Content

1. Introduction
2. Gandhian Dream of Indian Villages
3. Values Underlying of this Model
4. Principal Components of the Model
5. Pros and Corns of this Model

Introduction
As a dreamer of India, Mahatma Gandhi had a very clear view of its villages and
asserted emphatically that "India has 7.5 lakh villages, where people dwell. He also
thought that India would have to live in villages rather than metropolis and in huts rather
than palaces. He declared that he was of the opinion that "India will also perish if the
village disappears. Gandhi was instrumental in obtaining India's political independence
from the British Raj through the peaceful and non-violent organization and mobilization
of Indians from all walks of life. Thus, he is appropriately referred to be the "Father of
the Nation." Gandhiji took a comprehensive and human-centered approach to India's
rural development. It was founded on his belief in the virtues of truth, nonviolence, and
human goodness. He was influenced by Tolstoy, Ruskin, and the Gita's teachings, and
he prioritized moral and spiritual principles over material interests as a way of general
development. He discovered that the bulk of the country's rural villages must develop
together with the rural economy, industry, and rural skills if the nation is to advance.
Gandhiji discovered that the only way to give rural residents hope for a prosperous life
is to make the village the focal point of the economic agenda. According to Ganhji, rural
development included interdependence for other needs, self-sufficiency, and the growth
of village industries. He aimed to implement a good scientific and religious foundation
for rural rebuilding. Gandhiji successfully carried out his rural rehabilitation initiatives
through his 18-point Constructive Programme in 1935 at Sevagram Center near
Wardha.

Gandhian Dream of Indian Villages

Gandhiji's ideal village dates back to the time before the British colonial era, when
Indian villages were little republics free from the frequent invasions of savage hordes.
The British occupation of these villages damaged their republican identity. Therefore,
the historic republican village without any form of exploitation functioned as a model unit
3 in Gandhi's proposal for rural regeneration. Gandhi aimed at the attainment of Village
Swaraj and said in 1942,
“My idea of Village Swaraj is that it is a complete republic, independent of its
neighbours for its own vital wants and get inter-dependent for many others in
which dependence is a necessity. Thus every villages' first concern will be to
grow its own food crop and cotton for its cloth. It could have a reserve for its
cattle, recreation and playground for adults and children. Then if there is more
land available, ~t will grow useful money crops, thus excluding ganga,
tobacco, opium and the llke. The village will maintain a village theatre, school
and public hall. It will have its own water works ensuring clean water suppl”
Gandhiji was completely aware of how industrialization of the western style would affect
India. He was aware that rapid industrialization would devastate Indian society by
eradicating our decentralized rural industries and prevent further advancement. The
formerly independent and self-contained rural settlements have been gradually drained.
He desired to buck this trend and implement a rural reconstruction based on moral,
ethical, and spiritual principles. He stated:
“my deal village will contain intelligent human beings. They will not live in dirt
and darkness as animals. Men and women will be free and able to hold their
own against anyone in the world. There will be neither plague nor cholera nor
small pox, none will be idle, no one will wallow in luxury. Everyone will have to
contribute his quota of manual lab0 W... . . . It is possible to envisage railways,
post and telegraphs and the like'

Gandhi's rural reconstruction approach was centered on the swadeshi movement and
village swaraj. Gandhiji listed several fundamental tenets of village swaraj, including
trusteeship, swadeshi, full employment, bread labor, self-sufficiency, decentralization,
equality, Nai Talim, and others. As a result, Gandhi's concept of the ideal village was all-
inclusive, taking into account its economic, social, political, and educational facets.
Gandhiji stressed the need of truth and nonviolence in all facets of human existence,
saying that

"the swaraj of my opinion will come only when all us are firmly persuaded that
our swaraj has got to be won, worked and maintained through truth and
ahimsa alone.

Values Underlying of this Model

The following principles and values form the foundation of the Gandhian Model of rural
development:

1. Rural India is found not in its cities, but in its villages.

2. The revival of villages is possible only when the villagers are exploited no more.
Exploitation of villagers by city dwellers was ‘violence’ in Gandhiji’s opinion.
3. Simple living and high thinking, implying voluntary reduction of materialistic
wants, and pursuit of moral and spiritual principles of life.
4. Dignity of labour : everyone must earn his bread by physical labour , and one
who labours must necessarily get his subsistence.
5. Performance to the use of indigenous (swadeshi) products, services and
institutions.
 6. Balance between the ends and the means : Gandhiji believed that non-violence
and truth could not be sustained unless a balance between the ends and the
means was maintained

Principal Components of the Model

The Principal components of the Gandhian Model are discussed in below in brief

Self-sufficient Village Economy

Gandhiji did not have a limited or selfish or conceited idea of what it meant to be self-
sufficient. He understood that the villagers needed to purchase those items from outside
the community because they were unable to do so.

