From Farms to Fortunes: 5 Richest Villages in India!

You must have heard about the richest countries in the world or rich cities in India. But have you ever heard about the richest villages in India?

If the villages are that rich then why are they termed “villages”? Can’t we call it a city or town? You may ask.

Well, we can’t! Reason? The cities are much larger than villages in terms of area. Also, villages conserve nature and natural resources much better than cities.

So, in this article, we will discuss the 5 richest villages in India that turned from farms to fortunes.

List of 5 Richest Villages in India

Here is a quick note for you. The following list doesn’t represent any type of ranking because the richness in terms of financial data isn’t available for all the villages.

Then how come it is deduced that these villages are rich? You ask. That’s due to their extraordinary development! 

Check out the list first-

Now, let’s look into the details!

1. Madhapar (Kutch District, Gujarat)

We all know that Gujrat is one of the richest states in India. Another amazing fact is that Gujarat possesses the richest village in Asia as well. And that’s none other than- Madhapar!

It is located in the Kutch district, on the outskirts of Bhuj.

What made Madhapar village financially rich?

For that, you need to look at the intricate details of Madhapar- the richest village in India!

• Established by: Mistris of Kutch
• Famous for: Resident’s collective fixed deposits are worth Rs.7,000 crore. 
• Average per capita deposit: Rs.15 lakh
• Banks: 17 banks including HDFC Bank, Union Bank, ICICI Bank, State Bank of India (SBI), Punjab National Bank (PNB), and Axis Bank.
• Community: Mostly Patel
• Population: 32,000 (year 2024)
• Infrastructure: Essential facilities like water, sanitation, roads, bungalows, public and private schools, lakes, and temples.
• The reason behind the Economic Prosperity: The NRI (Non-Resident Indian) families of Madhapar village deposit crores of INR to local banks and post offices; Agricultural produce is exported at a good price.

The last point might have given a hint for why Madhapar became so rich! Let’s discuss it in detail.

So as Parulben Kara, the former president of District Panchayat said that around 1,200 NRI families of Madhapar village reside in African, European, and American countries. They deposit crores of rupees to the local banks. 

Well, Punjab has numerous NRIs too! But we don’t get to hear anything related to rich villages in Punjab… So what’s the different thing that makes Madhapar NRIs do to make their homeland rich?

Look, it is the traditional culture of Gujaratis that no matter where they live, they always remain connected to their homeland. Hence, they prefer the Indian banks located in their hometowns, especially when it comes to money!

You know pretty well that when banks prosper, the economic activities of the surrounding area prosper too…

Apart from brilliant financial investments, villagers actively work in the farming sector. In other words, agriculture is the prime occupation of Madhapar. They export their agricultural products at a good price.

All these factors make Madhapar the richest village in India.

2. Hiware Bazar (Ahmednagar District, Maharashtra)

How can we overlook Hiware Bazar while discussing the richest villages in India? Do you know that Hiware Bazar was one of the most unfortunate and poor around three decades ago? Located in the rain shadow area of the Sahyadri range, it receives less than 400 mm of rainfall annually. Therefore, is a drought-prone area. 

Despite that, Hiware Bazar is a prosperous and a role model for other impoverished villages in India. 

Hiware Bazar is famous for the following reasons-

• Economic Prosperity: The village has a high per capita income. On average, the villages earn Rs.30,000 every month. Out of the 235 families, 60 are millionaires.
• Water Management: The village uses a water bank principle to ensure it doesn’t use more water than it stores in a year. It has over 294 water wells.
• Dairy: The village has seen a big increase in milk production, from 39 gallons per day in 1990 to more than 1,300 gallons today.
• Literacy: The village has almost universal literacy.
• Crime: The village has no reported crimes.
• Court disagreements: The village has no court disagreements.
• Main Sources of Income: Agriculture and Cattle Farming
• Famously known as: “Green Model Village”

All these achievements were not a one-night story. There was a time when Hiware Bazar was a drought-prone, underdeveloped, poor village with a high crime rate. People used to gamble, produce, and sell liquor illegally for a living. It was so infamous that no teacher used to come to the village school to teach, neither people wanted to stay there. 

