In a bid to transform livelihoods in rural India, the UPA, halfway in its second term, has unveiled a flagship scheme “Integrated Habitat Development Scheme (IHDS)” to qualitatively transform villages. The scheme to run first for three years apparently has come in the backdrop of separate Central government schemes
not yielding desired results and as a pilot project it would first be executed in the 60 Left Wing Extremism (LWE)-affected districts.
Union rural development minister Jairam Ramesh said that the IHDS will seek to converge various schemes of the ministry like Indira Awas Yojna (IAY), National Rural Drinking Water Programme, Total Sanitation Programme. The scheme has the objective of tangible improvement in the health parameters of the people, better impact on the life of people and integrated development of habitations. Mr Ramesh said that the ministry of rural development is consulting HDFC bank to play a role in successful execution of the scheme.
The remarkable aspect of the scheme is the provision of 24-hour water supply through three taps in each of the houses, which will necessarily be pucca. The scheme has apparently been inspired in some ways by Mr Joe Medinth, who runs an NGO in Orissa, and with whom Mr Ramesh has interacted in the past. The scheme also appears to be in response to claims of the Gandhian activist of having developed “ideal” villages in his backyard in Maharashtra.
Another notable aspect of the scheme is that it would be owned, supervised, executed, and run by gram panchayat only. Also, construction aspect of each of the projects undertaken under this scheme must be completed in two years.