Necessary Steps for Rural Development
Rural development means the development of people, culture, tradition, and economy of the villages. The whole of Bangladesh is the land village. Ninety percent of our total populations live in the rural area. The culture and the civilization of our total populations live in the rural area. The culture and the civilization of our country have grown up from the heart of our village life. So, it is clear to us that the development of Bangladesh entirely depends on the prosperity of the villages and the villagers.
Rural development refers to a planned change towards the improvement of the economic and social lifestyle of the rural poor. The poets of our county once sang the songs of the beauty and prosperity of the villages. Once there was a time when the farmers of our country had plenty of paddies in their barns, cows in the cow-sheds, and fish in the ponds and tanks. This is done through increased production, equitable distribution of resources, and empowerment.
What steps are necessary to improve our rural areas: After the achievement of independence it is naturally hoped that villagers will see their happy days again. The villagers took an important role during the post-liberation period. The following steps should be taken for the development of our rural areas:
- Agricultural development: Agriculture is an aspect peculiarly related only to the rural environment. It has the lion’s share in our economy. To solve the shortage of foodstuff “grow more food” is essential. Modern scientific methods of cultivation should be adopted for the development of agriculture. So, farmers should be trained well and modern farming equipment and seeds should be made available in the villages.
- Development of cottage industries: agriculture alone cannot maintain such a large population. The cottage industry and agriculture must, therefore, go hand in hand. If we try to back again for the development of our cottage industries it will be a great help for the rapid development of our country.
- Improvement of public health: the people of the rural areas are now in ill health. Their health has been broken down for want of sufficient food and with the attack of the different diseases. They should be given proper facilities for hospitals, doctors, and medicines.
- Improvement of the source of recreation: it is now essential to back our educated and well-to-do people to the village. But on what attraction they would back to the village? If they do not get the way of earning food and mental amusement, it is impossible to back them to the village.
- Education: About 85% of our population live in villages. Again, about 85% of our rural population are illiterate. There is an acute shortage of schools and colleges in our rural areas. So, to educate our rural population, sufficient educational institutions need to be set up.
For the development of our country, rural development is the precondition. We should, therefore, think much about the improvement of our rural areas. “Go back to the village” may become successful if we co-operate with the development of the rural areas of our country. Therefore, it can be said that rural development is the true development of the country.
