On the road to Mt Abu

As we pass through numerous small villages it is most interesting to observe the lifestyles of people in these remote areas.  Many people in such areas live very close to the land and work tirelessly to provide food and water for themselves and their families.  Many of these villages have communal, manually operated water wells, suggesting that households do not have individual water supplies.  Many women work  the land sewing crops and building shelters from stone and brick.  The aforementioned examples illustrate not only the level of poverty here but also the adaptability, resourcefulness and resilience of these people and their ability to adapt to their primitive surroundings.

Mobile Phones in India

The most interesting phenomenon is the penetration of mobile telephones  in India.  Regardless of class and physical location, the majority of those observed during our road journeys own mobile telephones and despite their primitive living conditions, mobile companies have erected advertising billboards in many of the remotest parts of India.  Indeed, research suggests that India has the second largest penetration of mobile phones in the world (second to China) and the question that comes to mind is why mobile telephones are so crucial to those living in such remote areas?  The obvious answer, of course, is to remain connected to friends and family, but perhaps there are additional motivations for such a huge embrace of these mobile technologies.  Emotional support, elevated status amongst peers or perhaps the impact of such widespread advertising?  No doubt there is a plethora of academic research on the topic surrounding the widespread embrace of mobile phones, but it would be interesting to discover what motivates these individuals who live in such remote areas.

On the way to Mt. Abu

Mt. Abu Road