December 15, 2009, New Delhi: The government has been implementing various schemes for the development of rural areas and to bridge the gap between rural and urban areas. These schemes include Swarnjayanti Gram Swarojgar Yojana (SGSY) for self-employment opportunities, National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme for providing wage employment, Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) for providing good roads to the unconnected habitations and Indira Awaas Yojana (IAY) for constructing dwelling units and upgradation of existing unserviceable kutcha houses.

In addition to this, a scheme namely Provision of Urban Amenities in Rural Areas (PURA) was also implemented on a pilot basis during the 10^th Five Year Plan. The objective of the scheme was to provide livelihood opportunities as well as urban amenities in rural areas, thereby bridging the rural-urban gap. Shri Pradeep Kumar Jain Aditya, the minister of state in the Ministry of Rural Development, informed the Rajya Sabha that the government is currently considering the restructured PURA scheme, based on the experience of pilot projects, inputs received from other ministries/departments and other sources.

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