“My ideal is equal
distribution, but as far as I can see,
it is not to been realized, I therefore work
for equitable distribution”.
The world has traveled a long way on the path of development. During
the march of life human beings have changed much and their life patterns have
under gone remarkable changes. In almost every walk of life there have been
significant developments which have made the world very prosperous. On the
economic front also things have improved a lot. Technological developments have
facilitated greater material prosperity and material progress. Economic
development implies the growth of economic wealth of a nation. It is a process
through which a nation improves the economic, political and social well being
of its people. It can be defined as the efforts to improve the economic well
being and quality of life of a community. Hence economic development may be
described as a process whereby simple, low income national economies are
transformed into modern industrial economies. The dominant development model of
our times is economic globalization.
Globalization and its
impact
Globalization
is generally understood to mean integration of the economy of the country with
the world economy. It is an outcome of the set of various policies that are
aimed at transforming the world towards greater interdependence and
integration. It involves creation of networks and activities transcending
economic, social and geographical boundaries. It is thus turning the world into
one whole or creating a borderless world. Hence globalization can be seen as an
opportunity in terms of greater access to global markets, high technology and
increased possibility of large industries of developing countries to play an
important role in the international arena.
On the contrary, the
critics of globalization argue that it is a strategy of the developed countries
to expand their markets in other countries. The market driven globalization has
widened the economic disparities among nations and people. In the present age
of globalization, poor people as well as the underdeveloped nations are getting
marginalized. It is true that global economic integration is creating
opportunities for people around the world. But it is also leading to widening
the gaps between the poorest and richest countries. Many of the poorest
countries are marginalized from the growing opportunities of expanding
international trade, investment and in the use of new technologies. This was
clearly stated by Jogdand and Michael when they wrote “…while the world may be
full of complex mobility and interconnections, there are also quite a number of
people whose experience is marginal to, or excluded from, these movements and
links. Indeed not everyone and every place participates equally in the circuits
of interconnections that transverse the globe. And this, too, is the world of
globalization.”1
Therefore, it has exciting possibilities and at the same time it can
lead to unprecedented miseries.
Globalization has
created a serious social crisis affecting wage workers, farmers and employees
everywhere. The march of globalization adversely affected agriculture, the
backbone of Indian economy. Unemployment and poverty shot up as a result of the
decline of indigenous cottage and small-scale industries. A huge number of
workers lost their jobs. The quality of life, especially in the rural areas
declined with a steady decline of social services mainly in education and
health. In this system, the government will have not much to invest in the
schemes favoring the weaker sections of the society since its reliance is
necessarily on market and market can never be a benefactor of the deprived classes.
All these point to the fact that the world in the 21st century
witnesses the global triumph of market economics, the retreat of the state, and
the generation of unprecedented wealth. The need of the hour is that kind of
policy that can ensure the availability of basic amenities and equal
opportunities to the poorest and deprived classes also so that social equality
and rights could be enjoyed by all. The benefits of development should reach
the poor and all the hurdles in the path of their emancipation should be
removed. Here lies the relevance of Gandhian economic principles. Gandhi’s
relevance is perhaps even greater to this century than to the one in which he
lived. In this paper an attempt is made to show how Gandhian economic ideals based
on ethical principles can prove to be a solution to the current market economic
problems faced by India.
Gandhian Economic Ideals:-
Mahatma Gandhi was
not an economist in the academic sense of the term and he did not produce a
treatise or some such thing on economic system which he visualized for India. In some
of his general works, lectures, letters written to, or editorials in young India and
Harijan he made references to the kind of economic system which according to
him was ideal for the country. Gandhian economic ideals were in a sense a
logical corollary of his political and moral principles such as ‘Swaraj’, ‘Sarvodaya’, Truth and Non-violence etc .To an extent, we can say
that his entire life and philosophy were based on Truth, Non-violence, dignity of
labor and simplicity. Based on these wider social principles, Gandhi derived
his economic ideas which if brought together would give a picture of the
economic system that he visualized.
