A group of Indian Americans led by Ram Narayanan of US-India Friendship were on a week-long "learning journey" in rural India during December 2007. Following are excerpts from thoughts penned down by Sudhir Krishna, one of the members of the team.

Issues: Some of the challenges faced by villagers across In-dia are water and energy shortages, poverty, limited livelihood choices, poor sanitation, inadequate access to medical care, illiteracy, social challenges (women's empowerment, alcoholism, domestic violence, and caste tensions), panchayat governance. Responsibility:

The primary responsibility for rural development belongs to the villagers themselves. Nobody can feel their pain and urgency more than they themselves do. They must exert the right pull on all outside organizations (government, NGOs) to get the help they need. The next responsible are the panchayat, state government and central government, in that order.

NGOs: Have a vital role to play as catalysts and facilitators, providing expertise, project management and funding where appropriate. NGOs must leverage government at all levels and not try to bypass it. Traps to avoid are "adopt-a-village" approach (a silly notion that makes the villagers look childish), providing freebies where the villagers have no skin in the game, pushing solutions that do not have buy-in from the villagers, wresting ownership for projects from the villagers, taking credit for progress, etc. The Dhan foundation is an excellent example of an NGO that can serve as a model for others.

Vision: The vision for rural development is Technological and Materialistic, not Gandhian. This vision is the one chosen by the villagers themselves (not necessarily what I am advocating). At the first available opportunity, as soon as they can afford it, the villagers will acquire several gadgets and comforts --- electrical appliances, mobile phones, TV, computers, the new Tata 1-lakh rupees "Nano" car, perhaps an air cooler or air conditioner. They will buy the same branded consumer products that city-dwellers do.

Therefore, the villages will simply be extensions of urban markets. They will not be separate, parallel markets involving bartering of simple rural products among villagers. Well-meaning social entrepreneurs and NGOs should recognize this fact and not pursue solutions that are more heart than head.

Key Enablers: Indian villages will be uplifted by western technologies -- computers, internet, mobile phones, and (soon) cost-effective solar PV panels (at less than a total of $2 per peak watt), telemedicine, etc.

The technologies will electronically connect every Indian village to the global community as well as increase energy independence from the electrical grid. Together with these new technologies, the villagers will use age-old rain-water harvesting methods and intermediate food-processing technologies. Other enablers are NGOs and institutions (like Gandhigram Rural University) that provide education/training in entrepreneurship, sales/ marketing, rural governance, project management, microfinancing, regular financing, etc.

Further, the work being done by people like Balaji Sampath (AID-India/ Pratham) in improving children's education will uplift the villages. Finally, the rapid improvements in roads, railways and air-connections in India will physically connect villages to urban centers.

The Rural Economy: Notwithstanding the above, each village will need to be economically viable or else see migration of its inhabitants to the cities. Besides the traditional economic underpinnings (agriculture, crafts), the villages can try to move up the value chain toward food-processing industries, differentiated crops/ fruits/ flowers, etc. Most importantly, Indian villages can now look forward to participating in the global knowledge economy through rural BPOs.

The spread of appliances/gadgets/powered-vehicles in the villages will create supporting economic activity in sales/repair/ maintenance/ support. Light manufacturing/ discrete assembly work can also be pursued. Rural tourism is another possibility -- I recently visited Bandhavgarh (rural and wildlife attractions), and Khajuraho (cultural/ religious attractions in a semi-rural setting). Environmental

Concerns: Currently, Indian villages enjoy clean air and lack of congestion. But technological and economic progress could worsen both and increase non-biodegradable waste (plastics, packaging, etc.). Every panchayat should make it a high priority to ensure that waste is managed well. Otherwise, Indian villages will begin to resemble urban slums --- squalid and miserable.

The Dream: Providing urban amenities in rural areas (PURA) will hopefully reverse the rural-urban push-pull and give Indian citizens the choice of living good lives in rural areas enjoying fresh air, space, peace, quiet, urban amenities, meaningful employment, and cultural richness.

How Indian-Americans Can Participate:

• Support an NGO with money and/or expertise after checking out personally the credentials of the NGO (management, approach, track-record, finances).

• Start an NGO (not preferred, because of the administrative burdens involved and the presence of over a million NGOs already in India).

• Provide micro-financing.

• Invest in a rural industry (food processing, differentiated agriculture, rural BPOs, light manufacturing).

• Provide technical expertise/ training (water management, biomass fuel, solar/ wind energy, rural dwellings, telemedicine, public health, organic farming.

• If personally connected to a particular village through ancestral/ property links, help build school, community center, clinic, etc.