intact and the celebrations are huge. When all as a community celebrate together, with folk music, dance, and songs, all festivals are celebrated with a lot of zeal, especially the harvest season. India should take pride in such rich culture and traditions.
In Life in Indian Village Essay, it is also important to explore the advantages and disadvantages of leading such a life.
Advantages of Life in an Indian Village
One experiences a stress-free life surrounded by beautiful nature and leads a happy life in the Indian villages.
The air is pure and fresh due to low levels of pollution and no release of harmful gases as their mode of transport is usually a bicycle or a bullock cart.
Life in an Indian Village is a healthy one as one is always doing some chore which keeps one fit and the seasonal fruits and vegetables grown naturally in the villages keep one energized.
Disadvantages of Life in an Indian village
Lack of good infrastructure, lack of schools and well-trained and experienced teaching staff hinder the progress of the few children who attend the school.
It is very difficult to break old customs and traditions and change the mindset of the elders of the family, who are usually the decision-makers and their rigid attitude makes it harder for newer generations of children.
The villages are in dire need of basic amenities like hygienic sanitation facilities, electricity, etc.
Many such issues can be resolved when the government, along with citizens, take accountability and encourage education, especially in agriculture and farming, as it is the main occupation in villages and in ways to incorporate modern technology with traditional tools. With the help of many government programs that can primarily focus on the building of schools and hospitals, education could help them earn a living which will eventually lead to a reduction in the poverty rate and increase productivity, thus increasing the GDP of our country.
In today's world, most of the people from villages leave their homes and move to cities to either study or earn a living. But the fact is life in the village area is actually enjoyable and more peaceful than in any other metropolitan city. Villages have a natural beauty to them, and they are simple, calm yet beautiful. The people living in the villages mostly go to the fields to earn their daily living, they are generally hardworking and their day starts very early than most other people living in the cities or town. They work hard in the field the whole day and just get some rest when it is dawn.
The one most relaxed thing about villages is that they are free from the heavy traffic of city life. Villages are found to be more peaceful, calm, quiet, and full of greenery, where one can always breathe fresh air and stay healthy without any pollution problems. Most of the handcraft labor people are from villages such as farmers, other works as potters, carpenters, blacksmiths, etc. The Bulls are used for farming and other activity in the field and, are also considered as their sacred god since they are the ones who help in ploughing the field, cultivating crops, and earning money for them.
FAQs on Life in an Indian Village Essay
1. What are the Advantages of Moving to an Indian Village?
There are many advantages of living in an Indian village; the quieter and calmer surroundings help to lead a simple and peaceful life. Clean air boosts mental and physical health. The consumption of freshly produced food helps maintain fitness naturally. With the least amount of living cost, one can truly enjoy life when one is surrounded by nature.
2. What are Some Beautiful Indian Villages where One can Visit?
There are many beautiful villages in our country be it Gokarna Village in Karnataka located in the southern part of India, Janjheli in North of India, i.e., Himachal Pradesh, Nainital in Uttarakhand, Lachen Village in the Northeast, i.e., Sikkim, and Cherrapunji in Meghalaya.
3. What is the importance of village life?
Villages are important because they are the actual backbone of our country's economy and other traditional cultures that are evolving around. They are the primary source of the agricultural sector of the country and help in exporting crops to various countries, which will fetch a good economic status to our country. They also maintain the most important part of the ecological balance of the living environment. Economic growth may mainly contribute to rural areas, as the agricultural field will help in food production and job creation opportunities. As growth in industry and service areas are comparatively slow mainly during this pandemic, many developing countries will not be able to absorb this massive number of new job seekers.
4. Is village life better than city life?
Villages will be seen to be better when it comes to mental relaxation and healthy lifestyle but, anyway city life is seen as generally better than village life because of convenience and open opportunities around because, in the city, you can get whatever you want and quickly in this fast-moving world where everything has become digital. The village life is not that bad like how we always imagine; however, there is the issue of scarcity which is yet to be resolved.
5. What is the importance of rural development in the Indian economy?
As of India, the majority of the people below the poverty line reside in the rural areas and this contributes to a maximum percentage of the population, unfortunately. Hence, the prime goal of rural development is to improve the quality of life of the rural people by alleviating their poverty situation through providing them opportunities for self-employment and wage employment programs, by providing community infrastructure facilities such as drinking water, public toilets, etc.
6. How can we improve the lives of people in villages?
It is possible to improve the quality of rural life since they contribute the maximum of the population in India. For that, we should Identify people's needs and priorities in the rural villages. Plan and define activities or necessary opportunities that can mobilize the complete involvement of the community. Government should plan the structure of resources allocated in their current schemes according to their needs. Draw a plan, then repair and renovate existing infrastructure with good schools, toilets, etc., which will improve their current status. Strengthen the Panchayat team in every village to be responsible and take necessary actions according to the people's needs. Promote transparency and accountability for any action taken and make them understand what is going on and how it will benefit them.
7. What are the most backward villages found that need immediate light and action?
There are many such villages, but still some are considered the most backward in the society with more number of uneducated people, no employment opportunities and many other serious problems which need immediate action by the government.
A village, now known for its house and even banks without doors - Shani Shingnapur, Maharashtra.
India's first fully solar-powered village- Dharnai, Bihar.
India's first bamboo economy consists of tribal people who have access to deep forest - Mendha Lekha, Maharashtra.
A village where everyone speaks only Sanskrit and follows their own specific culture and tradition for generations - Mattur, Karnataka.
From among India's poorest villages to prosperity, this village is now actually developing on its own - Achala, Odisha.
A village with top-notch innovative and unique facilities yet poor - Punsari, Gujarat.
A village with 60 millionaires but then no one to help the village grow - Hiware Bazar, Maharashtra.
Asia's cleanest and most beautiful village - Mawlynnong, Meghalaya
A village where 111 trees are planted every time a girl-child is born yet finds it difficult to cope with economic status - Piplantri, Rajasthan.
