Manual for Integrated District Planning - National Institute of Rural ...

Manual for Integrated District Planning
The 17 state governments concerned must increase their stake in border area
development through more investments in all sectors. Exposure visits and regular
exchange programmes would also help people of border areas to integrate with the
rest of the country. This is especially important in the case of the youth. 2
4.4 Hill areas
4.4.1 Mountain ranges and hill areas are critical to the nation’s climatic and ecological
stability. Their crucial importance in determining the climate and physiography
of the country determines their vital bearing on socio-economic development.
However, increasing population pressure has led to the abandonment of sustainable
and traditionally protective practices in the hills. New resource-intensive practices
have led to rapid and irreplaceable use of local resources. The need to conserve
fragile ecosystems of hill areas often conflicts with the need to improve infrastructure,
particularly of roads and power. As hill areas are relatively thinly populated, funding
is much lesser than required to preserve the fragile ecology. Participatory district
planning and additional funding would send a signal regarding special treatment
necessary for the people of the hills to meet their aspirations while they act responsibly
for conserving and preserving the hills for posterity. 3
4.5 Areas affected by militancy and insurgency
4.5.1 Good governance must lead to progressive decrease in social and economic
inequality and the development of all regardless of social or economic background.
However, we are a long way off from achieving these goals of good governance (See
Box 10). While equal status and dignity are accepted as basic human rights, in reality
there is widespread practice of social and economic discrimination and injustice and
atrocities against the weaker sections leading to disaffection on a large scale. The
Report of the Expert Group to the Planning Commission – “Development Challenges
in Extremist-Affected Areas” observes that “poverty does create deprivation but
other factors like denial of justice, human dignity, cause alienation resulting in the
conviction that relief can be had outside the system by breaking the current order
asunder”. 4
4.5.2 Areas affected by extremist movements in central India and the north-east
have low population density, concentration of tribal population, hilly topography
and undulating terrain. The failure to provide infrastructure and services as per
national norms is one of the many manifestations of poor governance in these
areas. Districts where the Naxalite movement is active are located in states which
have the worst social infrastructure in general, and SC and ST hamlets tend to
be excluded when locations for such social infrastructure are being decided.
Therefore, to remove this disparity, universalisation of basic services to standards
2 Based on the recommendations of Planning Commission (2007): Report of the Task Force on Comprehensive
Development of Border Areas.
3 Planning Commission (2008): Report of the Task Group on Problems of Hilly Habitations in Areas covered by the
Hill Areas Development Programme/Western Ghats Development Programme, page 56.
4 Planning Commission (2008): Development Challenges in Extremist Affected Areas: Report of An Expert Group to
Planning Commission.
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