All of these unfortunate facts were turned into a blessing due to the visionary leader- Popatrao Baguji Pawar. He received the Padma Shri honor in 2020 from the Indian govt. for his contribution to the field of social work.

Contribution of Popatrao Baguji Pawar: What did he do?

Let’s look at the contribution of Popatro Pawar in making Hiware Bazar a prosperous village-

• Ensured the availability of clean drinking water by installing two new handpumps.
• Re-established and expanded the local school up to class 10th with the help of govt. Subsidiaries.
• Made development plans by prioritizing safe drinking water, irrigation water, employment, education, health, and stable & legal ways of farming.
• Initiated trench farming where deep and narrow channels were dug on the slopes of hilly farmlands. This easily captured the water that flows downhill.
• Rainwater harvesting and the construction of a watershed in 1992.
• Encouraged the cultivation of more than one seasonal crop every year.

That’s how a drought-prone Hiware Bazar became one of the richest villages in India.

3. Punsari (Sabarkantha, Gujarat)

Punsari is a dream village that exists in reality in Gujarat’s Himmatnagar. Do you know it is considered as a “model village” by the Union Government? Now around 640 districts in India will replicate the Punsari Village Model.

What’s so special about Punsari? You ask. It has some of the top-notch facilities like metro cities. Such as-

• Stable Wi-Fi connectivity
• Air-conditioned Primary Schools
• CCTV cameras in schools and locality
• Mid-day meals in school
• Concrete roads
• Chilled mineral water for drinking
• Independent public transport system

Punsari received national and state awards for Best Gram Panchayat in 2011. Punsary is considered a perfect case study for developing other villages because it is different from Madhapar and Hiware Bazar.

What makes Punsari different from other rich villages in India?

Unlike other rich villages, Punsary hasn’t benefited from NRIs. The only source of funds was from central and state-sponsored developmental schemes for the last eight years.

With smart planning, Punsari has reached the following milestones-

• An annual premium of Rs.25 lakh is paid by the village panchayat for the 6,000 villagers having an insurance cover of Rs.1 lakh and a mediclaim policy of Rs.25,000.
• Zero dropout rates in schools since the year 2006.
• Reverse osmosis plant that supplies 20-litre water cans for just Rs.4.
• The village panchayat’s capital deposits have increased from Rs.25,000 in 2017 to Rs.45 lakh in 2024.

That’s why the Punsari village model is highly admired among the richest villages in India.

4. Maraog (Shimla, Himachal Pradesh)

The next richest village on our list is not from Gujarat or Maharashtra. It is Maraog of Himachal Pradesh. The key player responsible for making Maraog one of the richest villages in India is Apple! Yes, the fruit…

We all know that Himachal Pradesh is famous for its apple cultivation. The delicious apples of Maraog are exported all around the world. 

The apple cultivators (farmers) have an annual income of Rs.35 lakh to Rs.80 lakh! 

All thanks to the following factors-

• Innovative methods to cultivate apples and learning new farming techniques from online sources
• Timely checking the market prices for apples on the internet before selling the produce.

That’s how the apple production industry of Maraog is worth Rs.150 crore.

5. Dharnai (Makhdumpur, Jhanabad, Bihar)

Have you ever thought that a village can completely run on solar power? Sounds like a dream, right? This dream has come true for Dharnai!

Dharnai, a small village in Bihar became the first village of India to be fully powered by solar energy in 2014. It brought the following benefits-

• Improved Education: Children could study late into the night and get better lighting at home and school
• Increased Safety: The village was safer at night with well-lit streets
• Improved livelihoods: People could work longer hours, increasing their revenue potential.
• Created jobs: Villagers were employed to operate and maintain the solar grid.
• Improved productivity: You all know how electricity helps in increasing the productivity of individuals.
• Improved access to public and personal spaces: Time after sunset is not scary anymore for Dharnai villagers. 
• Improved access to food and water: Women no longer had to struggle to meet basic needs.

However, as per some recent reports, after three years, the solar grid became non-operational due to a lack of maintenance. Therefore, it switched to thermal power.

Final Words

These were the five richest villages in India that prospered due to various reasons. You see, each village prospered due to different reasons. By the way, which one did you like the most in terms of “farms to fortunes”?

Share your thoughts in the comment section below! Thanks 🙂