Eighty per cent of India’s population lives in villages. Most of them live below poverty line. There is a vast difference in the life of rural and urban dwellers. The gains of industrial and technological progress have not always reached the villagers. The government is increasingly becoming aware of the need to start programmes for the upliftment of the rural folk. To this effect, many new schemes have been started However, the benefits of such schemes do not always reach the poor. Unless such programmes are implemented in all sincerity there cannot be much change in the life of the rural people. There is no doubt that socioeconomic reforms can uplift the rural masses from their present plight. It is a challenging task but not impossible.

Eighty per cent of India's population lives in 5,17,000 villages. Therefore, India is predominantly an agricultural country. Hence, it becomes imperative that proportionate amount of attention and funds be spent on bettering the lot of the rural folk. In spite of their being in majority, they have been lagging behind in the fields of education, civic amenities, medical facilities and economic well-being. The fruit of their labor, that is, food grains come to the cities to sustain the city-dwellers. But the prosperity of the city, through industrial and technological development in the past was seldom shared by the rural people. The Government of India realizes the necessity of improvement at the condition of the rural people. Several projects and programmes have been undertaken.