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International Development and Studies

Sustainable Rural Development: The Role of Digital Governance and Grassroots Participation Debarashmi Mitra*, Debarashmi Mitra,

National governments in the global south have recently prioritized building digital infrastructure to enhance public services and foster greater citizen participation in governance. This initiative, exemplified by countries like India, aligns with their commitment to achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) within the next five years. In line with the SDGs, India’s progress in poverty reduction (SDG 1), is promising. However, it falls short of the global average in achieving several SDGs, particularly gender equality (SDG 5). These disparities persist at the state level due to uneven development, rural-urban gaps, inadequate infrastructure, and varying adoption rates of e-platforms. India has recently integrated the SDGs with technological interventions and local development plans implemented by the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) in rural areas. In this context, this paper explores grassroots participation in local self-government as a means of sustainable rural development. Specifically, I examine the role of digital governance and PRIs in India as local self-government systems. While the national government has successfully implemented several e-platforms to improve public service and address development challenges in rural areas, it is vital to engage community-level organizations and PRIs as equal partners in identifying needs, designing, and implementing development initiatives. Examining case studies of public-private-NGO partnerships, I argue that mobilizing grassroots participation is a strategic tool to achieve inclusive progress and sustainable rural development. Furthermore, local self-government systems boost participation from marginalized and rural citizens promoting sustainable rural development in an era of digital governance.