Gram Vikas
Gram Vikas is a non-profit community development organization founded in 1979, partnering with rural and tribal communities in Odisha and Jharkhand to deliver integrated water, sanitation, livelihoods, education, habitat, and disaster response programs through its MANTRA community-led framework.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1979
- HeadquartersBerhampur, India
- Headcount251–500
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Gram Vikas does
Gram Vikas is a non-profit community development organization registered on 22 January 1979 in Odisha, India, headquartered in Bhubaneswar with field offices in Gumla (Jharkhand), Patrapur, and a training campus in Gayaganda. The organization partners directly with rural and tribal communities in Odisha and Jharkhand to co-create integrated development interventions across seven focus areas: water, sanitation and health, livelihoods, habitat and technology, village institutions, education and youth, and disaster response. Its flagship programmatic framework is MANTRA (Movement and Action Network for Transformation of Rural Areas), developed in 2004 based on the Rural Health and Environment Programme, which structures community-led planning, implementation, and monitoring through Village Development Committees and Self-Help Groups.
The organization's service delivery relies on community-built infrastructure — solar-powered piped water systems with household tap connections, household toilets with running water, disaster-resilient houses constructed through Owner-Driven Construction of Houses (ODCH) technology, biogas plants, and cyclone-resistant school buildings — alongside human-capital programs such as the Jal Bandhu water stewardship cadre, Gram Udyog Mitra entrepreneurship initiative, and masonry/livelihoods training. More recently, Gram Vikas has entered the carbon credit market via Plan Vivo-registered agro-social forestry with Fair Climate Fund and C-GEM, supporting 6,000 smallholder farmers across 3,561 hectares. Technology programs include Oracle-supported virtual and smart classrooms in tribal residential schools, digital learning centres using Raspberry Pi and PICO projectors, and village-level ground water monitoring systems.
The revenue model is non-commercial: Gram Vikas raises funds through donations, corporate CSR partnerships, philanthropic foundations, international grants, and multilateral agencies. Funders disclosed across the data include Standard Chartered Bank, Azim Premji Foundation, Wipro Cares, Oracle, OSDMA, SBI Foundation, LIC Housing Finance, NABARD, PwC India Foundation, UNDP India, Fair Climate Fund, Plan Vivo, and C.I.A.I. Services are delivered free to beneficiary communities through direct participatory implementation rather than commercial distribution. The organization's stated strategic objective under its Decade Five plan is to enable resilient, dignified lives for 5 million people by 2030, scaling from a current reach of approximately 600,000 people across 1,700 villages.
Gram Vikas firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Gram Vikas
- Legal name
- Gram Vikas
- Website
- https://gramvikas.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1979
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 251–500 employees
- Short description
- Gram Vikas is a non-profit community development organization founded in 1979, partnering with rural and tribal communities in Odisha and Jharkhand to deliver integrated water, sanitation, livelihoods, education, habitat, and disaster response programs through its MANTRA community-led framework.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Gram Vikas industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Rural Community Development Services
- NAICS
- Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Support Activities for Forestry (11531), Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (221310)
- SIC
- Services-Social Services (8300), Forestry (800), Agricultural Services (700)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Infrastructure, Housing & Community Development (BPAGABAL)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Water, Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH) (BPAGABAC), Rural Livelihoods & Economic Empowerment (BPAGABAA), Affordable Housing & Community Development (Housing, Community Land Trusts) (BPAGALAC), Community Forestry & Indigenous Land Stewardship Services (IMAMAJAM), Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES) Program Development & Administration (AFAMAMAF)
Keywords
Where Gram Vikas is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Berhampur
- HQ country
- India
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices4 records
Markets served
Gram Vikas business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Donations and Philanthropic Funding: Gram Vikas operates as a non-profit organization primarily funded through donations from individuals, corporations (CSR), foundations, and international donors. They receive support for specific projects and programmes.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels14 records
Gram Vikas product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Gram Vikas is a non-profit community development organization that delivers integrated rural development programs partnering with rural and tribal communities in Odisha and Jharkhand. Its core offerings include the Water Secure Gram Panchayat Programme (WSGP) for community-led water security and sanitation, livelihoods and entrepreneurship programs (Gram Udyog Mitra, UDAN, WADI), education initiatives (Smart Classrooms, Bal Marg), ODCH disaster-resilient housing construction, the Carbon Credit Market Programme, and disaster response interventions. Services are provided free of cost to beneficiary communities and funded through donations, CSR partnerships, and grants.
