CHARACTERISTICS OF INDIAN RURAL SOCIETY

Reddy (1985) has stated the following as the characteristics of Indian rural society:

1. The village is the unit of rural society. Its people carry on the business of living together
within a distinctive framework of caste and social custom. Caste is a dominant social
institution permeating social and economic relations. Traditional caste occupation prevail
mostly. Co-operative labour of several different castes is required not only for agro-economic
activities but also for socio-religious life. The large villages have within their population all
the occupational castes and also have a comparatively more integrated and self sufficient
economic as well as socio-religious life than smaller villages.
2. The villages as a social and cultural unit possesses a basically uniform organization and
structure of values all over India. Many problems are common to the entire Indian country
side.

3. The ethinic, linguistic, religious and caste composition of a village largely determine its
character and structure. Some villages or hamlets are inhibited almost exclusively by certain
castes as in the case of Agraharams for Brahmins. Even in a village with mixed population
the different castes usually live in different sections of the same village. Inter caste-rivalries
are present.

4. Women do not have full equality with men in several aspects of life.

5. Indian rural society is based predominantly on agriculture. Possession of land carries with it
social and prestige value, besides being considered as an economic asset. In many villages
the land is mostly distributed between two or more castes or among a few families, or
between one big land owner and the rest of the community. Landless labourers and tenants
constitute a considerable part of the population depending on agriculture.

6. Every village has its own organizational set up, authority and sanctions. It has its growing
body, the panchayat, based on local traditions since long, but now constituted on a regular
basis according to the provisions of Panchayat Raj.

7. Social distance or isolation has a bearing on the nature of the organization of a village and of
its view on the world. Availability of or nearness to modern means of transport or
communications also modifies the setting and fabric of a village.

8. Village settlements are generally governed by certain regional and local traditions. The lay
out of the village, construction of the house, the dress, the speech and manners follow the set
pattern of the culture area. Each village possesses an individuality of its own. Some have a
reputation for generosity, hospitality and fairplay, while other are notorious for their
meanness and corruption. Some villages are known for their co-operations, while some are
noted for their litigations and factions.
The important characteristics of the Indian villagers were summarized by Reddy (1985) as
hospitality, traditionalism, fatalism, religiousness often combined with superstitions, beliefs,
leisurely attitude to life, and low standard of living. Nevertheless most villagers are capable of
change and will respond to the teachers whom they trust even though their past sad experiences
make them conservative and hopeless about the future.

Rural Society Urban Society

Occupation Totality of cultivators and their Totality of people engaged

families. In the community there principally in manufacturing,
are usually a few representatives of mechanical pursuits, trade,
non-agricultural pursuits commerce, and other non-
agricultural occupations

Environment Predominance of nature over Greater isolation from nature,

anthropo-social environment, Predominance of man-made
Direct relationship to nature environment over natural.

Size of Community Open farms or small communities, As a rule in the same country
“agriculturalism” and size of and at the same period, the size
community are negatively of urban community is much
correlated. larger than the rural
community. In other worlds,
urbanity and size of
community are positively
correlated.

Density of population In the same country and at the same Density is more in rural
period the density is lower than in communities. Urbanity and
urban community. Generally density are positively
density and rurality are negatively correlated.
correlated

Heterogeneity and Compared with urban populations, More heterogeneous than rural
homogeneity of the rural communities are more communities (in the same
population homogeneous in racial and country and at the same time).
psychological traits (Negative Urbanity and heterogeneity are
correlation with heterogeneity) positively correlated.

Social differentiation Social differentiation and Differentiation and

and stratification stratification are less stratification show positive
correlation with urbanity

Mobility Territorial, occupational and other More intensive. Urbanity and

forms of social mobility of the mobility are positively
population are comparatively less correlated. Only in the periods
intensive, Normally the migration of social catastrophy the
current carries more individuals migration from the city to the
 from the country to the city
System of interaction Less numerous contacts per man,
Narrower area of the interaction
system of its members and the
whole aggregate. More prominent
part is occupied by primary
contacts. Predominance of personal
and relatively durable relations.
Comparative simplicity and
sincerity of relations. “Man is
interacted as a human person”.
country is greater than from the
country to the city
More numerous contacts.
Wider area of interaction
system per man and per
aggregate. Predominance of
secondary contacts.
Predominance of impersonal
casual and short-lived
relations. Greater complexity,
manifoldedness, superficiality
and standardized formality of
relations. Man is interacted as
a “number” and “address”