Rural Housing: House is one of the basic needs of every family. Provision of better housing facilities increases the. productivity of labour. The housing problem is getting aggravated due to rapid adoptation of-nuclear families: Housing does not mean provision of house alone but also proper water supply, good sanitation, proper disposal of sewage etc. The problem of housing can be tackled .by the development of low cost technology in house construction, provision of adequate housing finance and provision of land sites to landless workers in rural areas.
As per the NSSO data, 38 percent of the households lived in with one room while another 36 percent lived with two rooms.
Rural Market: Road Market refers to the infrastructure created to buy and sell the products produced in rural areas and also to purchase the needed products and farm inputs produced in urban and other regions. The rural marketing is still defective as farmers lack bargaining power, long chain of middlemen, lack of organisation, insufficient storage facilities, poor transport facilities, absence of grading, inadequate information and poor marketing arrangements.
Rural Roads: Road transport is an important constituent of the transport system. Rural roads constitute the very life line of rural economy. A well-constructed road network in rural area would bring several benefits including the linking of remote villages with urban centres, reduction in cost of transportation of agricultural inputs and promotion of marketing for rural produces. It helps the farmers to bring their produce to the urban markets and to have access to distant markets and other services.
Rural Electrification: Rural Electrification refers to providing electrical power to rural areas. The main aims of rural electrification are to provide electricity to agricultural operations and to enhance agricultural productivity, to increase cropped area, to promote rural industries and to lighting the villages. In order to improve this facility the supply of electricity is almost free for agricultural purpose in many states and the electricity tariff charged in rural areas is kept very low. In India 99.25% of villages were electrified at the end of March 2017. As on 31.03.2017, 100 percent electrification was achieved in villages of 20 States/UTs namely; Chandigarh, Delhi, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Daman & Diu, D & N Haveli, Goa, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Lakshadweep, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andaman & Nicobar Island, Sikkim . and Tripura.
The factors hindering the progress of rural electrification in India are:
(i) Lack of Funds: The generation and transmission of power involves huge expenditure and the fund allocation is low.
(ii) Inter-state Disputes: As there are inter-state disputes in managing power projects, power distribution is affected.
(iii) Uneven Terrain: As rural topography 18 uneven without proper connection, developing new lines are costlier and difficult.
(iv) High Transmission Loss: Transmission loss in power distribution is almost 25 percent in rural areas.
(v) Power Theft: Unauthorised use and diversion of power are evil practices adopted by affluent people that hinders the rural electrification process.

(i) The distribution of land is highly skewed in rural areas. Therefore, majority of rural people work as hired labour to support their families.
(ii) Lack of Non-farm Employment: Non-farm employment opportunities do not match the increasing labour force. The excess supply of labour in rural areas reduces the wages and increases the incidence of poverty.
(iii) Lack of Public Sector Investment: The root cause of rural poverty in our country is lack of public sector investment on human resource development.
(iv) Inflation: Steady increase in prices affects the purchasing power of the rural poor leading to rural poverty.
(v) Low Productivity: Low productivity of rural labour and farm activities is a cause as well as the effect of poverty.
(vi) Unequal Benefit of Growth: Major gains of economic development are enjoyed by the urban rich people leading to concentration of wealth. Due to defective economic structure and policies, gains of growth are not reaching the poor and the contributions of poor people are not accounted properly.
(vii) Low Rate of Economic Growth: The rate of growth of India is always below the target and it has benefited the rich. The poor are always denied of the benefits of the achieved growth and development of the country.
(viii) More Emphasis on Large Industries: Huge investment in large industries catering to the needs of middle and upper classes in urban areas are made in India. Such industries are capital-intensive and do not generate more employment opportunities. Therefore, poor are not in a position to get employed and to come out from the poverty in villages.
(ix) Social Evils: Social evils prevalent in the society like custom, believes etc. increase unproductive expenditure.

Rural Electrification:
(a) Rural Electrification refers to providing electrical power to rural areas. The main aims of rural electrification are to provide electricity to agricultural operations and to enhance agricultural productivity, to increase cropped area, to promote rural industries and to lighting the villages.
(b) In order to improve this facility the supply of electricity is almost free for agricultural purpose in many states and the electricity tariff charged in rural areas is kept very low.
(c) In India 99.25% of villages were electrified at the end of March 2017. As on 31.03.2017, 100 percent electrification was achieved in villages of 20 States/UTs namely. Chandigarh, Delhi, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Daman & Diu, D & N Haveli, Goa, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Lakshadweep, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andaman & Nicobar Island, Sikkim and Tripura.
The factors hindering the progress of rural electrification in India are:
(1) Lack of Funds: The generation and transmission of power involves huge expenditure and the fund allocation is low.
(2) Inter-state Disputes: As there are inter-state disputes in managing power projects, power distribution is affected.
(3) Uneven Terrain: As rural topography is uneven without proper connection, developing new lines are costlier and difficult.
(4) High Transmission Loss: Transmission loss in power distribution is almost 25 per cent in rural areas.
(5) Power Theft: Unauthorized use and diversion of power are evil practices adopted by affluent people that hinders the rural electrification process.

Rural Industries are based primarily on the utilization of locally available raw materials, skills and small amount of capital. The rural industries can be broadly classified into a) cottage industries, b) village industries, c) small industries, d) tiny industries, e) agro-based industries.
a) Cottage industries: cottage industries are generally associated with agriculture and provide both part-time and full-time jobs in rural areas.
b) Village Industries: Village industries are traditional in nature and depend on local raw material. They cater to the needs of local population. Examples of village industries are gur and khandsari, cane and bamboo basket, shoe making, pottery and leather tanning. These are almost similar to the cottage industries.
c) Tiny Industries: SSI's are also known as Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) on the basis of investment in plant and machinery in the case of manufacturing industries and on the basis of investment in equipment in the case of service sector industries.
d) Small scale Industries: Most small scale industries are located near urban centres. They produce goods for local as well as foreign markets. Examples of such small scale industries are manufacture of sports goods, soaps, electric fans, foot wear, sewing machines and handloom weaving.

i. People Related Problems
The problems related to individuals and their standard of living consist of illiteracy, lack of technical know how, low level of confidence, dependence on
ii. Infrastructural Related Problems:
Poor infrastructure facilities like, water, electricity, transport, educational institutions, communication, health, employment, storage facility, banking and insurance are found in rural areas.
iii. Economics related Problems:
The economic problems related to rural areas are: inability to adopt high cost technology, high cost of inputs, under privileged rural industries, low income, indebtedness and existence of inequality in land holdings and assets. In fertile areas, a few absentee landlords own large area and they do not evince greater Interest in improving the performance of agriculture.
iv. Leadership Related Problems:
The specific leadership related problems found in rural areas are: Leadership among the hands of inactive and incompetent people, self-interest of leaders, biased political will, less bargaining power and negation skills and dominance of political leaders.
v. Administrative Problems:
The rural administrative problems consist of political interference, lack of motivation and interest, low wages in villages, improper utilization of budget, and absence of monitoring and implementation of rural development programme.