The Central Government, during the last five years (2014-19) has proposed a number of important welfare-cum-reform schemes. Demonetization, Mudra Loan and Jan-Dhan Yojna are important and comprehensive among them. It was decided to undertake a field study to appreciate the ground reality regarding these schemes. They were initiated to bring a dramatic change in the life of common people. The situation/implementation among the urban areas is easily covered and widely reported. Rural areas often get neglected. Hence it was decided to undertake field study in a rural area in Vidarbha, a backward region of Maharashtra, on the south- eastern side. The study was located in Chandrapur district. Four tahsils vis-à-vis Bramhapuri, Mul, Sindewahi, Saoli were selected. They are on the eastern side of Chandrapur district and on the border of Gadchiroli District. This is a forest covered, highly tribal and naxal affected area. It has near lowest per capita income and lowest human development index in the State.
Incidentally, Mul is ancestral home town of the present Chief Minister of the State and the present Finance Minister hails from Chandrapur and is the Guardian Minister of the District. The sample survey was conducted; supervised, data analyzed and the report drafted jointly by the R.S. Ruikar Institute of Labour and Socio-Cultural Studies, Nagpur and Elgar Pratishthan, Chitegaon, Tah. Mul, Dist. Chandrapur. Ms. Paromita Goswami founder of the Union Shramik Elgar, Dr. Gautam Kamble and Dr. G.S. Khwaja participated at various stages of the study. Shri. Amar Kadyam, Co-ordinator of Elgar Pratishthan silently bore the main brunt of supervising the field work. Thanks are due to the respondents, field surveyors, staff of Government departments and banks who made us understand the procedural intricacies. The All India Bank Employees Federation of India, Maharashtra Unit initially expressed the desire and financially helped the project. However, the responsibility for the facts stated and conclusions drawn is that of the directors of the two respective institutions only.
Dr. Shrinivas Khandewale
R.S.Ruikar Institute of Labour &
Chitegaon, Chandrapur Socio-Cultural Studies, Nagpur
Dr. Kalyan Kumar
Secretary
Elgar Pratisthan