“Rural India is witnessing a major transformation, be it road connectivity, internet connectivity, mobile service access or digital payments,” said Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan while participating in the 64th Foundation Day function of the National Institute of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj (NIRDPR) here on Friday.
Dr. Tamilisai said, “India lives in villages that need overall development to strengthen the Panchayat Raj system, as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The rural areas of India are in fact competing with the urban areas. I strongly believe that rural development is a holistic process of economic, social and human development. As we march towards 2030, many targets set for sustainable goals have been achieved and many are in progress. India has achieved benchmarks in sectors such as education and health, but still a lot need to be done for people coming from poor backgrounds.”
Stating that NIRDPR has been encouraging rural artisans across the country by organising national-level melas and should continue to do so for a better rural economy, the Governor shared her experiences of being a doctor herself and serving in rural areas. She added that decentralising powers and focussing on rural development were needed for the welfare of the entire nation.
Director general of NIRDPR G. Narendra Kumar said that the institute is in the forefront of rural development.
