What is the aim of the programme Unnat Bharat Abhiyan?

Option B is correct. Unnat Bharat Abhiyan, launched in 2014 by the then MHRD, asks higher education institutions to adopt villages or clusters of villages and work with local communities on problems such as sanitation, water, agriculture, health and energy, using appropriate and low-cost technologies. The idea is a two-way exchange: institutions bring knowledge, and communities bring real problems.

• A is wrong: Literacy goals are the mandate of schemes like Saakshar Bharat and Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan. UBA is not a literacy programme.
• C is wrong: Strengthening research institutions is a separate mandate, handled through research funding and institution-building measures, not through community engagement.
• D is wrong: It describes a general welfare and skilling package, which is the territory of schemes like Skill India, not a technology-led community scheme.

Core concept: community engagement by higher education and the use of appropriate technology. Mains angle: GS-II on the role of institutions in rural development, and GS-III on appropriate technology for inclusive growth.

Trap: Students pick A because it sounds like an education scheme, or D because it sounds like a welfare scheme. Look at the verb: UBA connects institutions with communities.