Development policies based on Gandhian philosophy, rather than consumerism, are the best bet for tackling current environmental and development problems
"The world has enough for every man's need, but not for any man's greed" - Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi
AS THE world enters the twenty-first century in less than three
years, the assumption that technology can provide easy
solutions to all problems that face humankind, including
environmental ones, is coming under scrutiny. Some of the
most respected economists of today are questioning the
basic assumptions of traditional economics. The pattern of
industrialisation, based on insatiable consumerism as an
indicator of growth and quality of life, is increasingly being
considered a menace to the world's environment. But a
close look at the views of economists and the scientific
establishment in India shows that their concepts of 'development' and 'underdevelopment' are derived from outdated
political-economic theories.
Technology is not value-free. It creates its own imperatives. The Gandhian view of the present world system needs to
be seriously considered, as it is the only ideology which
addresses both political and economic issues, and the question
of level of technology desirable. It is true that the economic
and demographic situation has altered considerably since
Gandhi's lifetime, and that some of the solutions which he put
forth, and wfiich might have been possible then, may no
longer be feasible today. This is why we need a debate on the
subject. It is not intended to make a fetish of Gandhian
thought, but to consider its relevance today.
Can there be growth with social justice? The new economic
trends are widening the division between the haves and have-nots the world over. The inequalities of income in India are
especially great. The free market system cannot work as well in
these conditions as in other Asian countries, as it will only
widen th@ gulf between the rich and the poor, and aggravate
socialunrest.
It is clear that the large proportion of the population that
has been kept out of the modern sector in countries like India,
can hardly be expected to survive by the 'trickle-down effect'.
The Indian political establishment, corrupt as it is, has accepted
this by taking up major programmes for the benefit of the
urban and rural poor, but the benefits do not reach those for
whom they are intended.
Community development was, introduced in India during
the Nehru era, and was later sought to be strengthened
through the introduction of Panchayati Raj. The 73rd and
74th Amendements to the Indian Constitution have tried to
strengthen local governments by insulating them from the
state political process, but it is difficult to predict success for
these efforts. In all these experiments, the incompetence and
corruption of the governmental sector is a major problem as it
gives employment to unemployables, and prevents the market
economy from functioning according to its own norms.
Against this background, the demographic issues become
inseparable from the environmental issues. The very measurement of development reflects the eco -insensitivity that has
become a part of the conception -of the objective of development. For example, per capita energy consumption is treated
by development economists as an indicator of development.
The fact that India consumes only 231 units of energy per
capita in oil equivalent as against 233 for Pakistan, 578 for
China, 3646 for UK, 3563 for Japan and 7822 for USA, is not
treated as a contribution to the globe's environment, but an
indicator of India's backwardness. If the underdeveloped
world, which accounts for 80 per cent of the world's population, were to increase its per capita energy consumption by 15
times in order to become developed, the world would either
burst from heat, or instantaneously run out of energy
resources.
How are we to persuade the poor in a developing country
like India to accept family planning when their economic condition requires them to produce more children and set them
to work at the age of six or seven? One way is to crack down on
child labour, as India is now trying to do. But the demand for
a large family cannot be wished away easily, as China has discovered in recent years. The mindset, and the propaganda for
large families by certain religious leaders has to be faced.
Population control has to be integrated with economic development. Can we have a small family norm with a low level of
economic growth - the stress being on distribution rather
than on massive investment? In this context, the Kerala model
has be@n put forth as a possible solution. With the highest literacy level among the Indian states, and good health services,
Kerala has brought down its population growth to manageable
proportions. Such a result can hardly be achieved by the states
of the Hindi-speaking belt, with their low levels of
wonW's literacy, health services, high social backwardness,
and insecurity of life and limb.
The third major issue that requires debate is the question of
environmental damage. Is sustainable development a real possibility, or merely a slogan? Global warming is now widely
accepted as a reality. The depletion of the ozone layer is
already being felt in countries of the southern hemisphere, like
Chile and Australia. Yet scientists have been unable to convince policy-makers and world public opinion that something
has to be done and quickly, and that globalisation of the world
economy is a recipe for suicide. In fact, the very measures we
take to control the heat caused by global warming (refrigerators, fans, air-conditioners) and to make our lives more comfortable (automobiles, microwave ovens) add to the problem itself.
Some positive developments are, however, visible.
Multinationals (like Dupont) appear to have prepared for the
possible success of the environmentalists in enforcing an environmentally sound economic order, by undertaking research
which will enable them to eliminate chloroflurocarbons in
refrigerators, or to switch to neem and other non-toxic plants
in many commercial areas. In fact, it is, as usual, the Indian
government that is behind.the times.
Keeping in view the grim scenario that faces the world, we
must ask ourselves if there is any solution, and if so, how it can
be made acceptable to the common man and the powers that
be in India and in the world at large. The solutions certainly do
not consist in putting pressure on the industrialised countries
to give financial aid to the third world countries for preserving
their forests and changing over to environmentally sound
technology (the Rio summit solution). If enough pressure is
brought to bear on the multinationals (and more importantly,
on our own elite who encourage the import of any foreign
technology, no matter if it is polluting), the worst effects of
global warming and environmental threat to the globe may
still be averted.
India is probably the only country in which at least a
modicum of effort has been made to understand and analyse
the Gandhian approach to economics. Jawaharlal Nehru
did not accept Gandhi's ideas, nor did most of the post-
independence policy-makers of the country. However, some
effort was made to introduce a self-reliant, village -oriented
model of development, which would have made India a model
for rural development for the Third World, somewhat on the
lines of Maoist China, without the mass murders that
took place in that country. We need to consider an Indian
experiment in this context.
Indian scientists, economists and social thinkers need
to think afresh on how India can tackle her critical problem
of achieving sustainable development without destroving
the value systems of the Gandhi-Nehru era. These value
systems are relevent not only to India but to the entire south
Asian region.
VK Bawa isformer vice chairperson of the Hyderabad Urban Development Authority
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