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ROADS THAT CONNECT MORE THAN VILLAGES
Rural infrastructure can improve livelihoods, health and productivity, and reduce poverty. By reducing the time taken to reach places and making the commute easier, rural roads can help villagers access health facilities, make it easier for more children to attend schools regularly, and allow people to access better jobs further away from their villages. Better roads also help farmers tap into larger markets, where they can sell their produce at higher prices.
Rural roads also enable women to step out of their homes and enter the outside world.
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Government Program In 2000, the Government of India launched the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), or the Prime Minister’s Rural Roads Program, to systematically address the challenge of rural connectivity as part of its poverty reduction strategy. The program sought to provide all-weather road access to previously unconnected habitations with a population of more than 500 in plain areas, and population of more than 250 in desert, hilly and tribal areas.
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increased attendance of children and
The program aimed to bring all of India’s villages into the mainstream by: •
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teachers in schools;
Improving connections to markets, enabling farmers to get more favorable prices for their produce. This would raise their income, incentivize them to cultivate more intensively, pursue new agricultural activities and invest in new methods of cultivation;
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Reducing the time spent traveling to and from work or school, resulting in improvement in quality of life as well as
roads criss-crossing the length and breadth
Improving villagers’ access to timely treatment, especially in the event of accidents and acute sickness.
Thus far, PMGSY has connected more than 161,500 habitations with over 782,000 km of of the nation. The total cost of the project has been $45 billion.
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Apart from providing funding, PMGSY emphasized on use of best practices and innovative approaches at every stage: planning, design, procurement, construction, and maintenance. PMGSY is a flagship program of India and has been identified as one of the 50 big achievements of India since Independence as per a survey conducted by India Today magazine.
alleviating poverty, the World Bank partnered with the Government of India to support the PMGSY since its inception through a series a lending operations and technical assistance. Total Bank support of $2.1 billion was extended to select districts in the states of Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Meghalaya, Uttarakhand,
World Bank Support With the perspective that rural roads are critical towards improving rural livelihoods and
Punjab and Tripura between 2004 and 2020. The Bank has supported many innovations, best practices, and governmental changes in PMGSY.
We study in grade 12 at a higher secondary school in Bhidusi, Rajasthan. Our school is about 5 km away from our home. A group of 9-10 of us girls from my village cycle to school every day. It takes us about 15 minutes. We can go independently and don’t have to depend on anyone to take us.
Priya and Neha Saini Students, Mandha Majra village, Alwar, Rajasthan
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Common Guidelines Throughout the States While rural roads had been a government priority, India was not getting the full benefits of its investments in rural roads due to inefficient use of funds and other challenges such as use of outdated technologies, poor quality of infrastructure, lack of maintenance, and low capacity of rural road agencies. There was no national level consensus or coordination on rural roads. Under the PMGSY, rural roads were made a strong national focus and a common set of
operating procedures were developed in 2004 for the first time in the sector. These procedures were based on best practices and innovative approaches that addressed the challenges above. These included overall operations, technical design, quality control and accounting.
All procedures were mainstreamed and practiced by all states, leading to significant improvement in the delivery of rural roads both under PMGSY and state-level rural road programs. PMGSY adopted data-based investment decisions by establishing a core network
that defines optimal road connectivity of the habitations with nearby markets, agro centers, health centers, hospitals, educational institutions and other services. This approach brought objectivity and transparency to where the roads would be prioritized. It also maximized the benefits of the investments and replaced ad hoc-ism.
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National Rural Roads Program (PMGSY) Built over
782,000 km all-weather roads in India Connected more than
161,500
habitations
At a total cost of
$45 billion
Between 2004 and 2020 the World Bank supported the program with
$2.1 billion,
48,000 km of village roads in nine states and directly benefitting almost 19,000 habitations. building more than
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Improved Maintenance and Asset Management It is not just the construction of the road but its continued existence in good condition that reduces poverty. It takes 10-15 years for a road to make a real difference. Considering this, PMGSY equally emphasizes on maintenance of rural roads – one of the key sector issues. All PMGSY contracts have an inbuilt fiveyear maintenance. In addition, all states are required to fund maintenance of PMGSY roads to sustain the benefits arising from improved connectivity. Innovative performance-based maintenance contracts were introduced for the rural
road core network in six states, including those involving local communities and micro-enterprise contractors. Uttarakhand successfully introduced pilots using women self-help groups. All these contribute to improved management of rural roads in India going beyond the PMSGY. A large amount of investment has been made on rural roads in the country and to keep them in serviceable condition is a huge challenge. About $20 billion losses in asset value are potentially incurred annually due to high vehicle operating costs. These can be minimized by good maintenance and use of modern asset management practices.