Gandhi’s economics did
not aspire to growth and accumulation, but instead to people’s ‘swaraj’ or control over their own
destinies. He opposed the deployment of machines if people were out of work. He
did not believe in unlimited wants, but instead reminded us that the world
produces enough for the needs but not the greed of every human being. From the
idea of Swaraj emerged the ideas of Swadeshi and self-sufficiency. And from
the principle of Truth and Non-violence emerged a series of economic ideas like
non-exploitation, non-possession, trusteeship, bread labour and so on. All
these ideas, which in fact having originated under different contexts, formed
the founding pillars of Gandhian economic system.
An important ideal
on which Gandhi based his economic programme was the ideal of ‘swadeshi.’ Swadeshi is a central concept
in Gandhi’s economic thought. It is an eternal principle. It has emerged out of
his idea of swaraj. It is in
conformity with the goal of sarvodaya.
It has both individual and group application. Literally, the term swadeshi
means ‘one’s own country’. Gandhi noticed that the deep rooted poverty of the
Indian masses was due to their departure from the swadeshi principles in the economic sphere. As a remedial measure,
he asks every Indian to invite the spirit of swadeshi and help his neighbors in
their needs as he helps himself. With such self-supporting and serving nature,
every Indian village will become an autonomous unit.
‘Simple living and
high thinking’, was a principle that played a significant part in Gandhi’s
life. He adopted this principle much to the advantage of the nation. As a practical
idealist, he found that it was in this ideal that the remedy of the ills of
modern civilization lies. Modern industrialism creates in man, according to
him, the desire to increase wants and acquire material wealth at the cost of
human values. He suggests that simple life is the only means of attaining
eternal happiness. It is because of his infallible faith in simplicity that he
advocated decentralization of economy.
Departure from Gandhian Economic Ideals and the result:-
Inspired by the
ideas of Gandhi, Nehru emphasized the need for a rapid and radical but peaceful
socio-economic transition. Through economic planning, Nehru wanted to establish
a strong and self-reliant India with a just and social order. He adopted
planning not as an end, but as a means at the “well-being and advancement of
the people as a whole, at the opening out of opportunity to all and the growth
of freedom and the method of co-operative organization and action”. 2
Though Nehru gave
enough attention to decentralization in the different Five Year Plans, his
successors could not keep his tradition. They gradually left his way and by the
time of the current Five Year Plan, we were very much diverted from the concept
of decentralization. This led to an economic crisis because we were not able to
achieve what we aimed through planning i.e., eradication of poverty and
unemployment. The over centralization also resulted in the inefficiency of
political power and corruption.
The New economic Policy
of 1991 kick started the unbalanced phase in India’s economic development. Through
this policy, globalization has led to the emergence and growth of a new rich
class with its love for dispensation of wealth, social power and luxuries.
Multinational and transnational companies have become the major actors in
international politics and economics. Prices of essential commodities, lives
saving medicines and other necessities have shot up. Today, everything is for sale;
Privatization has become a tool for exploiting the nature without constraint
degrading the environment. Liberalization and globalization have led to
unbridled consumerism, flight of capital from India, killing of local
industries in the name of competition and efficiency
We see that
the new economic policy of neo-liberalization resulted in
the concentration of wealth in the hands of a selected
few, keeping the majority out of the development. It has created two sections
within the nation. One is the liberalized India of the billionaires and the
booming middle class and the other is that of the common man, helpless farmers
committing suicides, disposed tribal and other marginalized folks. Liberalisation
has also created an unstable economy which is evident in the current turmoil ruling
the markets the world over. Altogether we can say that it is not at all an
ideal model of development. Above all, the industrialization with its
mechanization took away from men initiative for work and changed them into
nothing but machines. It made life mechanical and artificial. The result is
that man lost the zest for life. He seeks an escape by indulging in purely sensuous
pursuits like drinking, gambling and the like.
Gandhian concept of Swadeshi
as a solution to the economic crisis:
Having outlined the
ailment of Indian economy, we can now look how Gandhian developmental strategy
can help us to solve this crisis to some extent. Gandhi held that economics and
ethics cannot be separated from each other and must be studied as a whole. In
the opinion of Anthony.J. Parel, “Gandhi, in his turn, re-emphasized this
meaning: a sound economy is one that empowered the last and the least of society,
and helped to create and develop in them the necessary capacities and moral
dispositions”. 3 The principle of buying in the cheapest and selling
in the dearest market was the most inhuman law of economics, for market in
globalization is based on the concept of ‘buy now and pay later’. As against
this Gandhiji considered economic decentralization as the fundamental principle
and this is what we need today. Dr.ManMohan Singh also stood for
decentralization when he said that “decentralization will be able to mobilize
the grass roots knowledge and public awareness to prevent the misuse of public
funds for private ends.” 4 In India, democracy can succeed only when
it is built up in a grass root manner. This can be done by following the
Gandhian concept of Swadeshi.
