Nine am: 50 km from Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh, the government primary school in Aniruddhwa village is nothing but a picture of chaos. And that?s not unusual. Of the 126 children enrolled in the school, not even 40 have turned up. The principal of the school, Geeta Srivastava, asks a few children in her class to go and fetch other students from the village. Two women, appointed to cook the mid-day meal at the school, interrupt to tell her that the pradhan is not giving them the ration. ?How will we serve the meal at 10?? they ask. Ironically, at 10 am, a deluge of non-attendees descend on the school, defying the very idea with which the government introduced the mid-day meals?to prompt students to attend school.

However, on the whole, the scheme seems to be working, as literacy rate in rural India has increased from 57% in 1991 to 71% in 2001. As much as 99% of the rural population may have a primary school within one km, but 84% of India?s non-literates continue to be in rural India! Possibly a reason why last year the PM launched the Saakshar Bharat scheme, aiming at 80% adult literacy rate.

Literacy is a non-negotiable. More so, because it aids achievement of several other development goals, low infant mortality rate (IMR) for instance. Despite launch of the National Rural Health Mission in 2005, sample registration system data released by the Registrar General of India reveals the rural IMR for Madhya Pradesh is 75, Orissa 71, Uttar Pradesh 70 and Rajasthan 69. Only Kerala deserves the accolades for a rural IMR as low as 12 per 1,000. There?s a long way to go though. According to NFHS III, in rural areas, half of young children are stunted, almost half are underweight, and one out of every five is wasted. NRHM audit also points out that while contract workers have been engaged to fill vacancies and 6.16 lakh accredited social health activists (ASHAs) have been appointed, the shortfall of medical care providers needs effective attention. Moreover, in the 15 states surveyed by the NRHM audit, 11% of the PHCs were found to be functioning without a doctor.

Social indicators apart, little seems to have changed in terms of social values if one were to consider the regressive decree of the khap panchayats in recent times. Or the caste-based violence witnessed in Mirchpur village in Haryana. But at the same time, men in rural Haryana are travelling to Kerala to find brides. And, while female infanticide may still be a prevalent social evil, parents in Dharhara village in Bhagalpur district have started the ritual of planting at least 10 trees whenever a girl child is born. Nilambur village panchayat in Malappuram district has launched a matrimonial website for dowry-free marriages. And, 33% reservation for women in panchayats has also helped.

Sociologist Vandana Madan, who recently authored The Village in India, concurs that some parts of rural India have changed in some aspects. Deeply concerned with rural poverty, she hints at reports of children in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh eating mud to survive. Estimates suggest that 320 million people are still living below the poverty line in rural India. Though poverty has declined over the past three decades, the number of rural poor has increased due to the population growth. ?There are several other concerns, like Maoist insurgency and gender issues, that remain unanswered. Largely though, there?s been exposure to information and technology. People may not have food, but they have cellphones. Also, the breakdown of caste rigidities has created occupational fluidity.?

?The main change in rural areas is the migration of educated youth from village to town and migration of the landless poor. NREGA is also providing some relief,? says Prof MS Swaminathan, chairman, MS Swaminathan Research Foundation. As per estimates in NCAER?s latest report How India Earns Spends and Saves, about 45% of the country?s population will be residing in urban cities and towns by 2050, up from 30% now, nullifying the ?India lives in villages? concept. that means addition of 379 million people, or simply put, Bharat moving closer to India socially as well.