Go rural, minister advises businesses

Rural India offers plethora of opportunities, which are waiting to be harnessed and therefore, businesses should go rural, suggested . Preneet Kaur, union minister of state for external affairs.

Speaking at ''Rural Markets Summit: New Business Opportunities in Rural Markets'' organised by industry body CII, to release two reports, CII-KPMG Report on Infrastructure Development in Agriculture – Route to Rural Transformation' and CII-NABCONS Report on Role of Financing in Leveraging Opportunities in Agribusiness, she said that the distinction between Bharat, which is used while referring to rural segment and usage of India while mentioning about the urban counterpart must go, making way for only one India.

Kaur stated that African, CIS, East Asian and Gulf nations are looking towards tapping the potential of rural India. Rural India today offers vast market base, demand potential, business opportunities and scope for inclusive growth.

While agreeing with the minister Pradeep Kashyap, president Rural Marketing Association of India and chairman and managing director, MART, listed healthcare, durable consumer financing, banking, construction and housing, life insurance, food processing as sectors offering growth opportunities in the rural domain.

According to Kashyap, out of 200 million new mobile connections, 50 per cent will have a subscriber base from rural areas by 2011.

He referred to a national study, Impact of Economic Slowdown on Rural Market' conducted by MART in January 2009, which suggested that the rural sector showed no signs of slowdown and people in rural areas were continuing to save in post office schemes.