Gandhiji insisted on the self-sufficiency of Indian villages. Self-sufficiency was

advocated by him as a basic principle of life because dependence brings in exploitation
which is the essence of violence. The poor is exploited by the rich, the village by the city
and the undeveloped country by the developed ones due to lack of self-sufficiency”

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He suggested that villages should be self-sufficient i.e. they should produce their own
food, clothing and other articles needed for meeting their basic needs. He insisted on
the promotion of village or cottage industries and handicrafts because they can provide
employment, necessary to meet the basic needs of the villagers and also facilitate
village selfsufficienc.

Gandhiji said that it was not the British rule but the modem civilization nourished by they
rule, which was the real cause of economic, distress i.e., poverty and unemployment.
He further said, "if the British rule were replaced tomorrow by the Indian rule based on
modem methods, India would be no better" . "Against this, he envisaged India's
salvation in the revival of its ancient civilization which prescribes for man the path of
duty and observance of rnorality"

Gandhiji's self-sufficient and non-violent village society could only be built on the basis
of co-operation and not on conflict. According to him as far as possible, every activity in
the village will be conducted on co-operative basis. Even in the field of agriculture,
Gandhiji recommended co-operative farming which would save labour, capital, tools and
provide employment to all adult Villagers and increase production also. He said, "we
must attempt to prevent further fragmentation of land and encourage people to take to
co-operative farming". He noted that when dependence becomes necessary in order to
help society to maintain good order it is no longer dependence but it becomes co-
operation.

Decentralisation
Gandhiji held that achieving human pleasure and moral advancement should be
society's top priority, and that doing so requires the decentralization of political and
economic authority.

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Gandhi is adamant that the only way to establish village republics is to decentralize
social and political authority. In such a setup, the Village Panchayat would have
decision-making authority rather than the State and the national capital. All adults would
vote for the representatives, who would serve terms of five years each. The Panchayat,
or council, would be made up of the elected delegates.

The Panchayat performs judicial, executive, and legislative duties. It would take care of
the village's sanitation, health, and education. It would be the Panchayats' duty to
defend and improve "untouchables" and other low-income individuals. The villages
would provide funds for the Gandhian Approach of running village affairs.

Within the village, all disagreements and conflicts would be settled. Additionally, no
case should, to the best of our ability, be referred to a court outside the community. The
Panchayat would play a part in educating rural residents about the value of moral and
spiritual values in order to facilitate rural rehabilitation. The village would be able to
manage its own affairs and protect itself from any intruders. To defend the village, a
voluntary nonviolent peace brigade would be organized. The establishment of this corps
would be unique from standard military units. They would have the uttermost confidence
in God and non-violence.

Panchayati Raj
Gandhiji envisioned each village in India as a republic, with the village panchayat having
complete authority over all matters, including defense. He anticipated that the
panchayat would carry out the legislative, executive, and judicial duties required for the
efficient operation of the village economy. The village panchayat would also engage in
many developmental tasks like education, health, and sanitation. The Panchayat Raj
system was the best method for launching political and economic democracy at the
local level. Mahatma Gandhi's travels around the nation strengthened his convictions
that India would benefit from the establishment of Village Panchayats based on the
tenet of "simple life and elevated thinking" in the rural. These village republics had
everything residents wanted, were self-sufficient and contained. These were the places
where all people could receive a minimal quality of living. A person had the greatest
amount of freedom and chance to fully express his personality. The state would become
less significant in these republics, and democracy's foundations would become
stronger. He contends that without sufficient force, centralization cannot be maintained
as a system.

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Panchayats, which are groups of five people elected annually to oversee the affairs, are
responsible for this. Gandhi focused on the individual, who was at the center of the local
government. It is envisaged that attendees will take a personal interest and attend the
meeting in large numbers to discuss issues of common concern, such as village
industries, agricultural production, obligations, and planning. The 73rd (Constitution)
Amendment Act, 1992, which India passed to make panchayati raj institutions official
bodies, is commendable and in line with Gandhiji's beliefs. It is hoped that village
panchayats would now enable Gandhiji's vision of local self-governance to come true.

