Planned development in India during the last four decades has contributed to the widening of the gulf between rural and urban areas of our country. There has never been a serious effort to develop the potentialities of the rural areas. In fact, the cities have developed at the cost of villages which have remained socially and economically underdeveloped. The cities have experienced a transportation revolution and are rapidly moving into the computer age. The industrial development has also been oriented to satisfy the needs of the demands of the richer sections of the urban population. Incomes
in the urban areas are growing at a much faster rate than those in rural areas. In fact, there has been a decline in the real incomes of the rural poor. The recurring droughts have degraded the lands of the poor who cannot afford the means for new agricultural technology ie. improved seeds, fertilizers and irrigation. Nor have the avenues of secondary employment grown. This process has led to the marginalisation of the poor and has resulted in increased migration to cities. It has been observed that a large number of rural families cannot survive without being supported by at least one member of the
family working in the cities.

Ralegan Siddhi was one of the worst victims of this process when, in 1975 Anna Hazare a local resident started working in his own village. This village, Ralegan, eventually developed into a model village of Maharashtra. Ralegan has shown that when the people decide to take up their own development they can produce outstanding results with a little bit of support from the development bureaucracy. This village of about two thousand population in Parner taluka of Ahmednagar district in Maharashtra has attracted wide attention, including that of the Planning Commission and of the Central Government. A ministerial delegation from China was taken to Ralegan to show them a model Indian village. A visit to Ralegan has become an essential component of the training programmes of MSW students, agricultural universities, trainee Block Development Officers, bank officers and IAS officers, not only of Maharashtra but also of other states. Though publicity or public attention is no measure of a project's importance, there are some unusual features which have given Ralegan a special place.

Anna Hazare did not have any background of specialized education or expertise in development issues. His selfless leadership and moral appeal mobilized the village youth. Other people in the village also came around in due course of time. The most remarkable aspect of Ralegan's economic development is that there have been no significant financial or managerial inputs from any industrial house or Indian Charitable institutions or foreign funding agencies. The entire development effort has been financed predominantly through well-known Government schemes of loans and assistance that are available to any other village. The mobilization of local people and their voluntary contribution of physical lahour (Shramadaan) as well as local ingenuity in adopting and implementing development schemes has been exemplary.

Reconstructing the moral fabric of the village and bringing them together was considered necessary before undertaking any development effort. Emotional unity was largely achieved by renovation of the village temple. The youth were mobilized by a campaign against alcoholism. The guiding principle of economic development adopted by the Ralegan people has been that of "growth with equity". Special attention was paid to eradication of social discrimination and to bring about greater economic equality by implementing special economic programmes for lower income groups.

Normally, economic development leads to widening of economic and social disparities. However in Ralegan, disparities within the village society have decreased rather than getting widened. Social development towards an egalitarian society has preceded as well as accompanied economic development in Ralegan.

The village people gave priority to integration of Harijans and other lower castesi nto the village community. This created a unified force and an unprecedented drive for undertaking development programmes. People from all sections in the village saw a stake in the development programmes because they knew that the fruits were distributed equitably and that everyone stood to gain without any discrimination.

Shramadaan is an essential component (worth Rs.30/- for a government grant of Rs. 100/-) in the implementation of every program in the village. Whether it is digging a well, construction of check dams, planting of trees or building a hostel for the outstation students, one adult from every household contributed his/her free labour to the project. As a result the government grants for these schemes were utilized with 130 per cent results whereas thirty to sixty per cent leakage (misappropriation of funds/materials for personal benefit) is a common phenomenon elsewhere in India. The village has accepted a code of distribution of surplus generated by these development schemes. Fifty per cent of the returns goes to the beneficiaries, 25 per cent is utilized for repayment of loans and the balance 25 per cent goes towards raising reserve capital for taking up community benefit programmes in future.

Ralegan has not experimented in developing any new technologies. It has only implemented the well established ones. Even in the field of public health, safe drinking water supply, soak pits, gobar gas plants, smokeless chulhas, public latrines, public urinals, good exercise and nutritious food to all Balwadi and school going children have become part of Ralegan's life without any fanfare. As a result, the health status of the village including that of children and women has improved remarkably without any massive campaigns, curative camps or health care staff running around doing house to house check-ups.

Anna Hazare feels that individual morality and moral reconstruction of the village community are essential for laying the foundation of any worthwhile socio-economic development. He derives morality from religion, but without orthodoxy and superstition. Regular prayers, chanting of hymns and bhajans, reading of scriptures and lectures on spiritualism and morality are part of the daily routine in the schools. Religious songs and talks are also broadcast from the public address system fixed in the temple, so that it can be heard in any part of the village. There is a ban on eating non-vegetarian foods and smoking of cigarettes because these things presumably give rise to evil thoughts. Playing of film songs, watching of films or dances (Chhayageet, Chitrahar) on TV are also prohibited.
 

Life of women has also changed as a result of all these changes in the village. Wife beating and teasing of young women which were common features ten years ago, have totally disappeared. If any case of wife beating is reported, the man is given a public beating. Free from the habit of drinking, men now pay more attention to their family and children. Because of increased agricultural activity both men and women have to work much more than before; however the family life is happier and women and children are healthier.  However the Mahila Mandal is yet to become an active women's group in the village.

