ABOUT DRDA

District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) has traditionally been the principal organ at the District level to oversee the implementation of the anti-poverty programmes of the Ministry of Rural Development. Created originally for implementation of Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP), the DRDAs were subsequently entrusted with a number of programmes, both of the Central and State Governments. Since inception, the administrative costs of the DRDA (District Rural Development Agency) were met by setting aside a part of the allocations for each programme. Of late, the number of programmes had increased and several programmes have been restructured with a view to making them more effective. While an indicative staffing structure was provided to the DRDAs, experience showed that there was no uniformity in the staffing structure. It is in this context that a new centrally sponsored scheme - DRDA Administration - has been introduced from 1st April, 1999 based on the recommendations of an inter-ministerial committee known as Shankar Committee. The new scheme replaces the earlier practice of allocating percentage of programme funds to the administrative costs.

Objective:
The objective of the scheme of DRDA (District Rural Development Agency) Administration is to strengthen the DRDAs and to make them more professional and effective. Under the scheme, DRDA is visualised as specialised agency capable of managing anti-poverty programmes of the Ministry on the one hand and effectively relate these to the overall efforts of poverty eradication in the district on the other.

Funding:
The funding pattern of the programme will be in the ratio of 75:25 between the Centre and the States.

Strategy:
The DRDA will continue to watch over and ensure effective utilisation of the funds intended for anti-poverty programmes. It will need to develop distinctive capabilities for poverty eradication. It will perform tasks which are different from Panchayati Raj Institutions and line departments. The DRDAs would deal only with the anti-poverty programmes of the Ministry of Rural Development. If DRDAs are to be entrusted with programmes of other Ministries or those of the State Governments, it must be ensured that these have a definite anti-poverty focus. In respect of such States where DRDA does not have a separate identity and separate accounts.

The functions of the Agency are as specified under:-

•  To identify and assist the rural poor who come from economically backward target groups i.e. small and marginal farmers, landless labourers, marginal fishermen, rural unemployed youth and rural artisans.

•  To study the problems of the target groups and formulate schemes taking into account their economic conditions.

•  To boost up their economic status in order to bring them above the poverty line.

•  To provide wage employment to rural poor, during off farm season and to provide durable community assets.

•  To train the unemployed youth and unskilled artisans and provide them gainful employment.

•  To promote rural artisans and provide infrastructure support. 

•  Eradicating poverty in rural areas.

•  Empower grass root level people's organizations

•  Mobilize self-help groups of poor women

•  Co-ordinating voluntary efforts in poverty eradication

•  Ameliorate deterioration of natural resources and enable common property resource management by stakeholders.

•  Developing skills in rural communities to handle self-employment programmes and micro-enterprises.

•  Enabling technology to be accessible to rural areas

•  Narrowing down gap between urban-rural Sectors and achieve a urban-rural continue

The District Rural Development Agencies (DRDAs) help the Rural Development Department in implementation, monitoring and evaluation of various Rural Development Programmes at district level. These DRDAs are registered societies under the Registration of Societies Act.