India's Rural Transformation and Development

This book, a collection of updated articles presented in an international conference on India's Rural Transformation and Development: Issues, Processes and Direction' organized by the Cordia Group of Institutes and Sanghol community on 17-18 November 2011, talks about the criticality of different issues and challenges that the rural India faces and suggests ways and means to bring it into the nation-building exercise. No country steadfastly grows without tapping its rural potential. Over 750 million people live in the Indian villages and there is a desperate need for them to get empowered in education and skills, and with state-of-the-art infrastructure, financial support and guidance, better agricultural methods, energy/gas generation technologies, communication network, and by introducing and training on village and eco tourism. All stake holders the Government, NGOs, banks and self help groups have to play a pivotal role in ensuring sustainable rural development without losing the charm and the quintessential look of the villages. The visionary Inaugural Lecture by Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, former President of India, is igniting and the icing on the cake. The articles are authoritative, and few case studies, add value to the content. Concepts like Community Radio are of great interest. This book will help people who want to do investment in rural areas, students of economics and sociology, those in rural researches, and for those who have an urban heart .

Professor Thomas G. Fraser, MBE, is Emeritus Professor of History and Honorary Professor of Conflict Research at the University of Ulster. He was formerly Provost of the University of Ulster's Magee campus. Educated at The University of Glasgow (MA, Ewing Prize) and The London School of Economics (PhD), in 1983-1984 he was Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence at Indiana University South Bend. Widely published, he is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.