Changing Way of Life and Development in Rural India

India is a developing country, whose society is primarily rural, but with a growing trend of urbanization. A total of 68.9% of Indian population lives in rural areas, where agriculture is the most important means of production and land, the most important form of property. India's traditional rural society was poverty stricken, caste based and orthodox when we got independence in 1947. But from there our villages have advanced economically, socio-culturally and technologically. Though agriculture is still the main occupation of Indian villages, the trend towards secondary, tertiary and quaternary activities has increased. Electricity, water, roads, health, and sanitation facilities have made rural life easier. Mechanization and modernization in agriculture has increased productivity and reduced labor hours. Modern man made equipment and products, mobile and internet etc have changed the lifestyle of villages to a great extent. But the regional variation in the accessibility of all these products is very high. Many villages in remote pockets of the country still lack basic facilities. While on one hand the facilities in villages have increased, on the other hand migration from villages to cities has also increased. The popularity of small cottage industries, handicrafts, folk arts, fairs and social events has decreased. The literacy rate of the country has increased significantly but with a high regional and gender disparity. During the Corona pandemic, laborers and other workers who had gone from villages to cities returned back to their villages and are now struggling for survival. The objective of this paper is to examine the changing way of life in rural areas of India using secondary data analysis of census reports, government publications, and development statistics. This paper highlights that the rural economy is gradually shifting from predominantly agrarian to a diversified economic structure including involving secondary, tertiary, and service sectors. This paper identifies that for rural development to be sustainable it has to be region-specific, participatory, and culturally responsive. The need is to strengthen Panchayati Raj institutions and means of local livelihoods which will reduce geographical inequalities, and preserve indigenous knowledge systems developing resilient rural communities in India.