“Sabka Prayas” (Gram Sabhas),”Sabka Vikas” (One billion people in Rural India)

One billion people corresponding to two third population of India live in 6.5 lakhs villages. It also implies that one third population of India is rural women. India cannot achieve the target of developed nation if rural India in general and women specifically remain excluded from the growth story. The world is economically growing but the economic divide is also widening, nature is getting exploited and human values are depleting. India aspire for economic growth that is not just inclusive but also aligned with culture and nature.

Hence, the Indian economic development model has to be:

• Decentralized up to village level
• Inclusive of women
• Nurture nature and culture

As of January 31, 2025, India has approximately 9.09 million Self-Help Groups (SHGs), encompassing about 100.5 million women households. 15 million farmers are members of 27 thousand FPOs. Agriculture and allied sector contributes just 18% to GDP but has been source of livelihood for 70% rural population. The SPHs and FPOs have potential to transform the rural economy. The Self Help Groups (SHGs) and Farmer Produce Organizations extensive network need governance and technology boost.

However, lack of income opportunities and basic amenities  in rural India has remained a key issues even after increased welfare budget, grants and subsidies year on year. The result for welfarism is usually short lived and can be easily countered by offering more welfare by party in opposition.  

“BJP won just 165 seats out of 398 rural seats in Lok Sabha elections 2024 as compared to 236 seats in 2019.  Despite gaining 8 more seats in urban areas, the party tally dropped from 303 to 240 seats in 2024 because of staggering loss of 71 seats in rural India.”

The proposed solution is based on the Article 40 and 73^rd Amendment to constitution of India. It also derive inspiration from honourable PM’s Rastriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan. Let’s understand nature and women representation in Sarkar, Samaj aur Bazar.

Sarkar – Decentralized up to village level

Let’s have a quick the way India is government and women participation in governance.

The Gram Panchayat are uniquely places for inclusive growth of Bharat because of following three facts:

1. One Billion people live in lowest and closest to people constitutionally self-governed unit: Gram Panchayat.
2. Gram Panchayat is politically led by 45% women that is far better than state government and central government thanks to 33 percent reservation to women in Panchayats and ULBs as per 73^rd and 74^th amendment to constitution of India. The actual are better far better than reservation indicating that women have emerged as natural choice of voters.
3. The topics that are most important for community including, health, education, income, sanitation come under the jurisdiction of gram panchayat.

Hence, the gram panchayat becomes clearly the best institutional unit for inclusive development of Bharat. The gram panchayat also provide flexibility in governance to align with diversity of India. The Gram panchayat development model is not just inclusive but will also become source for grass root leaders for other local bodies, State and Central politics. This approach can make reservation meaning less as the women representation will naturally become 45% or more.

This also answers the ongoing debate on increasing the women and youth participation in politics. The minimum age for Gram panchayat war member and village president election is just 21. The leader is also closes to people as the administrative office (panchayat secretariat), legislative (gram sabha) and electoral office (gram panchayat) are co located.

Samaj – Inclusive of Women

The gram Sabha is the only constitutional body of the democracy where voters directly participate in regular decision making. The root cause of poor functioning of Panchayat is not conducting gram sabha.  The local community is most competent supported by the constitutional power to solve the local issues. The issues taken upward not only complicate the issues but also increases avoidable load to already resource constraint district administration. 

The government is promoting mahila gram sabha and chori panchayat. These are not yielding desired result because people have lose the trust in gram panchayat as an institution. Empower panchayat podcast has featured many women gram Pradhan who have brought back the trust in Panchayat. The women participation in decision making can be achieved through regular meetings of gram sabha. The gram sabha can also help in resolving the issues of both basic amenities and income generation.   

The governance structure of gram panchayat, state government and central government are identical. However, Panchayat doesn’t work in the democratically desired institutional structure because gram Pradhan avoid accountability due to lack of resources and ability to implement the direction of Gram Sabha. 

The gram sabha is equivalent to vidhan sabha or parliament for 29 subjects, the standing committees are equivalent to departments, the elected ward member as chairman to standing committee are ministers of department, the bureaucrats already working in different area the panchayat level are secretaries to the standing committee.

Bazar – Women led and Nature and Culture aligned

The role of production standing committee is to increase the production from the village. The SHGs, FPOs and FPUs shall get required support from Panchayat through production standing committee. Panchayat is well equipped to provide land, water, electricity, transportation to Panchayat. 

A strong rural economy depends on ensuring that farmers, producers, and small businesses get fair value for their work. The existing gap between raw production and final product pricing can be significantly reduced if villages organize their resources efficiently. This is where Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), Food Processing Units (FPUs), Entrepreneurs, Self-Help Groups (SHGs), and Small & Micro Enterprises play a crucial role.

Let’s take the example of potato chips to understand how this ecosystem can transform rural livelihoods.

1. Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs):
   
   
   • FPOs consist of small and marginal farmers coming together to strengthen their bargaining power.
   • The FPO gets into contract with a buyer for produce at pre decided rate for agreed quality.  
   • They procure seeds, fertilizers, and equipment in bulk at subsidized/ negotiated rates, reducing production costs.
   • They can sell their raw produce directly in the market, through ONDC, or supply it to FPUs for value addition.
     
     
2. Food Processing Units (FPUs):
   
   
   • FPUs take the raw produce from FPOs and process it into higher-value products.
   • In the case of potatoes, the FPU will sort, categorize, and process them into packaged chips, which can be branded and sold in the market.
   • Example: Bihar’s Makhana industry, where raw makhana is procured from farmers, processed, packaged, and sold at premium prices.

3. Self-Help Groups (SHGs):
   
   
   • SHGs handle non-agricultural and low-scale processed goods like pottery, dairy, honey, and pickles.
   • SHGs can sell their products directly in the market, through ONDC, or supply them to Small & Micro Enterprises for further branding and marketing.
   • Example: Lijjat Papad, which started as an SHG initiative and grew into a national brand.

4. Small & Micro Enterprises:
   
   
   • These units purchase semi-processed goods from FPUs and SHGs and brand them for a wider market.
   • Example: Amul procures milk from SHGs and converts it into packaged dairy products.
   • Similarly, a village-based small business could procure honey from SHGs and brand it as “Organic Village Honey” for national sales.

Final Link: Direct Market Access via ONDC

• By eliminating middlemen, all stakeholders—FPOs, FPUs, Entrepreneurs, SHGs, and SMEs—can sell directly in the market, maximizing their profits.
• ✅ Farmers (FPOs) can sell crops directly or supply to FPUs
  ✅ FPUs can process and sell the goods themselves or via ONDC
  ✅ Entrepreneurs can create brands and partner with FPOs & FPUs
  ✅ SHGs can either sell directly or collaborate with SMEs
  ✅ SMEs can take rural products to national and global markets
• This interconnected system ensures that rural India moves beyond just production and becomes a powerhouse of processing, branding, and direct market access.

Transforming Villages into Women Led Economic Hubs

• By integrating FPOs, FPUs, Entrepreneurs, and SHGs into one strong supply chain, villages can capture the full value of their produce—just like urban businesses do.
• This model will:
   ✅ Increase farmers’ incomes
   ✅ Boost rural employment
   ✅ Promote self-reliant village economies
• With technology, market access, and smart collaborations, we can make every village a center of production, innovation, and prosperity.

The Women are constitutionally and economically are at the core of Rural governance and economy. India can achieve her vision of inclusive development by improving competence and capability of Gram Panchayat.