Saansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY): A Guide to India’s Model Village Scheme

The Saansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY) is a unique initiative by the Government of India, aimed at transforming villages into model communities, known as Adarsh Grams. This article will explore the key aspects of the scheme, including its objectives, guiding principles, and implementation strategies.

Inspiration and Goals

The scheme draws its inspiration from Mahatma Gandhi’s concept of Gram Swaraj, emphasizing self-governance and holistic village development. The primary goal of SAGY is to translate this vision into reality, focusing on improving the quality of life for all villagers.

Core Values of SAGY

SAGY is guided by several core values:

• People’s Participation: Ensuring the involvement of all sections of society in decision-making.

• Antyodaya: Prioritizing the needs of the poorest and the weakest.

• Gender Equality: Affirming gender equality and respect for women.

• Social Justice: Guaranteeing social justice for all.

• Dignity of Labor: Instilling dignity of labor and promoting community service.

• Cleanliness: Promoting a culture of cleanliness.

• Environmental Harmony: Living in consonance with nature and ensuring a balance between development and ecology.

• Cultural Heritage: Preserving and promoting local cultural heritage.

• Self-Reliance: Inculcating mutual cooperation, self-help, and self-reliance.

• Peace and Harmony: Fostering peace and harmony within the village community.

• Transparency and Accountability: Ensuring transparency, accountability, and probity in public life.

• Local Self-Governance: Nurturing local self-governance.

• Fundamental Rights and Duties: Adhering to the values enshrined in the Indian Constitution.

Key Objectives of SAGY

The main objectives of SAGY are:

• To trigger processes that lead to the holistic development of identified Gram Panchayats.

• To substantially improve the standard of living and quality of life through improved basic amenities, higher productivity, enhanced human development, and better livelihood opportunities.

• To generate models of local level development and effective local governance.

• To nurture Adarsh Grams as schools of local development to train other Gram Panchayats.

Challenges in Local Level Development

The scheme also acknowledges the challenges related to local level development:

• Inability to develop a shared vision over a longer period.

• Disconnect between development inputs and genuine community needs.

• Lack of participation from marginalized sections of society.

• Overemphasis on infrastructure while ignoring social and sustainable outcomes.

• Reliance on government grants rather than community contributions and self-help.

• Absence of convergence of different schemes.

• Unfair allocation of benefits leading to alienation.

• Political partisanship.

• Disregard for socio-cultural values.

• Multiple power structures and lack of a reconciling mechanism.

• Ignoring environmental concerns.

• Prevalence of social evils like drinking, dowry, casteism, and discrimination against women.

Approach to Achieve Objectives

To achieve its objectives, SAGY follows a comprehensive approach:

• Leveraging Leadership: Utilizing the leadership, capacity, and commitment of Members of Parliament (MPs).

• Community Engagement: Mobilizing the community for participatory local development.

• Convergence: Converging government, private, and voluntary initiatives for holistic development.

• Partnerships: Building partnerships with voluntary organizations, cooperatives, and academic institutions.

• Focus on Outcomes: Emphasizing outcomes and sustainability.

Key Areas of Focus

SAGY activities focus on:

• Personal Development: Inculcating hygienic behavior, fostering healthy habits, and reducing risk behaviors.

• Human Development: Ensuring universal access to basic health facilities, total immunization, and balanced sex ratios.

• Social Development: Promoting voluntarism, building community capacity, honoring local leaders, and creating violence-free villages.

• Economic Development: Focusing on lifting households out of poverty, promoting women’s self-help groups, and ensuring financial inclusion.

• Environmental Development: Promoting clean and green villages, including proper sanitation and waste management.

• Good Governance: Strengthening local democracy, promoting transparency, and ensuring time-bound service delivery.

Role of the Member of Parliament (MP)

The MP plays a crucial role in SAGY, including:

• Identifying and selecting a Gram Panchayat to develop as an Adarsh Gram.

• Engaging with the community and motivating them to take up development activities.

• Propagating the values of the scheme.

• Initiating start-up activities.

• Facilitating the planning process.

• Mobilizing resources.

• Filling critical gaps using MPLADS funds.

• Monitoring progress and addressing issues.

• Promoting transparency and accountability.

Ideal Population and Selection of Gram Panchayats

The ideal population for an Adarsh Gram is 3000-5000 in plain areas and 1000-3000 in hilly/tribal/difficult areas. Each MP is expected to develop three Adarsh Grams by 2019, with one to be achieved by 2016 and five more by 2024.

Village Development Plan

A Village Development Plan (VDP) is prepared for each identified Gram Panchayat, focusing on local context, potential, and needs, with a special emphasis on poverty alleviation.

Social Mobilization and Environment Building

Social mobilization and environment building are crucial, involving:

• Interactions with Gram Sabhas, Mahila Sabhas, and Bal Sabhas.

• Interactions with occupational groups and local organizations.

• Cultural and sports events.

• Wall writings, Shivirs, Padayatras, and Nukkad nataks.

Early Stage Activities

Early stages of building Adarsh Gram include:

• A collective pledge by the community to work towards economic upliftment.

• Reaffirming fundamental rights and duties.

• Organizing health and cleanliness drives.

• Conducting animal health camps.

• Interventions in schools and Anganwadis.

• Planting trees.

• Revitalizing self-help groups.

• Organizing Rozgar Diwas under MGNREGA.

• Improving the Public Distribution System (PDS).

• Organizing grievance redressal camps.

Transparency and Monitoring

The scheme emphasizes transparency through:

• Proactive disclosure of information.

• Public display of project details.

• Use of technology and geo-tagging.

• Social audits.

• Monitoring through a web-based system.

Conclusion

The Saansad Adarsh Gram Yojana is a transformative initiative that aims to create model villages by promoting holistic development, community participation, and local governance. By focusing on sustainable practices, social justice, and the empowerment of vulnerable groups, the scheme seeks to uplift rural communities and create a more prosperous and equitable India.