The success of Ralegan Siddhi raises many questions. What are the critical inputs or factors in its success? Can it be replicated or multiplied at other places? Per capita investments in development projects implemented in Ralegan Siddhi over ten years (1975 to 1985) has been of the order of Rs.500 per capita per year. Of this, 11.7% was contributed by the village, 41.5% came in the form of government subsidies, 37% was contributed by the banks as short/long term loans most of which had already been repaid at the time of this study. As a result the annual per capita income in Ralegan had gone up from Rs. 270 in 1975 to Rs. 2257 in 1986, which amounts to 24% growth per year over ten years.

As a principle the people do not accept any financial assistance as donation. They insist that the money is given only as a loan which is to be paid back. There are cases where they have refused to accept moneys from charitable funding agencies and industrialists.

The Ralegan model is basically a self-help model. It is not the money (investments) alone or just the faithful implementation of government programmes that has made Ralegan's development an outstanding phenomenon. It has an advantage over others since there are no external catalytical inputs or agents which have to be withdrawn to test its sustaining power or analyse its multipliability. The critical factors in Ralegan's success have been the people of Ralegan including the leadership of Anna Hazare.

Anna Hazare did receive assistance and support from various individuals and institutions from time to time. The Rural Welfare Board of Dorabji Tata Trust,  Shri V. S. Page, former Chairmen of the Maharashtra Legislative Council; Balasaheb Bharde, former President to Khadi Gramodyog Sanghl Balasaheb Vikhe Patil, Member of Parliamentl Anil Kumar Lakhina, former Collector of Ahmednagar District; Navalbhai Firodia of Pune and Mrs. Leelatai Mulgaonkar of Tatas and many others interacted with Anna Hazare and the people of Ralegan, and made their contribution to the development of Ralegan Siddhi in different ways.

Success begets success. The bureaucracy saw that the government schemes are being successfully implemented in Ralegan showing 100% results. The bureaucracy also realized that they cannot "make any money" through corrupt practices there. Hence, they also contributed in making Ralegan a "showpiece" where they could demonstrate the success of their schemes. Many schemes were sanctioned to Ralegan out of turn. However this is not to deny that a large number of government officials from different departments at the Taluka and district levels as well as the Gram Sevak and Talati did get genuinely inspired and worked spiritedly for the implementation of various development projects in Ralegan.

When Anna was asked how he cut across the bureaucratic red tapism, he replied that he always brought pressure trom the top, either from the district Ievel or at times from Bombay, to get the local bureaucracy "to fall in line".

Ralegan Siddhi has already started radiating its message of self-help to various villages in different parts of the country. Groups of people from over a hundred villages have visited Ralegan on their own initiative and taken the message from here to their respective villages. When such groups visit Ralegan they are taken around by any young worker in the village, be it the Gram Sevak, a teacher from the school or a member of the Village Youth Association. Anna Hazare's talk and personal discussions with them of course gives a sense of fulfillment. What the village people appreciate most is that development in Ralegan has been brought about by people like themselves with the help of Government schemes which can be available to them as well. Taking inspiration for self-help when these visitors go back to their respective villages, they do try to mobilize themselves for improvement in their social and economic life. The greatest advantage is that they do not have to look for a messiah in any individual or organization. In most cases their group visits have been followed by Anna Hazare himself paying a personal visit to these villages at their invitation. He has detailed discussions with the local youth and Panchayat members. In many of these villages programmes like ban on sale and consumption of alcohol and those of environmental conservation, like construction of checkdams and tree plantation have already started showing results.

The typical example of this contagious effect was observed by one of the authors in the village of Malshiras (in Purandar Taluka of Pune District). He was staying there for five years on a health education project. The village people and their youth association members had heard of Ralegan Siddhi through newspapers and television programmes. About thirty-five of them organized a visit to Ralegan in August 1987. After coming back from Ralegan, the members of the village Panchayat and Youth Association came together and adopted a ban on drinking and selling of liquor in the village. The five sellers of liquor were called to a meeting of the villagers and were told to "pack off".

Thus the ground was prepared for the visit of Anna Hazare. He came to the village in October 1987 and had a half day discussion with young workers. As a result, the village youths and Panchayat leadership felt inspired to take up many other development programmes. And ever since, the model of Ralegan has often been discussed in the village es well as in the meetings of the Village Youth Association.

To consolidate the multiplier effect, Ralegan has started training programmes of different durations (three days, fifteen days, three months and two years) for inspired and motivated young persons from different villages. A hostel for such trainees has been constructed to house such trainees and other students.

Ralegan Siddhi may well remain an island, like most other development experiments. But it has shown that if people decide to take up their own development through self-help and by integrating all sections of society, the united force of the people helped by motivated leadership has the capacity to transform the village. In the case ot Ralegan, the bureaucracy and the political vested interests had fallen in line to share the glory of success, when they realized that they cannot make money through corruption in Ralegan. This may not be the case if many Ralegans spring up. But it may still create tremendous pressure on the system for change and a demand on the bureaucracy to "get off the people's backs".
 

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