Swadeshi: an analysis
. Gandhi realized that
much of the heart rending poverty of the masses is due to the ruinous departure
from swadeshi in the economic life. His thesis was that India would not have
been poor if the articles of consumption had not been brought from outside
India. The broad meaning of swadeshi
is the use of all home made things to the exclusion of foreign things. Gandhi
believes that the economic good of all lies in strictly practicing the
principles of swadeshi. It is a plea for
protecting village industries which enjoys abundant manpower. We have to
provide food, work and employment to our immediate neighbors. Swadeshi is a doctrine employed for the
protection of home industry. According to Man Mohan Choudary “the principle of swadeshi is a fundamental concept in
Gandhian economic thought. It defines the relation of individual to his society
and the larger world in terms of socially responsible economic behavior.” 5
Thus the practice of swadeshi would
result in innumerable self supporting and self contained units meeting their
primary needs locally and exchange with other units such necessary commodities that
are not locally producible.
Swadeshi
spirit never allows exploitation of the raw materials of a country. It does not
neglect the powerful man-power. Wasting time and money in producing goods which
are unsuitable to the Indian, amounts to the negation of the swadeshi spirit. It is false swadeshi. At the same time, swadeshi does not mean boycotting
foreign goods. Gandhi observes “any article is swadeshi, if it sub-serves the interest of the millions, even
though the capital and talent are foreign but under effective Indian control”. 6
Swadeshi is also one of the ways of
non-violence and therefore a true believer of swadeshi will not harbor any
ill-feeling towards foreign things. It is not a cult of hatred but a doctrine
of selfless service that has its roots in ahimsa. Gandhi would be prepared to
buy from any part of the world, things that are needed for the growth of his
country, but he would insist on the use of swadeshi
when such foreign things are sought to be imported that hamper the economic
status of home industry. Swadeshi
thus is not an outright rejection of everything foreign. It is based on a
feeling of concern for the economic and political stability of one’s own
country.
The concept of swadeshi comprises three propositions,
the first being the reduction of wants by each individual consumer; the second
, the reordering of preferences in such a way that it is made up mostly of
goods produced in the neighborhood; and the third is the cooperation of the
consumer with his neighbor producer to make them both work effectively. This
principle decries competition and stresses the need to promote cooperation between
the consumer and producer, which in turn leads to a downward trend in cost
function.
Swadeshi is one of the best ways of
preventing manufacture of goods in abundance that creates unemployment and
exploitation. If a person wishes to increase his business so as to supply also
the needs of others than those who belong to that unit, he will find that no
one else would be willing to buy his goods due to a moral responsibility towards
his neighbors. Thus he would be prevented from developing into a large scale
manufacturer. Even if the article produced elsewhere are more attractive than
those produced locally, they will not be allowed to flood out the local
products. At the same time, the local producer is encouraged to improve the
quality of his products to come up to the standard of foreign goods. Thus the
consumers will limit themselves to, and help to improve, the quality of local
produce.
Relevance of Swadeshi in the age of globalization:
Swadeshi was the economic
foundation of Indian nationalism. The idea behind it was to protect Indian
economic independence as well as local industries and to prevent the drain of
resources. To prevent this drain, Swadeshi based upon self-help and sacrifice
was the only alternative. It was based upon the revival of cottage and village
industries, revival of panchayat system or self government and opposition to
large-scale industrialization, mechanization and western commercialism and
values. But later on it involved reconciliation of large scale and small scale
industries with nationalization of key industries and urban reorganization to
cater to the needs of rural people, economic equality and fulfillment of basic
minimum needs of all human beings.