Khadi and Village Industries

For Gandhiji, khadi served as a tool for decentralizing manufacturing, distributing basics
of life, and guaranteeing "employment for all." Additionally, he supported the
development of various small-town businesses including hand pounding, hand grinding,
sop production, paper production, mental production, crushing of oilseeds, tanning, etc.
He promoted manual labor and opposed the use of machines out of concern that they
would replace human labor. But if they were appropriate, indigenous, and had no impact
on the level of employment or the standard of living, he recognized the value of new
technologies. Decentralization of production and distribution of necessities of life is
referred to as the "khadi mentality." The Indian village economy must be heavily
dependent on khadi. It can provide for the three essential needs of the poor: clothing,
employment, and self-expression.

Gandhiji believed that Khadi was a necessary tool for the nation's overall development.
According to him, it is impossible to achieve economic independence and eradicate
pauperism from this old land without restoring home-spinning, as we cannot survive
without breathing or eating. He made this statement in 1921. According to 1, the hearth
and the spinning wheel are both necessary in every home. There is no other plan that
can be created that will ever be able to address the issue of the population's increasing
poverty.

In 1934 Gandhij wrote in Harijan,

"Khadi is the sun of the village solar system. The planets are the various
industries which can support Khadi in return for the heat and substance they
derive from it. Without it, the other industries cannot grow . . . and also without
the revival of the other industries, khadi could not make further progress. For,
villagers to be able to occupy their spare time profitably, the village life must
be touched at all points."
Gandhiji asserted that Khadi alone can address several of India's economic and other
issues, as indicated below.

1. Under Khadi economy, the capital is under the control of the labour and
supremacy of man over machinery can be established
2. Each village can be self-sufficient through the welfare of these villages, India will
also prosper.
3. The villagers can take up all the stages of Khadi production for earning wages
which can supplement their meagre resources.
 4. Spinning wheel give employment opportunities to village carpenters,
Blacksmiths, Weavers and can create self-sufficiency in all villages in India.
Khadi alone can give encouragement to other village industries.
5. Spinning is an honourable and leisurely occupation for the women of India. With
the popularization of spinning wheel, women need not go out of their houses for
earning their bread. vi) Khadi industry has great organizing potentialities in India.
Millions of people are involved in production, distribution and consumption of
Khadi.
6. Spinning is easy to learn and requires no outlay of capital. The farmers can
easily learn and operate the spinning wheel and can spin during their leisure
hours to supplement their meagre resources.
7. Khadi is the only industry which can absorb largest number of people and can
provide employment to the unemployed at any time of the year without much
difficulty.
8. Khadi industry provides work to the people during famine period. The state
should be purchase the products of Khadi during the famine. It is an Insurance
against the adversity of famine conditions.
9. The spinning wheel provides the people food, cloth and make them self-
sufficient.

Cooperatives
Gandhiji valued collaboration as a tool for rural development greatly. He praised the
promotion of cooperative farming and the resulting prevention of further landholding
fragmentation while assigning cooperatives specific functions in the sphere of
agriculture. He supported the creation of dairy cooperatives, weavers' and spinners'
cooperatives, and credit cooperatives, among other kinds of cooperatives. We may
have met Gandhiji's aspirations in this regard as well. India currently has the largest
cooperative network in the world, and these organizations play a significant role in the
country's rural economy. A real-world illustration of what cooperatives may accomplish
to advance rural and agricultural development in India is the Operation Flood program.
As Gandhi recommended, we must consequently accept the cooperative component of
rural development.

Trusteeship
Gandhiji saw trusteeship as a tool for changing the capitalist system of society into one
that is equal. He argued that land and other natural resources should be collectively
held by and managed for the good of the community because, in his view, all of the land
belonged to God, which is to say, the community. Owners of land, other natural
resources, and capital assets should be the sole tenants. He regarded the trusteeship
principle as a non-violent way to persuade landowners to relinquish their land freely for
the sake of the community and to prevent class strife.

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According to Gandhiji, trusteeship is a way of life rather than just a method to achieve a
particular end. According to his holistic approach, "everything on this earth belongs to
God and is from God. Therefore, it was for this people as a whole not for a particular
individual. Everybody on this earth has a natural right to at least the basic necessities of
life, just like the birds and the beasts have. If somehow, an individual had more than his
proportionate share, he was a trustee of that portion for God's people" As land belongs
to God and thus belongs to the community and therefore should be used for the welfare
of the community. By peaceful non-violent persuasion, the hearts of landowners should
be changed to accept the trusteeship idea. If this is not accepted by them, the poor
should organise non-violent nonco-operation and civil disobedience struggle against
them. He believed that the rich cannot accumulate wealth without the co-operation of
the poor.

