Lessons of Participatory Communication in Writings of Mahatma Gandhi
Abstract
India in its 72nd year of independence has achieved many milestones in fields of science and technology, defence, economic progress, etc. But if there is one issue that downgrades the nation’s image as a growing power, it is the sad state of human development of Indians living in villages. Clearly there have been gross inadequacies at structural and policy levels, including basic approach to handling human development challenges. This objective of this paper is to highlight the similarities between contemporary literature on participatory communication and publications by M. K. Gandhi on Indian rural development. Qualitative research methodology comprising of content analysis and comparative analysis of both sets of literature is used. The paper also recommends a simple model of applying the concept of participatory communication in present day rural development projects in India as an extension of the ‘Gram Swarajya’ idea propounded by Gandhi. By involving people in their own development, the pace and efficiency of rural development can be increased significantly.
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