Product overview
Gram Vikas is a community development organization (NGO), not a technology product company. Its offerings consist of development programs rather than a unified software product or platform. The primary programs include: Water Secure Gram Panchayat (WSGP) for community-led water security using Water Passbooks; education technology initiatives (Oracle Smart Classrooms, Virtual Classrooms) using ICT and multimedia in tribal residential schools; Gram Udyog Mitra entrepreneurship program connecting rural entrepreneurs to credit through platforms like Rang De; the Jal Bandhu water stewardship cadre; Carbon Credit Market Programme for community forestry; and Solar-Powered Piped Water Systems for remote access. Additional programs include Digital Learning Centres (Raspberry Pi/PICO projectors), Smart Task Force digital literacy, Ground Water Level Monitoring systems, UDAN masonry/skills training, and Bal Marg youth development. These are programmatic interventions, not software products or modules in a unified platform architecture.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Water Secure Gram Panchayat Programme (WSGP) A community-led water security initiative that equips villages across Odisha and Jharkhand to map groundwater, revive springs, restore degraded land through afforestation, and apply weather advisories for climate adaptation. Uses Water Passbooks for communities to track water sources and usage patterns.
- Jal Bandhu (Water Friend) Programme A community cadre of trained youth who map and inventory water sources, measure water levels in springs, dug wells and ponds, and contribute to developing multi-year Sourceshed Development Action Plans for sustainable water access in rural villages.
- Oracle Virtual Classrooms A partnership initiative with Oracle providing continued support to tribal residential schools to enhance ICT materials and STEM usage, including digital libraries and career-based courses for scientific and technical literacy.
- Virtual/Smart Classrooms at Residential Tribal Schools A project building smart classrooms in tribal residential schools using desktop and overhead projection systems, supporting teachers with multimedia facilities and audio-visual aids for enhanced pedagogy in remote tribal schools.
- Oracle Virtual Classroom Hub & Spoke Model A hub and spoke model for ICT-based education delivery using a central production hub for audio-visual pedagogic materials transmitted to remote tribal residential schools across the region.
- Oracle Smart Classroom in Tribal Residential Schools A technology-enhanced learning initiative providing smart classrooms with e-learning materials, digital tools, and teacher training for tribal residential schools to improve STEM education outcomes.
- Gram Udyog Mitra (GUM) Programme A rural entrepreneurship initiative that trains local youth as business development service providers to help rural entrepreneurs build businesses, access credit through P2P lending platforms such as Rang De, and achieve financial independence.
- Carbon Credit Market Programme A community-led agro and social forestry initiative enabling rural farmers to enter carbon credit markets through partnerships with Fair Climate Fund (FCF) India, Centre for Grower-centric Eco-value Mechanisms (C-GEM), and Plan Vivo registry.
- Solar-Powered Piped Water Systems Community-built solar-powered piped water systems that lift water from dug wells into storage tanks for distribution to household standposts, providing water access to remote habitations without grid electricity dependency.
- Ground Water Level Monitoring (GWLM) System A village-level monitoring system where VDC members maintain a GWLM register, measuring and recording water levels monthly to guide decisions for better water management in their communities.
- Urban Development Action for Neighbourhood (UDAN) A livelihoods and skills programme building technical capacity for construction sector opportunities, strengthening women's groups for urban market engagement, and providing masonry training for sustainable livelihoods in cyclone-affected habitations of Khordha district.
- Digital Learning Centres Village-level digital learning centres using Raspberry Pi and PICO projectors for supplementary education, particularly during COVID-19 school closures, in remote tribal locations of Odisha.
- Smart Task Force (STF) Digital Literacy Programme A youth-led community initiative providing digital literacy training, smartphone-based water source monitoring, and technology access for remote Adivasi hamlets with no network connectivity.
- Cyclone Titli Early Recovery Interventions A relief and rehabilitation programme using video content for grey water management education, watershed activities, and spring source protection for long-term water security in cyclone-affected habitations.
- Bal Marg A comprehensive youth education programme in Kandhamal district addressing education, sanitation, civic engagement, and women's livelihoods through career guidance, mentorship, health awareness, and micro-enterprise support.
Quantifiable outcome
- 600,000 people reached across 1,700 villages
- +7 more outcomes
Companies that use Gram Vikas
Customer profileNamed customers16 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Gram Vikas technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Gram Vikas partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
13 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Standard Chartered BankcoreWater Secure Gram Panchayat Programme partnership in five districts of Odisha (Kalahandi, Kandhamal, Ganjam, Gajapati, Nayagarh), aiming to reach 22,400 households in 28 Gram Panchayats. Gram Vikas provides implementation expertise while Standard Chartered funds the programme.
- Fair Climate Fund (FCF) IndiacoreTechnical support for community-led carbon credit initiative spanning four districts (Ganjam, Gajapati, Kalahandi, Kandhamal), supporting approximately 6,000 smallholder farmers to plant 15 million saplings across 3,561 hectares by 2027.
- Centre for Grower-centric Eco-value Mechanisms (C-GEM)coreManaging carbon credit agreements on behalf of the community, ensuring maximum revenue flows directly to participating farmers under the agro-social forestry initiative.
- Plan VivocoreCarbon registry partnership for validating and registering carbon credits from community-led reforestation efforts, enabling farmers to earn income through carbon sequestration.
- Rang DeminorP2P lending platform partnership enabling loans for rural entrepreneurs supported through Gram Udyog Mitra programme. Namita Rout facilitated loans of ₹40,000 and ₹60,000 to entrepreneurs.