Most states established road maintenance policies to address this, and some have begun to establish asset management frameworks emphasizing on moving away from a construction focus to deliver an efficient and good quality network to the rural population at least cost in the long run.
finances, and progress in construction. All information related to the release of funds and their utilization, status of progress of work and quality monitoring reports is available to citizens in the public domain. This ensures greater transparency and use of same and realtime information at all levels -- national, state, and district.
Use of Technology
OMMAS allows managers to better plan
PMGSY uses a web-based centralized database, the Online Management, Monitoring, and Accounting System (OMMAS), which provides detailed information on all
and implement their work, while ensuring
PMGSY projects, their procurement status,
disaggregated manner.
compliance with the World Bank’s safeguard standards. It also enables the collection of crucial data on vulnerable populations in a
I work at a factory in Jamshedpur about 25 km away. Earlier I used to cycle to the factory every day. It was a long journey and my wife had to wake up at 3 am to make my meal. I used to leave home around 4.30-5 am to start my shift by 6 am. Since this road has been built, I have bought a motorbike and traveling is more convenient. There are others in my village who take public transport, which also is easily available. Earlier most people in my village used to work in farms, now some 20-25 of them are daily workers at factories.
Ganesh Chandra Mahato Daily worker, Bada Banki village, Jharkhand
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An e-governance solution, called eMARG, was developed to strengthen the maintenance monitoring system of rural roads constructed under PMGSY.
Quality Control
Procurement
Quality control was limited at the program
The rapid increase in the size of the program was not matched by an increase in the supply of qualified contractors. To make the procurement process more transparent, PMGSY uses an e-procurement system and a procurement and contract management manual for a streamlined and uniform approach. This has significantly reduced the time taken for bid evaluation. It has also enabled procurement of works to be carried out in a fair and just manner, ensuring better value for money and more reasonable contract prices.
implementation unit level and through a quality control wing in states. PMGSY built capacity for a more formalized and
The “Meri Sadak” app, introduced under the program, empowers citizens to lodge complaints on construction quality and road condition of PMGSY roads.
transparent three-tiered system structure for quality monitoring. This has brought in standardization and accountability, streamlined the construction process and improved the quality of the roads built and upgraded. A quality assurance handbook developed under the program is one of the good practices instituted by the program.
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People’s Participation One of the project’s most important innovations is the promotion of people’s participation at
Interestingly, more women volunteered for citizen monitoring as they were among those who benefitted the most from road construction.
every stage of road construction, from planning to monitoring and audit. A ‘Transect Walk’ approach was introduced
A citizen information handbook developed under the program arms citizens with information on various aspects of the program.
where local community representatives were consulted to identify where a road should be built in their area. This unique feature brings transparency into the process of planning and construction and promotes the inclusion of those affected by the project. Land for construction of the roads has mostly been donated voluntarily by the villagers.
Environmental Protection Many existing natural hazards are likely to intensify in the near future, and others may arise due to climate change impacts. Reducing damage to the natural habitat during new construction is a priority for the program.
The program developed an environmental protection code, integrating environmental aspects into the rural roads sector for the first time. Special emphasis was given to water management, slope stability and erosion control, waste management, drainage, and tree plantation during the construction of the roads. Using GIS mapping for environmental screening, PMGSY not only focuses on protection of habitats around roads in declared national parks and sanctuaries, but also on safeguards for endangered flora and fauna in non-protected areas.
Pregnant women or old people had to be taken on cots or on camel carts to the nearby hospital. Now we can just call the hospital and an ambulance comes right over. More and more women are delivering babies at hospitals. Health workers are able to visit on time to vaccinate children. Our village is moving forward because of the road and there’s no looking back.
