labels: economy - general, governance
Rural facilities in India: NSS 58 reportnews
27 May 2005

The 58th round of the 'national sample survey' (NSS ) has focused attention on the predominantly overwhelming rural India after a long gap. Till the 22nd round of the NSS, the survey of Indian villages was a regular focus area of the survey. Thereafter villages received only sporadic attention.

The two major rural surveys prior to the current 58th, round, were the 47th round of the NSS (July-December 1991), with a focus on rural disability and culture, followed by the 52nd round in 1995-96 on facilities in the rural areas.

Since the bulk of India lives and works in its villages, it is pertinent to gauge the quality of life of rural India, which depends on the facilities available in the villages. Moreover, the impact of policy intervention over the years aimed at improving the quality of life in the villages and availability of various infrastructural facilities assumes significance.

The enquiry on availability of facilities in villages through the 58th NSS conducted between July and December 2002 included the collection of information on availability of facilities for the disabled in the sample villages, housing conditions, village facilities, and slums. In addition, the annual consumer expenditure and information on the characteristics of employment-unemployment was also carried out.

The main thrust of facilities in the 4,646 villages surveyed throughout the country - barring the Leh and kargil districts of Kashmir, the Andaman and Nicobar islands, and rural areas beyond a 5km radius of bus routes in Nagaland - was on the availability of electricity connection, drinking water, the nature of official development programmes, along with specified facilities relating to education, health and rehabilitation of the disabled.

Highlights of The report on facilities in villages:

  • By 2002, more than three-fourths of India's villages had access to electricity.
  • Non-conventional forms of energy were available in less than 12 per cent of Indian villages.
  • 55 per cent of India's villages relied on tube-wells or hand-pumps for drinking water.
  • Taps provided drinking water to about 18 per cent of villages.
  • Only 30 per cent of Indian villages had any kind of drainage system; the major types were the open pucca and the open katcha systems.
  • 76 per cent of the villages had irrigation facilities, mostly in the form of tube-wells.
  • Cooperative societies existed in 30 per cent of Indian villages and self-help groups in 24 per cent.
  • Government development programmes for providing drinking water and construction of approach roads were operative in 60 per cent of villages.
  • Literacy campaigns / adult education programmes were in force in 37 per cent of the villages.
  • Post offices did not exist in over 78 per cent of India's villages.
  • Only one-third of all villages were within 2km of a telegraph office/ PCO / e-mail facility.
  • Pre-primary school facilities were available in 66 per cent of India's villages in 2002 compared to only 39 per cent in 1991.
  • 72 per cent of the villages had primary school facilities in 2002 compared to 67 per cent in 1991.
  • 54 per cent of the villages were more than 5 km away from the nearest 'primary health centre' and 27 per cent were more than 10 km away.
  • Only 10 per cent of the villages had a medicine shop and only 20 per cent had a private clinic or doctor.
  • Facilities for the disabled such as schools for the blind, the deaf and dumb, and the mentally retarded were extremely rare, the situation being no better than it was a decade ago.
  • Only 24 per cent of Jharkhand's villages had electricity.
  • Less than 4 per cent of the villages of UP, Bihar, Jharkhand and Assam had access to cable TV.

also see : Click here to view full report
Other NSS 58 reports

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Rural facilities in India: NSS 58 report