In
intellectual Landscape, our topic seems to derived from contemporary debate of
development which is most opinionated
but ambiguous, unclear and seems near irresolvable. Policymakers are trying hard to find
out most effective, economical and way easy to implement the policies. People are desperate
to see progress in state’s effort for development and role of other
stakeholders is under scanner of public. In policy making, set goal is value orientation
of popular will. But policy makers cannot neglect one sector or the other by
arguing that the particular model of development is priority at the expense of other.
At least when governance and development are interdependent and complete whole. Development
cannot be segregated and compartmentalized. It is value driven process of which
targets can be smart villages or smart cities or both.
India
need smart villages as its 68 % population is living in rural areas but this
fact does not indicate towards the less importance of urban development which is,
in recent, rapid and uncontrolled phenomenon. Urban and rural patterns are
integral part of our nation’s landscape. Both ways of life are struggling and demanding
for improvement, quality enhancement and betterment desperately. On one side poverty, unemployment and lack of other earning opportunities , lack of
sanitation and unhygienic living conditions, lack of health , education and other
infrastructure . While on the side, Cities are marred by proliferating slums and related urban
crisis. The model of paranoid optimist can suggest one either smart village or
smart city. Recently ,government of India adopted the Saansad adarsh Gram
Yojana and smart city model as complementary to each other.
Prior policy of government was to
provide the all amenities to rural people through centrally sponsored plans
like Bharat Nirman which incorporate
Rural water supply, Electrification under Rajiv Gandhi Gram Vidyudtikaran
Yojana,rural Roads,Rural housing, Rural telephone connectivity. Apart from this
Integrated watershed development programme, MNREGA, National rural Livelihood
mission, National Rural heath mission, JSY, ICDS, SSA,and many more.
The government failed to integrate
schemes and plans for holistic development of rural areas ,atleast at
implementation part if not at policy level.In cities,one fourth population is
living in slums.No more facts are needed to support the poverty
stricken,underprivileged,crisis ridden urban life in spite of so much
compartmentalized schemes for urban households like Indira Awas Yojana, national shahari swarozgar yojana , Anganwadi
and many more.
Saansad
Adarsh Gram Yojana (Parliamentarian’s Model Village Scheme) mandates each
Parliamentarian is mandated to adopt three rural villages and ensure that these
villages are transformed into ‘Smart Villages’ by 2019. Rural Development Ministry presents a holistic vision
of development in which model villages are connected to the internet and where
all households have access to clean water, sanitation and low-carbon energy. Furthermore, model villages will
be backed up by the provision of basic amenities that are often only available
in urban areas, and a social security system. First, these model villages have
no follow up example. The detailed
guidelines for implementation are needed. Since this is particularistic model
for each smart village. When we compare it with existing Growth centres and
growth pole model of regional development and anticipated centrifugal positive effects,
we see most of the industrial growth centres are in naxalite affected areas like
Jamshedpur, Bhilai , Durgapur, Secundrabad etc. Increased regional imbalances and
inequalities can be resultant of such a development model.
