Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) has long been used in India and globally to enable communities to analyse their own living conditions and co-design development solutions. However, rapid digital transformation, characterized by smartphones, geospatial platforms, IoT sensors, artificial intelligence, and digital public infrastructure, have expanded the scope of PRA into a more powerful, data-driven, and scalable approach, known as Digital Participatory Rural Appraisal (DPRA). DPRA integrates human centred participatory tools with digital technologies to support evidence-based planning, inclusive governance, climate adaptation, and sustainable rural development. The present article is an attempt to develop a concept for local community participation by the application of digital technologies for preparation of Smart Sustainable Village Development Plan. The paper discusses about the guiding principle and participatory methodology for inclusive digital participation of local community for sustainable village planning and development. In short, the present paper outlines the DPRA framework, methods, implementation model, case applications, and policy directions for Gaindikhata Cluster of villages in Haridwar district of India.
Raut et al. (Thu,) studied this question.