What is IRDP (Integrated Rural Development Program)?

Every year, the Indian government introduces various welfare schemes and measures to alleviate poverty, ensure basic necessities for the underprivileged and fast-track socioeconomic progress in India. The Integrated Rural Development Program (IRDP) is one such scheme that the government implemented several decades ago. 

In this article, we’ll explain what the Integrated Rural Development Program is, explore its objectives and beneficiaries and find out more about the benefits of the IRDP. 

What Is the Integrated Rural Development Program (IRDP)?

The Integrated Rural Development Program is a welfare scheme introduced by the Indian government to help people living below the poverty line. The program was launched in 1978 and implemented by 1980. It aimed at providing job opportunities to the rural poor, offering subsidies to these individuals and helping them improve their overall quality of life. 

However, in 1999, the Integrated Rural Development Program was rebranded and grouped under the Swarnajayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana along with 5 other schemes. It has also been replaced with various other programs that have similar objectives. 

The Key Objectives of the Integrated Rural Development Program 

When the Integrated Rural Development Program was launched in the late 1970s, it had the following primary objectives: 

• To boost the living conditions among the rural poor by creating and providing long-term and sustainable employment opportunities
• To improve the agricultural produce and boost small-scale industries in rural areas

These objectives all aim to fulfil the primary purpose of giving those below the poverty line a reliable source of income, so they can improve their quality of life. To this end, the Indian government brought around 55 million people within the ambit of the Integrated Rural Development Program. 

The IRDP also had many other partner programs in place to improve the living conditions of the rural poor at an accelerated pace. They included:

• Ganga Kalyan Yojana (GKY)
• Development of Women and Children in Rural Areas (DWCRA)
• Million Wells Scheme (MWS)
• Training of Rural Youth for Self-Employment (TRYSEM)
• Supply of Improved Toolkits to Rural Artisans (SITRA)

Integrated Rural Development Program: Eligible Beneficiaries 

The primary beneficiaries targeted by the Integrated Rural Development Program included the following categories of people: 

• Labourers in rural areas
• Artists from India’s rural populations
• Farmers below the poverty line
• People belonging to scheduled castes and tribes
• People in low-income groups earning annual incomes below ₹11,000

Subsidies and Benefits Offered Under the IRDP

To improve the quality of life of the beneficiaries under the Integrated Rural Development Program, the government offered various benefits and subsidies. They included loans and credit facilities that were offered via collaborations with several financial institutions approved by the government. Primarily, these benefits aimed to extend financial assistance to the beneficiaries under the scheme. 

Such subsidies were distributed among eligible beneficiaries and target groups according to the following regulations:

• The first category of beneficiaries, who were small farmers, received a 25% subsidy from financial institutions. 
• The second category of beneficiaries comprised agricultural labourers, marginal farmers and craftsmen in the rural areas — who received subsidies of 33.50%.
• The third and final category of beneficiaries, who belonged to scheduled castes and tribes or were physically handicapped, were eligible for subsidies of 50%.

Additionally, guaranteed subsidies were available to different categories of beneficiaries, as outlined below:

• People belonging to scheduled castes and tribes: 50%
• Women: 40%
• Differently-abled individuals: 30%

A Closer Look at the Implementation of the IRDP

When the Integrated Rural Development Program was launched, a 5-year program aimed at rural development was created for each district under the scheme. Since the Integrated Rural Development Program applied to all the states, it aimed at consistent and uniform rural improvement. 

Although this was an initiative undertaken by the central government, the funding was provided by the centre and the state in a ratio of 50:50. Additionally, states received funding from the central government based on the population in their rural areas. By collaborating with various financial institutions like commercial banks, cooperative banks and rural banks, subsidies and financial benefits were offered to the beneficiaries of the Integrated Rural Development Program. 

Key Challenges in Implementing the Integrated Rural Development Program 

While the Integrated Rural Development Program was initially successful, there were several challenges along the way. Since it involved pan-Indian implementation, there were issues with interdepartmental coordination. Furthermore, the investment made per family on average was also not high enough, making it harder to achieve the goal of generating an income of at least ₹2,000 per family covered by the scheme. 

These issues, combined with a lack of skill and/or literacy among those managing various projects under the Integrated Rural Development Program, led to a revamping and rebranding in later years. 

Conclusion

While the Integrated Rural Development Program has been rebranded, there are several other ongoing welfare schemes introduced by the Indian government. If you know anybody who could benefit from these measures for the underprivileged, you can reach out to them and help them check their eligibility for such schemes. If they qualify, the benefits that the Indian government offers under such schemes can go a long way in uplifting such eligible individuals. 

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