The great Indian demographic pyramid has been sliced and diced in many ways by researchers and social pundits, off late the surge of consumerism has forced marketers and analysts to look at the magnanimity of what was once termed rural India. There is a growing emphasis on understanding the bottom end of the pyramid. Though data may create consumer segments for Bharat and new theories would emerge. While eager businesses are engaged in deep trenching, there is merit to observe and take a fresh approach to what most of us have surmised. “70% of India lives in her villages”. Yesterday’s approach seems to present the ever pressing need for more information, a better grasp, a bit more insight into Bharat.
To begin with, take a look at common man from Bharat, where the earnings are on a day to day basis, life moves from one day to the other. A pattern of everyday life, somewhere around the bread-line, we get drawn in by the paradox of debt and aspirations as it weaves the never-ending cycle of existence.
While micro-finance as a category is geared to create a mass movement of social change, it means addressing the very needs of those confronting the blurry line between happiness, responsibilities and earnings. Insurance and savings have made in-roads but have not yet grapsed that we are no longer agents with financial products for a distant dream, our role as a collective is to embark on a revolution that can captivate the imagination of all people in India.
Bharat has never been so ready to embark on a new beginning of the common man. Bharat today is soon becoming the cornerstone of financial independence of the individual. Bharat is morphing, it is shedding old skin for the new one and various clusters of individuals emerge:
The Repressed
The families that fall under this category account for 20% of india’s rural population. They have migrated from the villages to the cities in search of work and today have an average earning of under Rs. 1000 per month, this is a nuclear family residing spouse and kids, with almost no means to take care of the elders of the family. They have their own house which is kuchha or semi-pucca with one or two rooms and don’t have toilet or bathing facilities in-house. Some kids are able to fulfill primary schooling, while most of them drop-out to contribute to labour very early in life, with over 60% illiteracy this group is the lowest on ownership of products– even basic things like bicycle, fan and pressure cooker are out of their reach and means. Their lives being the most uncertain they try to find secure and stable means of earnings. They also are victims of circumstances between hopelessness and helplessness. They exist on the margins and can barely muster the minimum to survive a day at a time. This is an India that permeates our conscience but does not figure in our calculations.
The Reconciled
Here is an interesting group that seems to have accepted destiny and would never be able to see beyond it. MHI is between Rs. 1000 – Rs. 3000, unable to break away from the past, their inherited existence from the fore-fathers is the only reality. They account for an alarming 58%(33.5cr) of the rural population. They are mostly farmers or agricultural workers or unskilled labour, some have graduated to developing some skill or are into trade. Here too, like the former group the main unit of the family operates sans-elders. Majority of them have had primary education and some are fortunate to experience schooling in the middle years or have been assign to learn a technical skill. They are wary of life, worn down by the daily struggle and worried about the next unexpected event that will test their endurance. They are rooted in their village, as migrating to the city is not considered as an option. They own their houses, of which 50% have a home with one/two rooms with about 25% having third room with toilet or bathing facilities in-house. Average Ownership of basic products – bicycle (60%) & fan(40%). 30% also have a TV, though pressure cooker is low on the list of priorities. Given the current circumstances, they may send their sons to the nearby cities so as to better their own prospect in the future
The Resilient
This group is a mirror image of shining India, their hopes and aspirations add virbrancy to the great Indian dream. This is where the next revolution of India is brewing. Representing about 20% of the rural popln (11.4cr), they have acquired mid-level schooling (less than 9th std) or some high school education (30%).A third are farmers, a third are in service and the rest are skilled labour or into trade. Majority have their own pucca house with multiple rooms with about 25% having 5 or more rooms, 50% have toilet and bathing facilities in-house, 50% have nuclear families, some have nuclear family with elders and some are still bound by a joint family. Ownership of basic products is very high – 70% own a bicycle, a fan and 50% have a cooker. 60% also have a TV, 40% also have a LPG stove, 25% have a two-wheeler. With a monthly income between Rs.3000 – Rs.8000, they have taken many hard knocks and survived. They are pushing forward, migrating to urban areas in search of better opportunities for their children. Keen consumers, irregular savers and reluctant investors¾they want financial security and assured returns.
The Resurrected
The city migrant, they account for 2% of the rural population, they have had the opportunity to attend school at all levels, of which many have also been abe to go to college and become graduates. About 90% of them have a pucca house with multiple rooms , some houses are about 5 rooms big, with in house toilets and bathing areas. Large family size, under the patriarch symbolizes the strong family culture and deep roots in the village. There is enough affluence to purchase basic products. About 70% own a bicycle, fan and cooker. 80% also have a TV, 65% also have a LPG stove, 50% have an electric iron, 60% have a two-wheeler, 30% have a telephone, 35% have a refrigerator. The average monthly income is around Rs. 8,000. This group constitutes the Beneficiaries of the opportunities thrown up by the new economic order, they have been smart to monetize the land of their ancestors or become entrepreneurs. A subsidized higher education system has been the springboard of countless first generation success stories. A raised standard of living and an elevated social status, they are hungry for more. They leave their villages in pursuit of their dreams – move to their “city of dreams”, they are usually motivated by a friend or a relative who has migrated to the city and this slow but steady exodus to the big city is giving rise to the swelling migrant population in many metros. They begin their life on certain basics and slowly build a more secure base in the city as they go out and seek better opportunities for themselves. They are never deterred by failures; they are driven and are confident that they will make it thru the void and will be able to provide their children with opportunities to secure a better future.
Respect and Reassurance
Though the economic lens may paint rural India in vibrant hues, there is a need emerging to converge them as skill and living standards of these groups will be a major determinant of India’s future rate of economic growth. And growth begins inside the house and not outside. Driven by a myriad combinations of dreams and means armed with nothing but their own determination to overcome yesterday’s weakness, we may all pose ourselves a key question, how can we with our understanding of diverse economies, different life stages, with future gazing abilities, create value in this world where the realtiy and dreams seem to play hide and seek.
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