Teamwork gives good results in comparison to individual effort. India is a country of villages and there is no possibility of development without strengthening the villages. The proverb, �A chain is as strong as its weakest link� is true in this case.

Participation has different meanings. It means bringing people into action to achieve goals set by the people or from the top. It also means empowerment of people to work towards achievements of goals of developments. It also means concretisation of masses for social, economic and political development. People’s participation has been the ideological basis for a democratic society. Participation and participatory communication are integral part of development of democratic society.


In the past many programmes like adult education, community development, basic education, social education programmes in India and all over the world have used participatory communication approaches. In development communication, participation is a means to reach a certain goal. Participatory development is people’s development attempt where people plan, execute and judge the effectiveness of the programme. Participation also means direct involvement of the people and not indirect involvement through their representatives because mostly the representatives of people represent the rich rather than the interest of the poor minority. Participation is voluntary contribution by the people in development programmes. It requires organised efforts.