India is one of the biggest countries in Asia, economically and politically. Its industrial power is one of the most important in the world : heavy products (iron, textiles), manufactured products, software...

The Indian movie industry is the most important in the world, far before Hollywood... This is a country of almost one billion people.

It is also a country of long history and rich culture, full of amazing landmarks and treasures.

Agriculture is only 30% of the GNP, but it employs more than 60% of the population. India is still essentially rural.

The agriculture is tightly dependant on the monsoon. During four months rain brings life to cultivated areas. The use of modern techniques has allowed to increase a high production rate and since 1972 India has achieved self-sufficience in food.

The peasants condition is still difficult. The increase in productivity has mostly benefited the landowners.

The land repartition is unbalanced : 20% of the people own more than 75% of the land.

Those who don't own any land are hired as daily workers and their income does not always allow them to survive : there is no field work during the dry season.

And when the rainy season brings water, it also increases the risk of disease propagation, and the level of hygien, already low, become worse.

A too violent monsoon floods the fields and wastes the harvests. Villages are flooded and houses are destroyed.

With no place to stay (they don't own the land where they have a house), many poor villagers who have lost everything try to find a job in big cities like Calcutta or Bombay.

This is far from easy and their fate is often tragic. Millions of people try desperately to survive in huge slums, almost nodoby succeeds.

A lucky few gather enough money to go back to their village. Most of them die of starvation, disease, inhuman work in sweat shops.

To help prevent this situation, the Center of Science for Villages invents techniques that help villagers to improve their living conditions.

There is a vast range of possibilities, from "how to build a mud house that resists the rain" to better organization of villages to generate some source of income.