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Missing Government attention and uncreative education system
are worsening rural employment opportunities to drive villagers to migrate to urban cities. Literate, semi-literate and illiterate all rush to cities in
search of better opportunities. (As per World Bank figures: Almost 180,000 people are added to the urban population each day and It is estimated that there are almost a billion poor people in the world, of this over 750 million live in urban
areas without adequate shelter and basic services. 1/3 of people in developing countries living in cities, live in slum/squatter
settlements). Migrating rural labor force creating shortage to enhance labor cost. In addition, Minimum wage regulations and
loss making sector entice farmers to sell off their lands to industrial and housing business owners.
Long back one of my family friends living in Kerala, had 5
acres of agricultural land known as “Punja paadam” for rice cultivation. He had 2 kids studying in primary school
in same village. Both Father and mother had a dream; wanted their son to become engineer and daughter an administrative officer
in Government. This family did not want their children to remain in agriculture; bearing in mind, will spoil life of children.
Comfortable life of Government administrative officer and engineer lured them to dream children taking up these jobs. As per
them agriculture profession is indecent and had no status symbol. Absence of researched based agricultural and rural education
to improve agriculture and related business failed to attract their mind. On the other hand modern urbanized education linking
to administrative officer, doctors, engineers and so on; luring each family in India and other countries. Undermining agriculture
and associated profession, modern urban education system has extensively infected peasant culture.
Since long time Kerala has been known as major producer of
rice, pepper and spices, exported to Indian and overseas market. But recently, Kerala has become consumer state and imports
from neighboring states to feed its population. Unfortunately plague of Kerala is “Trade union regime” the union
in this state is hazardous for economic growth. Frightening threat from trade unions to prevent agricultural machines and
demand exorbitant wages force farmers to suffer losses. Besides this issue, present nuclear family system is converting many
agricultural lands to houses. With 32 million inhabitants for 38, 863 sq km area of Kerala is one of the densest States in
the country. Small area for dense population is soaring demand of housing and shopping complexes. Smooth flowing money from
overseas workers has appreciated 10-20 times agricultural land price. Farmers get more money selling their land than cultivating
it. To my opinion, nearly 40% of agricultural land is getting converted to residential houses or commercial complexes.
This state has achieved over 95% literacy but failing to generate
employment opportunities led youths to migrate to urban cities and other countries. Nearly one or more members of 60% of families
have migrated to earn. Of them 40-50% are youth working in other parts of India, Emirates, Europe and America. This is all
because the kind of education they had was not suitable to their cultural and rural activities. Karala’s arable land
has vast scope of job openings provided efficient research is carried to explore utilities. For an example, if culture of
Kerala was to produce spices, minerals, medicinal plants, tourism and so on with value addition, i.e. introduction of profession
methods to pack final and finished products and services would have opened job opportunities. Other parts of India too experiencing
same situation many villages are empty, people migrating to urban cities in search of jobs. Most of them settle down in urban
cities.
I remember some 45 years ago each rural house had small agricultural
land, traditional art, practices and culture, domestic animals like cow, sheep, goat, pigs, hen, and etc; they were very helpful
to individual income source. Each individual was engaged in own traditional practice and busy with entrusted task. Lacking
rural planning and following western industrialization has shaped excessive urbanization in developing countries. Green lands
are shrinking and urban lands are growing. More Greenland means more opportunities to rural sectors, provided we develop school
education or research to extract values of greenery and forest. Nature is energy thus getting energy from natural source is
easier than nuclear based energy generation. Nothing is waste in nature the education should be for how to convert waste to
energy. For example, four decades ago villagers used cow/ buffalos dung as cocking fuel and domestic animal urine and decomposed
plants as chemical or pesticide for the crops. The science then too understood values without disturbing nature, but could
not evolve to masses. Modern science and education can evolve to masses by setting up energy units, reaching raw material
through village houses and agricultural lands. Each one has the role, capitalist to invest, villagers to run the show, Governments
to maintain regulations and modern educated class to optimize evolution. This system is called socio-capitalism a new society
with minimized rich - poor gap, thus each individual is involved and gets reward. Similarly there are many resources yet to
be explored such as add on valued food and agricultural products,
Grass has high chemical value and protein and so on. Education in schools should be developed in such way that each student
work on to understand value of nature.
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