When leaders are asked to give an example of a nation that has optimally utilised its youth to contribute towards the general growth, one often looks towards India as a shining ray of hope. Certainly, the top positions in globally-acclaimed organisations are held by Indians of various cast and creed.

Yet, the reality is quite different; the youth of the nation is in the grips of unemployment. What is even surprising to know that this has seeped into the rural section, laying bare the gross inadequacies of the agricultural segment, at large.

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Unemployment is also a rural issue: India essentially is a rural nation, where agriculture, horticulture, handicrafts, fisheries, poultry, and dairy are the major contributors to the rural economy. Yet, the contribution of agriculture has been dwindling, creating a space for inequalities.

Here, unemployment is mainly due to the shortage of capital, the poor exploitation of natural resources and inadequate employment opportunities.

The main issue lies in the character of the job as agriculture is dependent upon the benevolence of nature. It is the rain that makes the sector thrive and unfortunately, India has rains that last for only 3-4 months. In addition, it is a labour intensive job, whereas, in the present era, no one prefers to toil throughout the year. Naturally, there has been a major shift in dependency on agriculture as their main source of income. It is constantly reducing owing to problems like price fluctuations, drought, flood, pest and disease outbreak etc which brings uncertainty in income.

Sector with full of opportunities: The segment has a great potentialityrural economy contributes to 50 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product, also accounting for 50 per cent of the workforce. About 75 per cent of new factories built in the past three decades have come up in rural areas, which accounts for 75 per cent of all new manufacturing jobs. Since 2000, per capita GDP has grown at 6.2 per cent a year in rural India compared with 4.2 per cent in urban areas. The main onus is to draw the youth, which forms a large chunk of the unemployed segments.

How rural management helps: The course is positioned to cater to the needs of a rapidly transforming India where developmental challenges are not limited to rural areas; indeed, the rural-urban continuum has made it virtually impossible to speak of rural or urban spaces in isolation. This programme aims at preparing professionals for a challenging occupation in the public, private sectors, NGOs, and national and multinational organisations that are committed to erasing rural-urban inequities by promoting “rurban” infrastructure and amenities that emphasise a growing confluence of cities and the countryside The skill-set students acquire at end of the Rural Management course

• Develops a strong conceptual and analytical framework on rural development issues in the students. It also gives appropriate attitudes that are required for a professional rural manager
• Students can work in rural enterprises in the form of policymakers, managers, analysts, and consultants advising on operational and programme efficiency.
• The programme develops appropriate attitudes and value required of a professional for becoming a rural manager and to meet the increasing demands of national and international development organisations.
• Willingness to work in rural areas as it requires resilience, perseverance, emotional, social intelligence and courage of conviction.

The top positions/careers in rural management: The rural landscape provides a wide space for fulfilling expansion interests of established competitors as well as for new entrepreneurs looking for a strong footing. With 67 per cent of companies across the board wanting to expand in rural areas, experts who understand the pulse of rural economy are high in demand.

Career opportunities: The course provides diversified portfolios and fields as employment opportunities for a candidate to find their true calling. These include positions of manager or general manager in rural banking, rural programme or business manager, rural project consultant, project manager, product manager, business development manager, and in domains of rural operations, logistics, finance, textile and so on.

Basic salary expectations: MBA in Rural Management graduates can expect a package of Rs 4 lakh per annum and above which can go way past 10 lakhs, depending upon the performance of the candidate.