If the indigenous
industries are not protected from foreign competition, our naive skill will be
ruined and the villages which constitute the greater part of the country will
not prosper. Therefore, swadeshi is specially meant for the basic unit of
society, i.e., villages, where production is made for consumption, not for
exchange. The basic principle of swadeshi
is to produce for the fulfillment of the basic needs and not to produce for
commerce, market and profiting. This requires the simplification of our
economic structure. If the economy is restricted to small units, it can
influence the people morally make them self dependent. That was why Gandhi was
not only against the big industries of the foreign multinationals but also
against the native multinationals which swallow the small scale industries,
which make greater section of people unemployed. But he was not totally against
industries and technology. In fact he wanted a balanced growth of villages as
well as cities, and small scale and big industries to form a harmonious
peaceful society. He wanted to free economy from greed. By his concept of swadeshi he wanted to construct an
exploitation free society.
To conclude we can
say that Gandhian concept of swadeshi
from its economic view point is a belief in self reliant economy. According to
Asha Kaushik, “the attainment of self-reliance has, thus, continued to be
accepted as a cherished goal and ingredient for development of the country with
a view to ensuring balance of payments, sustainability, avoidance of external
debts, generating investable resources domestically and attain self-
sufficiency in food and self-reliance in technology as well.”7 Swadeshi
is a warning against the killing of native skills and putting the nation in the
trap of others. It stands for the natural growth of people than to make some
live in luxuries while others starving. It permits taking the help of other for
building one’s own economy but with great caution. If we enrich ourselves from others
swadeshi welcomes it. But if we lose control over ourselves and fall between
the endless wheels of exploitation, it is against the idea of swadeshi. “Gandhi’s swadeshi principle exhorted people to remain contended with the
local condition and with the things that God provided for man’s sustenance, instead
of indulging in ruthless exploitation of other countries to obtain unnecessary
luxuries”. 8 Thus Gandhian concept of swadeshi from economic point of view stands for strong belief in
self-reliance, balanced growth and human economics i.e., the economics for
larger and deeper life and not the economics for profit and market.
The
New Economic Policy of India is a clear deviation from the idea of swadeshi for this would not promote to
make Indian people self reliant and self-employed. But inertly this would
result in foreign domination, deterioration of indigenous industries due to
hard competition and overall the Indian economy will be an elitist economy than
a mass economy. This will be a market economy, rather than a need based
economy, and is bound to create disparities in society. This will be fatal to
the permanent peace of nation. Hence what is needed today is a cultural revolution
of reduction of wants and adoption of swadeshi
in real spirit. In its true spirit, Swadeshi does not mean isolation. On the
other hand, it means constant interaction, adaptations and technological
updation. Inward-looking economy is an outdated concept. But at the same time,
the opening of economy should not be at the cost of economic upliftment of
local population. It should result into increased production, employment,
growth in per capita income, HRD, equity and better living. Here Swadeshi means self excellence It could
not visualize the rise of one nation on the ruins of another nation. Gandhi
made it clear again and again that
Swadeshi did not mean exclusiveness, or isolation, or non-involvement with
the rest of the world. On the contrary, he considered it to be the proper and
firm starting point of global co-operation. Hence in a larger context, it can
be conceived as instrumental in realization of the greater mission of the
brotherhood of man. This will in turn be the proper and firm starting of global
cooperation
Reference:
1. Jogdand, P.G
and Michael,S.M, ‘Globalization and Social movements’, (Jaipur : Rawat,2003) p.
7
2. Jawaharlal
Nehru, Discovery of India (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial
Fund 1982), p. 533
3. Anthony. J. Parel
‘Gandhi’s Philosophy and the quest for harmony’, (New Delhi: Cambridge University Press
2006) , p. 75.
4 .Man Mohan Singh,
‘The Unfinished Business of Nation Building’ – The Hindu,
(Delhi) 15th August 1997
5. Choudary, Man
Mohan, ‘Exploring Gandhi’, (New
Delhi: Gandhi Peace Foundation 2000), p.200.
6. Gandhi.M.K,
‘Harijan’, 25.2.1936,p 8
7. Kaushik, Asha,
“Swadeshi, Self-reliance and Globalization:
Conjunctions and Disjunctions”,
(Gandhi Marg Vol.32.No.2, July-Sept 2010) p.211
8. Bhagavan, Vishnu, ‘Indian
Political thinkers’, (New Delhi: Atma Ram & Sons, 1976). P.63
Dr.
P. I. Devaraj, Dr. Syamala.K
,
No comments:
Post a Comment