What is the importance of the study of Rural Sociology in India after Independence?

Rural background of India:

For Indian Rural Sociology is more important than in any other country. India as we have already seen is basically a country of the villages. After independence, the process of reconstruction of the country has been started and therefore, the importance of Rural Sociology was recognised in India is to active progress, the villages have to be improved and education has to be spread in these villages.

This is way, in community development programme, every attempts is being made to improve the villages of this country. This object can be achieved only when the administrators and the planners have correct knowledge of the rural life and that knowledge can be proved only by Rural Sociology. That was the reason why is acquired greater importance for this country after independence.

82% of the Indian population lives in villagers and that is why they are the centers of Indian culture and life. Dr. Dubey has rightly remarked.

In India our ways of life and thought are changing very fast who are required a large number of community studies both. In rural and urban areas on the different cultural regions of the country.

Importance of Rural Sociology for India:

Rural Sociology is very important for India. It is more important for a modern India. Its importance can be evaluated is the following heads:-

1) India lives in villages and villages are the centers of Indian culture.

2) India is an agricultural country and the poverty of this country can be removed only when the agricultural is improved.

3) Solution of rural problems can being absent the changes in Rural Society.

4) The country and its society can be reconstructed only through rural reconstruction.

5) In the interest of democratic decentralisation the village’s community is to be studied in totality.

1) India lives in villages and the villages are the centers of Indian culture:

India is basically a country of the villages over 80% of the population still live in villages. Since 1822, up to the present age, the rural population of the country has been over 80% and that is why villages are the centers of Indian Culture. Unless we know these villages, we shall not be able to know what the India actually is that is why Desai has remarked.

Village is the omit of the Rural Society. It is the theater where the quantum of rural life unfolds itself and functions like ovary social phenomena, village is a historical category”.

Dr. Dubey has marked, “From times immemorial village has been basic and important omit in the organisation or Indian social polity”.

Mayer has something similar to say.

Village is on the one hand, a unit like in nuclear settlement which is by definition spatially separate from other units and on the other hand an essential unit based on a unit policy which makes use of this spatial separation; for the enforcement of law and order, tax collection etc.

2) India is an agricultural country and the poverty of this country can only be removed when the agriculture is improved:

India is not only a country of villages but its economy is also mainly agriculture. Through the study of the Rural Sociology, we are able to know about various programmes for improvement and carrying out of agriculture. This country can become rich only when its agriculture.

This country can become rich only when its agriculture is improved with the improvement of agriculture and rural economy of this country, the backwardness of this country can also be removed. Desai has very correctly pointed the book of rural life in this country.

India rural life provides a spectacle actual misery, social disintegration cultural backwardness and above all enveloping crises.

If the half marked people of this country have to be clothed properly and fed adequately, the rural economy and agriculture has to be improved. This can be done only when we have correct ideas of the poverty of the country which Mrs. Goodwill has rightly pointed as given below.

‘The name of India conjures up a vision of the people, poor fragile, half fed and half marked, trading on in life journey in the vast number of 5,58,000 villages.

3) Solution of rural problem can bring about charge in Rural Society:

Through the study of the Rural Sociology, we can know about problems of the village society in his country. Through this knowledge, the problems can be solved and the Rural Society charged. If after independence, the rural society is charging at a pace, the responsibility lies with the greater study of the Rural Sociology. Once the problems of rural life are solved the face of the country shall be greatly changed. It is here that the Rural Sociology can play an important part.

4) The country and its society can be reconstructed only through Rural Reconstruction:

Rural Sociology provides us knowledge about the Rural Society and also helps us to solve these problems and thereby re-contract the Indian Rural Society. With the construction and change in the Rural Society, the whole of the Indian Society shall be changed. The formers of India Constitution realised the importance of the rural life and society and that is why in Article 40.43 and 48 they laid down this note on the form of directive principles of state action. Desai has clarified this point further, in the following words.

“This systematic study of rural, social organisation of its structure, function and evolution, has not only become necessary but also urgent after the advent of Independent.

5) In the interest of democratic decentralisation, village community as to be studied in totality:-

India can really improve economically and politically only when decentralisation of economical and political powers take place. Village Panchayats and other units of community development programme and also other programmes integrated in the Five Year Plan are the efforts in this direction knowledge about them can be secured, through the study of Rural Sociology.

The village has various aspects and all the aspect are to be studied as a totality. For this propose, the village may be treated as a microscopic unit study. They could help the understanding of various problems of villages as Dr.Srinivasan has pointed out:-

May study have convinced all the enormous value of studying all Indian Sociological problems on single village? It does not say all sociological problems can be studied in the villages but only many of the most important ones.