Bhaguri Devi Health worker, Bhagwaa village, Sikar district, Rajasthan
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Use of Green and Climate-Resilient Designs and New Technologies With the aim to ensure that roads are built with sustainable and recycled materials, the Ministry of Rural Development made a policy decision to construct at least 15 percent
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of PMGSY roads using new technologies. Introduction of climate resilient and environmentally optimized designs using local and marginal materials and industrial by-products will bring environmental benefits, and are likely to provide savings of about 25 percent in unit costs.
About 51,198 km of roads so far have been constructed using climate resilient, new technologies and nature-based solutions such as coir, jute, waste plastic and other alternative materials. These pilot initiatives are slowly finding their way into mainstream rural road construction.
Road Safety Road safety has been an important component
existing rural roads. Training material on road safety is also being prepared for rural road engineers.
at both construction and operational phases. The program helped recognize the importance of road safety on rural roads by incorporating road safety engineering measures in the design. A roads safety manual was issued for the use of rural road engineers. Bihar has developed a road safety action plan for rural roads which will serve as a template for other states. In addition, a field guide for road safety inspections has been prepared to retrofit road safety engineering measures in
Training and Capacity Building PMGSY has established a comprehensive training framework to empower road agencies and the construction industry to use latest technologies, international knowledge, and best practice examples for rural roads. Some 40,000 field officers have been trained so far and several have attended international study tours. This has made a big difference in the delivery of PMGSY in its early states.
Project personnel are especially sensitized on including women and those from marginalized and vulnerable communities, and also on complying with social and environmental safeguards, ensuring road safety, and redressing grievances, and on the special measures needed for constructing roads in ecologically sensitive areas. Training on environmental, resettlement, and social issues has helped in changing the outlook of people working on the program. The program has laid special emphasis on providing training to women engineers and contractors.
I have a banana plantation. Earlier we used to carry the banana harvest on our heads to sell about 15 km away at Darangiri market, which is the largest banana market in Asia. We would carry 4-5 bundles of bananas on our heads. Now, a van comes to pick up the produce and I am able to sell 100-300 bundles at a time. I now earn about Rs 2000 in a week.
Panseng Banana farmer, Rangsa village, Meghalaya
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Impact on Health, Education, and Women and Girls The arid landscape of Rajasthan has led to high rates of unemployment and more people living in extreme poverty. The desert state has also traditionally had low levels of literacy, especially among girls and women. With the construction of roads in the state, many important facilities like schools and colleges, health care facilities, markets, administrative offices and other important
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establishments have become accessible. Roads have also led to an increase in employment among villagers. Anita Saini teaches science at the secondary school at Baggad, 5 km from her home in Kayasthpura. Wearing a peach silk saree on the occasion of Karvachauth (when married women fast for their husband’s long lives), Anita puts sindoor in her hair and dons a helmet. Travelling to school every morning on her scooty which she bought a year ago, Anita has come a long way from the time when she
had to cover her face in front of men and stay at home. She beams with pride when she says that she now contributes financially towards her family’s needs and feels that she is as capable as anyone else. Girls had to travel almost two hours on dirt tracks that would fill up with water in the rains to reach schools even five kms away, says Akansha who studies in Grade 12. As a result, hardly any girls from her village of Mandha Majra near Alwar went to school. Now, a road comes right up to her village, enabling
Akansha to cycle to school in just 15 minutes
the health center 10 km away. Not surprisingly,
Young children in connected habitations are
every morning. She goes with other girls in
lives were often lost on the way. Now an
also less likely to fall sick and vaccination drives
groups of 9-10, and says she feels safe and
ambulance can be called through a mobile
are more frequent.
independent.
phone – which is also commonplace among the villagers – enabling the sick and the infirm to
The proud mother of two grown sons, both of
In Bhagwa village, Rajasthan, anganwadi worker
reach a health facility quickly and easily. Most
who study in Baggad town nearby, Bhagudi
Bhagudi Devi remembers how pregnant
women now deliver their babies in hospitals,
herself is finishing her education and taking
women or sick people had to be carried on
and healthcare workers can visit easily to
the Grade 10 board exam. Taking care of
makeshift beds held aloft on shoulders, or
provide pre- and post-natal care, and immunize
pre-school children at the village anganwadi
hoisted onto camel carts, taking hours to reach
the children.
center, she talks about how the road to her
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village that was built some years ago has brought progress and promise. “Our village is now moving forward; there is no looking back.”
