WHAT IS THE VILLAGE
J.C. Kumarappa
During the debate on the draft constitution Dr. Ambedkar's reply to this question was "a sink of localism and a den of ignorance, narrow-mindedness and communalism." Partially, of course, this may be true, just as the question "What is Gandhiji?" the answer "He is dust and ashes strewn in innumerable rivers" may be! But is this the whole truth? Or does it even represent a substantial part of it? In fact, from a certain valuation of life and living we may hold these answers to be bare misrepresentations.
The village used to be an economic unit and the real producer of wealth by man's cooperation with Nature. By our mad rush for everything Western we have interfered with the composition of this unit which has affected its nature and productive capacity.
The whole of a nation's culture derives its inspiration from village life. India today is what she is because of our neglect of our villages. We cannot blame the villages for our shortcomings. We can only make amends for the past by turning our attention to villages.
As long as the villages are left in the unenviable conditions we find them in today, there can be no hope for our country as our foundations will remain rotten. The village is the unitary organism of the body politic and its state of health will affect the whole nation. It is the training ground of our future statesmen. It is the hand that feeds the nation economically. If it is to make its valuable contribution to the rebuilding of our nation, it must be restored to its pristine glory and function. It must remain an integral unit of our political, economic and social life.
(Harijan, Dec. 5, 1948)