NEW DELHI, June 5 (OneWorld) - Seven University of Michigan students got a taste of the real India recently--water problems, low literacy, poor infrastructure, ill-managed cities, and rural poverty.

The American students--part of an initiative of Students of the World and the Clinton Global Initiative--visited the north Indian state of Haryana, adjacent to Delhi, to see and understand rural India.

The trip was a learning experience as most were in India for the first time and their information about the country had been restricted to either interacting with American Indians or some sketchy bits about the country in the American media.

The students stayed in villages in the Mewat region of Haryana to study the sustainable development work of the Sehgal Foundation--a non-governmental organization (NGO) started by an Indian living in the United States. The NGO chose to work in Mewat as it is one of the most underdeveloped regions in the country.

Allison Stewart, who is studying Spanish and Latin American and Caribbean Studies, was surprised to find that rural Indians have to build dams to get water. "In the U.S., we don't have to think about where water is coming from while here people have to struggle for their share of water," she added.

Tommaso Gomez, who is a student of mechanical engineering and wants to become a photojournalist, felt that he could see a lot of development but that was all concentrated in cities. He added, "I would prefer more uniform development, better transport, better pavements, and more cleanliness."

Carla Joy Thomas--who is concentrating on African American studies and women's studies--is the only student to have been to India before. "We have seen two different Indias," she said. "I find a big transition taking place here. Young people do not want to stay back in villages as there are many more opportunities in cities."

Some of the group plan to raise public awareness and generate activism on issues that they experienced in India. Others plan to come back after five years to find out if things have changed during that time.

Amjad Tarsin, who is studying English, said he would like to go back and make a presentation to expatriate Indian and Pakistani Americans and encourage them to contribute to their communities. He said, "I live in a place with a high expatriate population and I would like to go back with a message that expatriates should not forget their countries."

The leader of the visting students' team Aderemi Abioye, a sociology student, found poverty widely prevalent in the country. "We wanted to understand how development is taking place in villages and the Sehgal Foundation's integrated, sustainable, development work was an eye-opener for us," he said.

The Sehgal Foundation works with villagers on issues like water management, alternate energy, rural health, family life education, and income enhancement. It has been trying to address all aspects of rural development by providing training to rural people in managing their own resources and trying to solve their problems through consensus.

Executive director of the Sehgal Foundation Jay Sehgal said, "Initially we were a funding organization and a couple of years later we realized that funding other NGOs is not going to help. To bring about change we will have to work in villages and that is how we started our work in Haryana."

The organisation initiated work on water-related issues and then expanded into teaching children and health programs. The latest addition to its work is alternative energy as Indian villages are experiencing a major power crunch.