He said
“The moment the cultivators of the soil realise their power, the Zamindari evil
will be sterilized. What can the poor Zamindar do when they say that they will
not simply work the land unless they are paid enough to feed and clothe and
educate themselves and their children. In reality the toiler is the owner of what
he produces. If the toilers intelligently combine, they will become an irresistible
power”
Village Sanitation
Gandhiji's proposed agreement village might be built using the standards of cleanliness
and public health. There will be enough light and ventilation in the homes that will be
constructed with materials that can be found nearby. Every home or hamlet must have a
courtyard where livestock can be kept and where vegetables can be grown for domestic
purposes. Streets and lanes in the village will be maintained tidy. To guarantee a supply
of clean water, each village must have its own water system. By instructing the villagers
to keep the village and its surroundings clean, including public wells, tanks, and rivers,
the constructive workers will turn the villages into shining examples of cleanliness.
Gandhiji's ideas extended beyond simply clearing trash from village streets and lanes
and into finding beneficial uses for it. If the rubbish is scientifically transformed into
manure, the towns can keep themselves free of dust, grime, and foul odors in addition
to using the productive manure to grow more food.

Removal of Untouchabilty
Untouchability is a social vice that shouldn't be viewed as merely a political imperative.
This system's accompanying socioeconomic evils must be eliminated. Gandhiji believed
that everyone in society should have absolute social equality. Any person or group
within society should not believe themselves to be socially superior because of their
birth, their level of education, their religion, or any other factor. Gandhiji continued his
campaign against the evils of untouchability in India and the notion of racial supremacy
in South Africa by fighting against social superiority in all of its forms.
No one is born untouchable or inferior, in his opinion. Due to the fact that both Harijans
and non-Harijans are offspring of the same God, the practice of untouchability is a sin
against him. He considered untouchability to be the worst negative aspect of Hinduism
and tried to allow them admission to the temple in the name of religious equality.

Gandhiji introduced the Harijan Sevak Sangh in 1932 as a non-political organization for
their personal development. He proposed that they adopt spinning and weaving to
become economically independent. He encouraged them to use nonviolent strategies to
pursue their goals of self-employment and proper realization of their rights.
Gandhiji was not in favour of representation to the Harijans in all administrative bodies
He recommended representation under two conditions

1. If the Harijans are purposely kept out by the Influential castes, they should be
given representation
2. It is the duty of the represented communities to provide representation to those
communities whlch are unrepresented or inadequately represented

Gandhiji wished for the Harijans to be guaranteed of a fair level of living as respectable
equal members of the nation and wished for the caste Hindus to make sacrifices and
fight for their overall development. For this, it is necessary to instil in them virtues like
cleanliness, moral fortitude, thrift, and industry. She made Harijans aware that they
should seriously consider improving themselves in all spheres of life. According to
Gandhi's notion of swaraj, all citizens should be treated equally and live in a society free
from social exploitation and dominance.

Nai Taleem
Gndhiji had no faith in modern education, which solely placed a strong emphasis on
literacy and knowledge development. Modern education, in his view, was "debauchery
of the mind." As a result, he created a brand-new system of suitable instruction and
training that he termed Nai Taleem. He thought that Nai Taleem would aid in the full
development of children's and adults' bodies, minds, and spirits, allowing them to reach
their full potential. He desired to see Nai Taleem as an independent, goal-oriented
individual. In contrast to other nations that have given education the highest priority and
total literary programs have received higher priority than in the past, India regrettably
has not yet geared its education system to the needs of the country, which is why its
human resources remain underdeveloped and less productive in order to achieve the
national objective of "Education for All" by the year 2000. Similar to this, post-high
school (10th class) vocational education is currently being looked at as an alternative to
the current standard general education system. This demonstrates that we are now
aware of how important Gandhiji's Nai Taleem is.

Pros and Corns of this Model

Like any other development strategy, the Gandhian model has its supporters and
detractors. The Gandhian model, according to its supporters, is the only option for
achieving equitable and sustainable rural development within the current sociocultural
and economic circumstances in India. They contend that the institutions and
cooperatives of panchayati raj are still important today just as they were during
Gandhiji's lifetime and that the need of suitable education cannot be overstated even in
the current Indian setting. As a result of India's new economic policy, which is
characterized by privatization, liberalization, and globalization, critics claim that
Gandhiji's ideals of swadeshi, voluntary sacrifice of one's wants, trusteeship, self-
sufficient villages, and the preference for manual labor over machines sound outmoded
today. They go on to say that India had long since abandoned the Gandhian model by
embracing a development strategy focused on economic growth and industrialization,
both under the influence of Jawaharlal Nehru. Gandhiji wanted India to move east, but
India chose to journey west, and it is well known that "the twain never meet," as the
saying goes.