Thursday, December 23, 2010

A Modern Indian Miracle?

So, here is a little quiz for all of you:



What Indian Entity (village, city, district) has the highest GDP in the country?


Nope, it is not a city.

These honors are claimed by a small village in the state of Maharashtra. Its name is Hivre Bazar. It has won a number of awards for bringing about the little changes needed to transform itself into some kind of ideal village. Back in the day, such honors were claimed by another place named Ralegan Shiddi.

The village has a very good website [http://hiware-bazar.epanchayat.in] (hosted in India) which has a wealth of information, if you are interested.

This goes to show that non-participation of governments and spontaneous participation of us, the people, can create miracles in public lives, both rural or urban. Any researcher and worker who has worked in these areas that concern masses should visit this place. I hope to make a trip to Hivre Bazar soon ...