Rural Development

Programmes and schemes for rural development

The term rural development is the overall development of rural areas to improve the quality of life of rural people, especially the poor. The rural development programmes intend to reduce the poverty and unemployment, to improve the health and educational status and to fulfill the basic needs such as food, shelter and clothing of the rural population. The implementation of these programmes is monitored specifically with reference to coverage of women. The brief description of the programme with specific gender provision is as under:

The Rajiv Gandhi Scheme for Empowerment of Adolescent Girls (RGSEAG), or Sabla

It aims at making them ‘self-reliant’ by improving their health and nutrition status, promoting awareness about health, hygiene, nutrition, adolescent reproductive and sexual health, family and child care and facilitating access to public services through various interventions such as guidance and counselling and vocational training.

Support to Training and Employment Programme (STEP)

It aims to upgrade the traditional skills and knowledge of women through training besides employment, credit and market linkages in the traditional sectors of agriculture, animal husbandry, dairying, fisheries, handlooms, handicrafts, khadi and village industries, sericulture, social forestry and wasteland development for enhancing their productivity and income generation.

National Mission for Empowerment of Women (NMEW)

The Mission is mandated to facilitate the processes that contribute to economic empowerment of women, eliminate violence against women, social empowerment of women with emphasis on health and education, gender mainstreaming of policies, programmes and institutional arrangements and awareness generation and advocacy for bridging information and service gaps.

Kishori Shakti Yojna (KSY)

The objectives of the Scheme were to improve the nutritional and health status of girls in the age group of 11-18 years as well as to equip them to improve and upgrade their home-based and vocational skills; and to promote their overall development including awareness about their health, personal hygiene, nutrition, family welfare and Management.

Rashtriya Mahila Kosh (RMK)

It extends micro-credit to poor and underprivileged women through a collateral-free, quasi-formal delivery mechanism where NGOs, women co-operatives, federations etc. act as intermediaries.

Indira Gandhi Matritva Sahyog Yojana (IGMSY)

It is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme introduced in 2010-11, which envisages providing cash assistance directly to pregnant and lactating women from the end of 2nd trimester of pregnancy up to 6 months after delivery. Rs.4000 will be provided to the pregnant and lactating women in three instalments in response to fulfilling specific conditions related to health & nutrition of mother and child.

Conditional Cash Transfer Scheme for the Girl Child with Insurance cover (Dhanlakshmi)

The scheme is aimed at eliminating discrimination against girl child. Cash transfer is provided to the family of the girl child (preferably the mother) on fulfilling certain conditionalities for the girl child viz. birth and registration of the girl child, immunisation, enrolment to school and retention in school.

The National Creche Fund

It extends day care services to children below five years which would include day-care facilities, supplementary nutrition, immunisation, medical and health care and recreation. Children of parents whose monthly income does not exceed Rs.1800 are eligible for enrolment.

The National Creche Fund

It extends day care services to children below five years which would include day-care facilities, supplementary nutrition, immunisation, medical and health care and recreation. Children of parents whose monthly income does not exceed Rs.1800 are eligible for enrolment.

Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA)

It guarantees 100 days of employment in a financial year to any rural household whose adult members are willing to do unskilled manual work. It is provided in the Act that while providing employment, priority shall be given to women in such a way that at least one third of the beneficiaries shall be women who have registered and requested for work under the Act.

National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM)

A Self Help Group (SHG), of 10-20 women in general (5-20 in difficult areas) is the primary building block of the NRLM institutional design. NRLM would promote SHGs with exclusive women membership. An important component of NRLM is the Mahila Kisan Sashaktikaran Pariyojana (MKSP) which aims at supporting women farmers. Primarily,MKSP aims to recognize women farmers, a hitherto unrecognized category, even though most of the farming activities are almost exclusively handled by the women. MKSP also, inter alia, seeks to reduce drudgery for women farmers.

The Indira Awas Yojana (IAY)

IAY aims at providing assistance for the construction of houses to the people Below the Poverty Line in rural areas. Under the Scheme, priority is extended to widows and unmarried women. It is stipulated that IAY houses are to be allotted in the name of women members of the household or, alternatively, in the joint names of husband and wife.

Swadhar

It provides primary need of Shelter, food, clothing and emotional support and counselling services to the marginalized women/girls living in difficult circumstances who are without any social and economic support.