A panel of economists headed by Joseph Stiglitz, Nobel-Laureate for
Economics, appointed by Nicolas Sarkozy, the French President, has
submitted its findings in the form of a " Report by the Commission on
the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress". The
panel was appointed GDP (Gross Domestic Product) does not measure the
quality of life like leisure, happiness, environment and many other
things which money cannot buy. Commenting on the report, the Economist
of London, says, " Man does not live by GDP alone. A new report urges
statisticians to capture what people do to live."
The report has come at the right moment when the world has seen two
systems collapse ( state capitalism and finance capitalism) within two
decades bringing distress to millions of people .The Soviet Union, a
totalitarian system based mostly on fear, disintegrated in 1989-91 as
a result of its own internal contradictions. The international finance
capitalism, based mostly on greed, came to near collapse, especially
in the USA and the European Union in 2008/09.
Both the systems sought to address the economic man, the material
well-being of man, not the whole personality of man, which has other
needs, call it, psychological or spiritual. Both the systems are based
on the assumption that man is the master of the universe, not a part
of the universe and he can do what he wants. We see the results –
pollution, denudation of forests, and disappearance of wildlife and
climate change.
When man realizes that " no man is an island, entire of itself,
everyman is a piece of the continent", outlook changes. When man
realizes that he is a part of the universe, his perspective changes
and everything falls in its place in the puzzle of life – not just
other human beings, but all life, animate and inanimate, have a right
to live and have a role to play. Ecology and environment get their due
and get protected by man. Non-violence and brotherhood become a way of
life. Hindus call it Dharma, that which sustains the life of man and
the universe or " that religion which underlies all religions", as
Mahatma Gandhi says in his book, Hind Swaraj or Indian Home Rule,
first published in 1908. His secretary, Mahadev Desai, called it, "
the seminal book which contains the ultimate logical conclusion of the
acceptance of the twin principles of Truth and Non-violence."
Though educated in England, he was not enamoured by the wealth and
life in that country. He saw alienation of the factory workers and
hypocrisy of the elite. He found in the Indian rural life a life of
hard work, culture and dignity. In spite of many wars in India, Indian
villages had survived with their agriculture and handicrafts organized
by the village panchayats. He did not wish India to be a carbon copy
of the West. " What I object to is the craze for machinery, not
machinery as such….The supreme consideration is man..", he observed.
He promoted khadi and village industries even during the freedom
struggle. His ideal was sarvodaya – welfare of all – and he wanted to
reach the last man- unto the last. He said that there is enough for
everybody's needs but not for everybody's greed. He believed in simple
life and that government is the best that governs the least.
Eminent economists such as J.C.Kumarappa prepared a blue-print for the
revival of villages. Later in 1973, another economist E.F.Schumacher,
offered a similar scheme in his book, Small is Beautiful – Economics
As If People Mattered. He also highlighted dehumanizing effect of
single-minded pursuit of gross domestic product. He advocated '
sustainable development' and 'appropriate technology' which are in
tune with the Gandhian philosophy.
However, Independent India did not follow his vision of village
republics but adopted the western model not merely in political system
but also in the economic system. Today, after 62 years of
Independence, at least 30 crore people out of about 120 crore are
below the poverty line; half the population in the cities live in
slums and shanties; water is a scarcity both in towns and cities,
though India gets one of highest rainfalls in the world and has many
perennial rivers. Only 40 percent of the land is irrigated while 60
percent of the population depends on agriculture and contributes just
20 percent to the GDP. In our pursuit of industrialization,
agriculture has been neglected except during the Green Revolution.
Provide our farmers with water; they will produce enough and more of
food-grains, fruits and vegetables for all.
Our former President Abdul Kalam has mooted a new model of village
development which updates the vision of Mahatma Gandhi to suit the
needs of the 21st century, and it is called, PURA – Providing Urban
amenities in Rural Areas through physical connectivity ( roads &
power), electronic connectivity ( communications network), knowledge
connectivity ( professional and vocations training), and economic
connectivity ( providing best value for rural products and services).
Let us change our priorities. Let villages be the focus of
development. Let decentralization of power empower the people and let
us make every one take part in the development – economic, social and
political. This would be the true tribute to the vision of Mahatma
Gandhi on his 140th Birthday, October 2,2009.
September 28,2009
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