People's Participation in Developmental Programmes

Development is the main concern of all the countries in the world and it is a complex process which leads to an increase in the Gross National Product (GNP), higher percapita income, better standards of living, greater employment level, reduction in poverty and improvement in the quality of life. ¿Development means different things to different people and countries¿¿ In the Indian context, it means both growth and accumulation of wealth and also equitable access to the basic services¿1. Hence, the process of development has to fulfil the twin objectives of growth in output and income as well as the equitable distribution of income and wealth among different sections of people, particularly the poor. The ultimate objective of development is to reduce poverty in both rural and urban areas by providing wider opportunities to the people at large and the downtrodden in particular. This calls for a philosophy and action programme in which the people to whom these programmes are meant for, take active part in their formulation, execution and evaluation.