- Rapid Community Response to COVID-19 (RCRC)minorPartner for COVID-19 Civil Society Alliance Support to Relief Efforts, reaching 38,991 persons in 170 villages.
- OraclecoreMultiple phases of Virtual Classroom and Smart Classroom initiatives across four tribal residential schools, including Oracle ICT Learning Centre and Innovation Lab. Total funding approximately ₹2.45 crores across multiple years.
- London School of Hygiene and Tropical MedicineminorMatched cohort study to assess effectiveness of combined household-level piped water and sanitation intervention in rural Odisha, in villages in Ganjam and Gajapati district.
- Emory UniversityminorMatched cohort study on water and sanitation intervention effectiveness in rural Odisha communities.
- KIIT UniversityminorMatched cohort study partner for water and sanitation intervention assessment in Odisha.
- Odisha State Disaster Management Authority (OSDMA)coreTechnical design, social mobilisation and project management support for owner-driven construction of 17,000 disaster-resilient houses for Cyclone Phailin affected families in Ganjam district. Budget of ₹14.5 crores.
- Pro4Sport SolutionsminorKhel Vikas partnership promoting 'Right to Play' theme among children of Gram Vikas residential schools.
- GoonjminorCloth for Work programme partnership for infrastructure restoration and relief distribution in Cyclone Titli and Cyclone Fani affected areas.
Scale indicators18 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Gram Vikas competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Action for Social Advancement (ASA): Central Indian NGO focused on livelihoods, watershed development, and natural resource management with tribal and smallholder farmer communities; structurally comparable to Gram Vikas's rural development model.
- PRADAN: Professional Assistance for Development Action is one of India's most established integrated rural development NGOs, operating across multiple states with livelihoods, women's empowerment, and natural resource management focus similar to Gram Vikas's portfolio.
- SRIJAN: Self-Reliant Initiatives through Joint Action works with marginalized rural communities on sustainable agriculture, water, and livelihoods across central and eastern India; shares Gram Vikas's integrated community-led approach.
- Seva Mandir: Rajasthan-based rural development NGO working with tribal communities on integrated programs including water security, education, livelihoods, and village institutions; comparable community-led methodology and donor ecosystem.
- BAIF Development Research Foundation: Large Indian rural development NGO working on livelihoods, agriculture, water, and community institutions across multiple states; operates comparable integrated programming models and similar donor base.
Emerging players
- Digital Green: Technology-enabled agricultural extension NGO working with rural farming communities in India and internationally; comparable rural development scope but uses a tech-mediated extension model rather than community-mobilizer model.
- SELCO Foundation: India-based sustainable energy access organization serving underserved rural communities through decentralized renewable energy solutions; overlaps with Gram Vikas's renewable energy and habitat technology focus.
Regional players
- Trickle Up: International extreme poverty NGO focused on economic empowerment of ultrapoor women through livelihoods and graduation approach; shares Gram Vikas's SHG and entrepreneurship support ethos but operates primarily in Africa and Latin America.
Others
- NABARD (Development Bank): Indian development finance institution that funds rural development projects including WADI tribal development programmes that Gram Vikas has executed; functions as both partner and ecosystem enabler for NGOs in this space.
Broad incumbents
- WaterAid India: India arm of global WASH-focused INGO; comparable in water and sanitation programming at scale but narrower thematic focus and less integrated across livelihoods and education.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Gram Vikas social profiles
Digital presenceGram Vikas financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Gram Vikas leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Gram Vikas funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Gram Vikas M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Gram Vikas
What does Gram Vikas do?
Gram Vikas is a non-profit community development organization that delivers integrated rural development programs partnering with rural and tribal communities in Odisha and Jharkhand. Its core offerings include the Water Secure Gram Panchayat Programme (WSGP) for community-led water security and sanitation, livelihoods and entrepreneurship programs (Gram Udyog Mitra, UDAN, WADI), education initiatives (Smart Classrooms, Bal Marg), ODCH disaster-resilient housing construction, the Carbon Credit Market Programme, and disaster response interventions. Services are provided free of cost to beneficiary communities and funded through donations, CSR partnerships, and grants.
Is Gram Vikas a public or private company?
Gram Vikas is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Gram Vikas founded?
Gram Vikas was founded in 1979. It employs 251 to 500 people.
Where is Gram Vikas based?
Gram Vikas is headquartered in Berhampur, India, in the Asia region.
How does Gram Vikas make money?
One revenue line is on record: donations and Philanthropic Funding.
Who are Gram Vikas's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Action for Social Advancement (ASA), PRADAN, SRIJAN, Seva Mandir and BAIF Development Research Foundation. Emerging players are Digital Green and SELCO Foundation. Trickle Up is listed as a regional player. NABARD (Development Bank) is listed as an others. WaterAid India is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does Gram Vikas have an API?
No public API is recorded for Gram Vikas.
What industry is Gram Vikas in?
Gram Vikas's product category is Rural Community Development Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGABAL, Infrastructure, Housing & Community Development, with a secondary code of BPAGABAC, Water, Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH). Its NAICS code is 81321 and its SIC code is 8300.