Dr. Sudershan Kumar
Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, during his address to the Nation from the iconic Red Fort on 15th August 2014 emphasized that he is the Pradhan Sewak of the people of India . This historic statement by the PM from the ramparts of the Red Fort addressed to 1250 million people of India carried immense significance. By calling himself Pradhan Sevak he reiterated and reaffirmed his commitment towards selfless service to the nation and strengthened the connectivity with the common man. Besides in his endeavour to build a prosperous and stronger India he has always emphasized on the concept of “SAB KA SATH SAB KA VIKAS” that is all round development of the rural as well as the urban population of India. The concept of development in rural area refers to a process which aims at improvement and upliftment in the well being of the rural people and inculcating the concept of self realization in them through collective effort and wisdom. In fact the rural development signifies improvement in the economic and social life of the rural people. This is in terms of education, health, new innovative ways of farming, better connectivity and means of employment generation. This has to be done at grass root level by interacting through gram panchayat level, Zila Panchayat level and at the district level.
The same is applicable to the state of Jammu and Kashmir. This state is located mainly in Himalayan mountains and shares its borders with the state of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab from south. It has an area of around 222236 sq km and population around 12.55 million as per census report of 2011. The rural population of the state is around 77.26 % and the average literacy rate is around 63.15 %. It has four major regions , Jammu, Kashmir, Ladakh and Gilgit-Baltistan ( our area which has been illegally occupied by Pakistan). All the four regions possess altogether different climatic, geological and geographical variables. Therefore each area has to have different model for development keeping in view the aspirations of rural people and the availability of natural resources.
Many Governments, both in the past and present have launched many schemes/programs aimed at the improvement of socio – economic conditions of the rural poor, yet a lot more is required to be implemented to minimize the rural and urban divide. The schemes initiated/implemented are: Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee act (MGNREGA), Rural Housing Scheme (RHS), Swarnjayanti Yojana, Integrated water shed Development programmes (IWPD), Pradhan Mantri Gramin Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), Jan Dhan Yojana, Krishi Sinichi Yojana and many more .
After interaction with the local people of the rural areas, it emerged that the fruits of development have not reached to the rural populations despite the tall claims made by various organizations.Even the elected representatives do not visit the concerned people regularly to know about their welfare. The areas of concern which need more attention are quality education, health care, innovative methods of farming, housing for all, 24/7 electricity, better connectivity and means for generation of employment so that rural and urban divide is minimized. Therefore science and technology can be regarded as the grand solution to overcome rural society’s weaknesses.Technology basically is a knowledge that deals with creation and use of technical means by group of people for the benefits of society and environment and the biggest challenge lies in the identification of technologies keeping in mind the aspirations of the people ,their socio economic conditions and availability of natural resources. For implementation of technology in villages there has to be a technology implementation plan.This includes benefits related to technology, general awareness about technology, creating desire in the minds of people to use it and training on how to use it.Further a road map has to be prepared for overall development with clear vision for transforming villages into smart/ Model villages and this should be a consortium project with the participation of all stake holders namely villagers , technology experts, their elected representatives and Government officials.
The plan has to be implemented in definite time period with periodic monitoring through independent agency. One such success story, is the use of Agro Animal technologies in Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir state. These technologies were developed by Defence Institute of High Altitude Research (DIHAR) laboratory of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). Adoption of technologies with support from armed forces and state departments has led to a revolution in fresh food production in Ladakh region. This the coldest dessert lying at an elevation varying between 8500 ft 16500ft from MSL and is characterized by low relative humidity(20 to 40%),low atmospheric pressure(493mmHg) low partial pressure of oxygen, high wind velocity, very low annual precipitation and sub zero temperature(up to -40 degree C) during winter months. The harshness of these conditions in Ladakh can be judged by the plight of a man sitting in the sun with his feet in the shade who can have sun stroke and frost bite at the same time. With sparse vegetation there is little moisture in the atmosphere. Rains are very rare, though it may even snow during July-August, the hottest months. Because of high mountains all around and snow fall during winters, the area remains segregated from out side world for six months in a year.In this harsh environment, low cost Agro Animal Technologies developed by DIHAR laboratory of DRDO have found wide acceptance among local farmers. These farmers are able to produce 4500 MT vegetables, 1192 MT of animal fodders and 25 % milk annually. This has also helped in employment generation in this region besides socio economic up liftment of local people and farmers of Ladakh who are earning through marketing indigenously produced commodities worth RS 70 – 80 million annually. Therefore model of production by farmers and supply by cooperative society is well developed and functional in Ladakh and can be replicated in high mountain regions of other provinces of Jammu and Kashmir state.This further endorses the role of technology as a key factor for bringing socio-economic change in rural society. But the major challenge is its identification, its fusion with major schemes/ programs, adoption by villagers and process of implementation. These issues are to be addressed adequately and jointly by state and Central Government departments,otherwise slogan:- 21ist century belongs to India” will remain distant dream.
(The author is former Chief Controller R&D and Special Secretary MoD)
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