It is a well-known fact that
development of rural areas remains to be a dead lock for the state government
and the central government for several reasons, many of which are complex in
nature that require relentless effort from various sections. One among them is
the lack of sufficient human resource to serve for the rural development. Among
the negative stories, absenteeism of the government employees, their
noncooperation, indifference towards critical issues, corruption and noncompliance
with the government rules are some of the prominent issues that have become a
routine part of news.
Two important areas that need
critical attention for rural development are education and health. To fulfill that doctors and teachers are
essential, otherwise quality education and healthy living remain to be a
distant dream. When the availability of teachers and doctors are taken into
account, their absenteeism or their post remaining to be vacant are highlighted
as two prominent matter of concern. The fact remains that most of them are transferred
from urban areas. The question remains why doctors and teachers who are
appointed in the rural areas have an aversion towards their job location?
Recently doctors in Kerala had a protest against the government decision to
engage the MBBS students in rural areas for two years after internships. Why
even doctors who take Hippocratic Oath to take care of the patients as their
paramount duty are reluctant and even protest against their appointment in
rural areas for two years? Why teachers do not accept their transfer to rural
areas or remains to be absent from their duty till they get appointment in
urban location? Why Sarva Siksha Abhiyan and National Rural Health Mission fail
to achieve the goals due to lack of staff?
We need to examine if we could put
the whole blame on the teachers and doctors alone for their apathy towards
rural development and accept their absence as an inevitable part of existing
reality. Should we wait for the committed and dedicated doctors and teachers
voluntarily spend some part of their life in rural areas? Or should we find
practical solution for the issue? And if we want to find an amicable solution, we
must analyse the issue to the core.
There are two aspects that we must take
into consideration; one regarding the attitude of the government employees and
the other the reality of rural life. Let’s take the latter first and examine it
briefly with a view of a person from urban middle class. Indian rural area is
known for poor infrastructure that makes travelling and communication
difficult, lack of good schools, shopping centers, electricity, entertainment
opportunities and many other attractions of a bright city life that makes life
in the rural area monotonous and tedious for an urban migrant. Along with that
the cultural and attitudinal difference, conventional life style, unchanged
value system and over all the unexciting living conditions of rural life take
away the interest of the urban middle class to work in the remote areas. In
order to justify this reason it is worth examining why the educated youth from
the rural areas do not wish to work in their own village. Most of them do not
want to come back to their village after spending few years in the city as part
of their studies. Now the attitude of the employees that could have inspired
them to work against all odds too is alien, expect in the few. The question
remains, can we expect the youth living in the midst of cut throat competition
and infinite desire for material wellbeing to work in adverse circumstances
with a drive to indulge in national development? Did the education system
impart values and principles to inspire them to be part of a broader part of
humanity? Did anyone, including their parents, inspire them to see success in
life lies beyond the material advancement and accumulation of wealth? Did they
ever get a chance to realize life is not an isolated course of journey that
everyone is interdependent? Did their teachers talked about matters more
important or equally important than limiting life on personal gains and
satisfaction? The absence of such noble values is an indisputable fact today.
If it is so, the next step is how we
can overcome this vicious cycle. Our education system has to be segregated from
other commercial enterprises and quality education should be made available to
everyone at affordable cost. Higher education should be separated from
privatization and government should invest to prepare the young minds to spend
their service for the upliftment of the underdeveloped sections without
hesitation. Education that needs huge individual investment, values imparted
from institutions that are established for profit and students who do not learn
the philosophy of service cannot be expected to address the issues of rural
development.
Along with that it is essential to
ensure the comfort of the human resource assigned for rural development at the
best possible extent by the government, not just basic needs, and some
incentive to motivate them and sustain their interest in working for the
deprived sections of the society. It is absurd to expect everyone to sacrifice
their aspirations for social development and accept inhospitable realities with
open hands. At the same time considering their needs, aspirations and making
arrangements for their comfort will have mutual benefit for the society as well
as the employees. For example it would be practical
to accept the need of internet accessibility, facility to travel or get electricity
important for a doctor or a teacher working in the rural area instead of
neglecting it as high expectation of an urban middle class for a luxurious life
and asking them to adjust to the hardships until they complete their service.
It is necessary to realise that the sudden absence of comforts of city life may
not be easily digestible for an urban migrant and it is quiet natural to feel
discomfort about it. It is also very necessary for the local people to
understand the people from outside come from a very different experience and
they should support them in all the possible ways along with the government. If
there is a constructive attitude from both sections, the urban middle class may
show interest to serve the rural population and stay longer without
compulsions. It may sound compromising but a practical solution.
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