Unnat Bharat Abhiyan: Technology For Rural India

Unnat Bharat Abhiyan: Technology For Rural India

With the aim for providing the development and upliftment of India, the Indian government has announced that it will launch a new programme called the Unnat Bharat Abhiyan. This programme is to be launched by the Indian government in partnership with the Indian Institutes of Technology/IIT and the National Institutes of Technology/NITs across the nation.

The programme is an initiative of the HRD Ministry and it will be coordinated and steered by the Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi. IIT Delhi Director R. K. Shevgaonkar has stated that the programme will involve engagement with communities around each institute for upliftment, growth and development. Shevgaonkar indicated that“Each IIT will identify 10 villages in its neighbourhood and work out technologies to solve the most pressing issues of the region.”

Shevgaonkar was also quoted as saying that different teams from the institutes will be visiting the villages to identify problems or issues in the sphere of development and find financially viable schemes.

Following the identification of the solution, Shevgaonkar explains that “We will then involve the industry to scale it up.” The programme has been conceived as to be influenced with the aid of IITs, NITs and other “leading technical institutions”.

The aim will be the preparation of a roadmap for initiating holistic rural development. Apart from the HRD ministry as well as institutes, many other ministries such as rural development along with NGOs in villages are likely to be part of the programme. The institutes will be looking at issues such as supply of potable water, sanitation, low cost housing and energy needs.

The aim in launching the programme is to conduct important research in alignment with national development. Unnat Bharat Abhiyan is an initiative of the Ministry of HRD solely though it will be coordinated and steered by IIT Delhi.

Preparations for the programme are in full swing and the IIT Delhi has already started identifying villages for initiation and implementation of the Abhiyan.

Rural development in India has to come from diverse areas including involvement of world class technology institutes such as IIT. The future for schemes such as Unnat Bharat Abhiyan is positive. Rural development is on the anvil following the immense success of the Swacch Bharat Abhiyan. The Swacch Bharat Abhiyan was successful in spreading the message for the need for cleanliness and sanitation.