Impact of PMGSY Roads on Education: A Case Study on Dudu and Chaksu Blocks of Jaipur, Rajasthan

Abstract

Increased connectivity and accessibility provided by rural roads help in realising and developing the potential of a region. Rural roads are arteries through which benefits of development flow from one region to another. The level of accessibility determines the extent of development and quality of life. Realising the potential of rural road connectivity to transform our country into a developed nation, the Government of India formulated and implemented the nationwide road development programme in rural areas popularly known as Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) in 2000. The most visible and important impact of rural roads has been on education sector that helps in forming human capital of a region which in turn leads to its holistic development. The paper is an attempt to present the positive relationship between construction of rural roads under PMGSY and increase in educational facilities in Dudu and Chaksu blocks of Jaipur district. The access of education could be directly linked to the opening up of private school in the villages due to ease of access of the students from the nearby villages. Now, there has been a significant increase in the attendance of the students in the schools due to easier, safer and faster access. The attendance of the school teachers is also regularised; enrolment and attendance of female students have improved due to fewer dropouts, better delivery of education, better facilities and so on. Roads are certainly acting as a carrier of growth, prosperity and development to the villages. Potentials of various geospatial tools and techniques have been used for the integration of spatial and attribute data and understanding their characteristics for better management and analysis.