“ Journey from village to .....”
Have the elderly Prajapatis ( or in general , Gujaratis ) living outside India , ever thought of the days spent as youngsters in some villages in Gujarat , India ?
Going back down memory lane , one would undoubtedly visualise the varied experiences one has had and would like to relate those times with the present . The elderly surely feel that the present generation learn and appreciate the background from where their fore-fathers had come , the life style in those days and the struggles they had to go through .
Mahatma Gandhi ’ s famous quote at the start of the 20th century : “ The soul of India lives in villages ” tells the true feeling and value of an Indian wherever one is . As per the 2011 Indian census , of the population of 1,210,854,977 , 68.84 % of people ( about 833.1 million people ) lived in a variety of 640,867 villages of which 236,004 villages have a population of less than 500 while 3,976 villages have a population of more than 10,000 . So , what is the concept of a village ? How has it been formed ? Is it still there ? Has it changed ? If so , in what ways ? Why did we leave the villages ? So many questions arise . This article tries to look at some of these aspects and the journey made from our roots - the village .
India , being a vast country with the majority of its total population still living in the villages , has its society divided into two divisions - the rural society and the urban society . Villages have always been an integral part of the Indian society .
No specific timeframe is documented about the conception of villages in India . During the Vedic era the kingdoms comprised a major city and several villages . The villages were a cluster of houses and the surrounding land was cultivated by the villagers . They were administered in a structured way , through a Gram Sabha during the Maurya Dynasty during 323 BC primarily dominated by the Hindus , especially the Brahmans . However , during the reign of Muslim emperors like the Mughals or Afghans , the villagers were influenced by Islam . During the British period , the Christian religion brought its own influence . Thus , the social structure in the Indian villages changed accordingly with the change of administration , religious and cultural scenarios .
Concept of villages
• The village is a mass of human settlement . Where there are few houses and fewer people , it is called a “ Gamadu ”, while with comparative more population it is called a “ Gam ”. Basic necessities may or may not be available in a “ Gamadu ”, but having a few shopkeepers and artisans fulfil the basic necessities in a “ Gam ”. The population of the village is several hundred to several thousand
Reasons for settlement in villages
• Some of the common reasons : location of water sources ( spring , river , lake ), agriculture and farming ( fertile land ), landholding , on or close to major roads for easy transportation , close to major town or city , people who went to perform carpentry work or such tasks , liked the place and settled there
Some of the ideal features of a village have been
• Freedom from the hustle and bustle of a city life . It is peaceful , calm , quiet and full of greenery where one can breathe fresh air . People happily live in small huts or a home , made from clay or mud . Village houses are mostly built of bamboo with thatched roofs . Walls and floors of the village houses are painted by a mixture of dirt , grass , and cow dung . Before and after rain , these houses need maintenance
• Socially knit together , with evening gatherings where talking goes on till late in the night . Most of the people are farmers ; others work as potters , carpenters , blacksmiths . Bulls are used for farming and other activities . Women work planting the rice paddy , while the men work pulling bullock carts , tilling new soil etc
• Educational status of the people is not so good ; some of the villages even don ’ t have a school . River water , wells or hand pumps are the main source of water
• Life style of villagers is simple . They don ’ t dream for big houses , vehicles , money etc ; whatever they get that is enough to live their life happily
Are these ideal features still there ? introduced by successive of India by casting their votes
• Maybe in rare areas governments during general elections
• Changes have taken place with • They actively participate in the and participate in the local many development schemes democratic political system governance system vol . 41 | Prajapati Sandesh 2016 55