Unit 1

LESSON-2

LOCAL COMMUNITY, RURAL CULTURE AND PRACTICE OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

• To understand the concept and characteristics of Rural Culture

• To learn the concept and aim of Rural Community Development

• To identify the Important programs/areas for rural community development

• To explore the Rural Development schemes of government

• To study the principles, forms and practice of community engagement

OVERVIEW

• This lesson intends to orient the learners with the concept of rural culture and its features.

• The lesson focuses on the concept of rural community development and its various objectives for the
well-being of the rural community.

• This lesson also covers the changes in the Indian rural lifestyle over the period of time

INTRODUCTION TO RURAL CULTURE

Rural culture refers to civilization with a low population density compared to open land, and where food and
raw material production are the primary occupations. Agriculture is usually followed by rural cultures not
only as a source of income but also as a way of life.

CHARACTERISTICS OF RURAL PLACES

• Open homes encompass a wide range of courtyards in the house pattern.

• In rural life, mud huts are the most typical building pattern.

• In rural life, agriculture is connected with a large number of people.

• In rural life, informal social groups exist where individuals are familiarized to gathering in a shared
area in the evenings to share their daily activities, concerns, and interests.

• In rural culture, the panchayat system is often used to solve daily difficulties.
 • Society's literacy rate is typically low, and females are discouraged from pursuing higher education.

• Religious beliefs have an important role in the social lives of individuals in rural areas.

• In rural areas, urban amenities such as schools, hospitals, roads, power, gas, and the internet are
severely lacking.

FEATURES OF RURAL COMMUNITY

• Community Consciousness: The residents of the village have a sense of belonging. The
communities have a strong belief in God and religion. Worship is the starting point for agriculture
and family activities. They have a religious bent to them.

• Joint family: Rural life is characterized by joint families. They continue to have a close relationship.
They are closely familiar, and their customs, traditions, and civilizations are shared.

• Simplicity: The lives of rural people are basic. They believe in keeping things simple. They are far
removed from modern civilization's evils. They lead a calm existence. They are truthful, diligent, and
morally upright.

• Close Contact with Nature: The rural people are in close contact with nature as most of their daily
activities revolve around the natural environment. The villagers consider land as their real mother as
they depend on it for their food, clothing and shelter.

• Social Mobility: In rural areas, mobility is rigid as all the occupations are based on caste. Shifting
from one occupation to another is difficult as caste is determined by birth. Thus, caste hierarchy
determines the social status of the rural people.

RURAL COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

The goal of rural community development is to improve living conditions through a variety of tactics and
activities. The Indian population lives in rural regions or villages about of 70% (approx.). The 2015
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) must be met by 2030 in terms of social, economic, and
environmental goals.

AIM OF RURAL COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

• Rural development, including social, cultural, and economic issues.

• Villagers are becoming more self-assured.

 • Agriculture and related fields, such as animal husbandry, are developing.

• Better communication, health, sanitation, housing, and educational facilities are all priorities.

• Cottage industry development.

• Increasing the number of job options.

• Cooperative initiatives are being developed.

• Women's and children's rights.

IMPORTANT PROGRAMS/AREAS FOR RURAL COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

• Agriculture
• Transportation and Communication
• Health and Sanitation
• Education
• Cottage Industry
• Training
• Housing
• Social Welfare
• Rural Manpower program
• Well-construction
• Nutrition Program

RURAL LIFESTYLE FEATURES

Jajmani System: an economic system most notably found in villages of India in which lower castes
performed various functions for upper castes and received grain or other goods in return.

Caste System: high castes were the landowners, middle-ranked (backward) castes the farmers and artisans,
and the lowest-ranked (scheduled) castes the labourers who performed unskilled tasks.

Family System: A rural family is a single economic unit with all its members co-operating with one another
in the agricultural and other operations on the basis of simple division of labour by age and sex, under the
management of a single head.

HEALTH FACILITIES IN RURAL AREAS

There is a high mortality rate and a lack of education. Technology, sanitation, and drainage systems are not
as important in rural regions. Poverty is especially high in rural regions, and there are fewer healthcare
services. Ayurveda and naturopathy are two health practices used by rural people to cure and prevent
illnesses.
RURAL DEVELOPMENT SCHEMES OF GOVERNMENT

• Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana (DDUGJY): is designed to provide continuous power
supply to the entire rural India. The scheme was launched under leadership of Prime Minister Shri
Narendra Modi in November 2014 announcing that "the government had decided to electrify 18,452
unelectrified villages within 1000 days, by May 1, 2018. It is one of the key initiatives of
Government of India and a flagship programmes of the Ministry of Power. The DDUGJY can benefit
rural households significantly as electricity is extremely vital for growth and development of the
country.

• The Gramin Bhandaran Yojana: The Gramin Bhandaran Yojana, announced in 2001, is a capital
investment subsidy scheme for renovation and construction of rural godowns. Godowns should,
however, be constructed outside municipal corporation limits.

• Indira Awaas Yojana (IAY): Indira Awaas Yojana (IAY): is a sub-scheme of Rural Landless
Employment Guarantee Programme (RLEGP) which was launched by the Ministry of Rural
Development. The main objective of the Indira Awaas Yojana is to provide a grant for the
construction of houses to members of Scheduled Caste (SC)/Scheduled Tribes (ST), and to non-
SC/ST category below the poverty line.

• MGNREGA: The Government of India passed the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment
Guarantee Act, 2005 in September, 2005. The Act gives legal guarantee of a hundred days of wage
employment in a financial year to adult members of a rural household who demand employment and
are willing to do unskilled manual work.

• National Rural Livelihood Mission: This scheme was restructured from the Swarn Jayanti Gram
Swarojgar Yojna in 2011. National Rural Livelihoods Mission (Aajeevika) is aimed to empower the
women’s self-help group model across the country. Under this scheme govt. provides loan up to 3
lakh rupee at the rate of 7% which could be lowered to 4% on the timely repayment.

PURPOSE OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

• It provides opportunities for the development of students and community.

• Engage with state, local and national authorities that support the mission community development.

• Enhance partnerships for the educational needs of the community.

 • Engage with industry and increase the skilled workforce.

THE COMMUNITY’S CULTURE

The culture of a community is a reflection of how everyday culture is passed down informally from
one person to the next. They are passing on their cultural knowledge through stories, songs,
celebrations, and rituals throughout the community.

COMMUNITY ECONOMIC CONDITION

• Community economic development (CED) is a method of promoting local resources in a long- term
manner.

• CED is always ready to help local communities to overcome challenges and expand their chances.

• It is a community-centered social and economic development approach that aims to improve

communities' economic, social, ecological, and cultural well-being.

COMMUNITY SOCIAL NETWORKS

• It supports a local charity with financial contributions

• It sponsors a local event

• It organizes clean-up events

• It volunteers in local schools or community projects

• It supports charities that were chosen by your staff

• It encourages staff to volunteer for community activities

• It helps employees to make tax-free donations to charity

CONCLUSION

In this lecture we learned:

• Concept of rural culture and their various characteristics like, open houses, mud huts, and agriculture
is connected with the daily life of people, etc.

• We also learned the concept and aim of Rural Community Development to improve the living
conditions through a variety of tactics and activities.

• We learned about the various initiatives/schemes for the Rural Development, taken by the
government, like, Indira Awaas Yojana, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee
Act, National Rural Livelihoods Mission (Aajeevika), etc.