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Impact on Livelihood
For young school-going children, the school bus comes right till their doorstep. And mid-day meals are delivered easily to the pre-schoolers.
Roads have led to more people working in the non-farm sector. Most workers who switched to non-farm employment are men, while women have stepped in to take care of the farm after road connectivity was improved.
source of income, could be erratic and unreliable. Better road connectivity has created new opportunities for direct and indirect employment, adding to the income of the households. Several young men now work as daily laborers in factories in Jamshedpur 60 kms away.
Women can now walk easily in groups, or even alone, to the nearby Shakumbari Mata temple. The temple gets more than 3 lakh visitors each year, according to villagers.
In the low-income state of Jharkhand, villagers near the industrial town of Jamshedpur had limited options for livelihood. Agriculture, which was the main
Kartik Mohato leaves at 7 in the morning for the factory on his motorcycle that he bought a year ago. He works at the Tisco factory and earns about Rs 350 a day. Earlier he says he
used to travel by cycle. The journey not only took longer, it was also difficult, as the dirt road would fill up with water during the rains. “There used to be so much slush outside my house, I had to carry my cycle on my shoulders,” he remembers. Roads have reduced travel times, brought down the cost of commute, and made life easier for villagers. Rajinder Kumar from Mandha Majra village in Rajasthan remembers how till some years ago men had to carry several quintals of food on their heads whenever there was a wedding in
their area. Walking on tracks that had up to 3 inches of sand was nearly impossible, he recalls.
In Rajasthan’s smaller towns, more and more people now own motorcycles and pickup vans, and have constructed brick houses
Roads have improved connections to the markets and influenced the agricultural activities in a very significant manner. In Meghalaya’s East Garo Hills, the PMGSY road now connects Rongsa village to Darangiri, Asia’s largest banana market, 10 km away. Pick-up trucks come up till the village to take the local produce of banana, cashewnut, betelenut, rice and broomsticks. Better access to markets has resulted in better prices. The villages of Meghalaya now boast of football fields in every corner, and children can go to school conveniently. Teacher-absenteeism is also a thing of the past as roads make schools
with toilet facilities.
more accessible.
Access as well as connectivity has improved since the road outside his village has become motorable. Taking up employment opportunities even 50 km away is not an issue any more. Young men easily travel to the nearby industrial town of Bhiwadi, even for evening shifts, Rajinder says.
Since the road has come up, I now feel independent. I have been teaching since 2009 and go to school on my scooty. I don’t have to depend on anyone to take me. Earlier one had to take a longer route as the dirt road was unusable and unsafe, especially for women. There are lots of women from my village now who are teachers or nurses and they are balancing both work and home.
Anita Saini School teacher, Kayasthpura village, Jhunjhunu district, Rajasthan
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In Meghalaya, life for Teje Marak, a farmer, the West Garo Hills area, had to carry sacks of produce on their heads or shoulders and walk for hours to reach the nearest markets.
village to bigger towns of Tura and Garobadha. Earning between Rs 500 and 700 daily, Teje has benefitted greatly from the construction of road that is primarily used by commuters to reach the main road it connects.
Teje now runs a small tea and confectionery shop on the road that was built connecting her
There are numerous such stories of the impact that these roads have had on people’s
was tough. She, along with other farmers in
lives over the past decade. These roads are not only taking villagers to their destinations every day, but also making them feel part of India’s development story.
I started my cycle shop in 2000 while I was still studying. Ever since this road has been built, it has been great for business. Today, I am hosting a naming ceremony for my six-month-old son and I have called everyone from the village to celebrate. Every one is welcome to a feast and to bless my son. I hope that he does even better than me when he grows up.
Ganesh Mahato Cycle shop owner, Bada Banki village, Jharkhand
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