Home

Follow Countercurrents on Twitter 

Google+ 

Support Us

Popularise CC

Join News Letter

CounterSolutions

CounterImages

CounterVideos

Editor's Picks

Press Releases

Action Alert

Feed Burner

Read CC In Your
Own Language

Bradley Manning

India Burning

Mumbai Terror

Financial Crisis

Iraq

AfPak War

Peak Oil

Globalisation

Localism

Alternative Energy

Climate Change

US Imperialism

US Elections

Palestine

Latin America

Communalism

Gender/Feminism

Dalit

Humanrights

Economy

India-pakistan

Kashmir

Environment

Book Review

Gujarat Pogrom

Kandhamal Violence

Arts/Culture

India Elections

Archives

Links

Submission Policy

About Us

Disclaimer

Fair Use Notice

Contact Us

Search Our Archive

 



Our Site

Web

Subscribe To Our
News Letter

Name: E-mail:

 

Printer Friendly Version

Non-Equitable Effects of Post-Liberalization Growth in India :
Social Dynamics Approach

By Dr. Narendra Kumar Arya

29 January, 2013
Countercurrents.org

Capitalism has morbid inclinations for non-symmetrical characterization of the economic life .It has got weird political aesthetic sensibilities which are embedded in the abnormal distribution of the output and results. From the socio-centric point of view, India succumbed to liberalization policies and programs in big way in 1990s ,promising the unprecedented levels of development drives and prosperity to the nation. But the core character of policies which it embraced have never promised elsewhere and nor do here. In the inconsistent contradictory and deceptive face of liberalisation ,the other facial dimension of the capitalism nova, has produced and is underway in making Indian society and economy asymmetrically distorted, as anticipated , given the very illogical logicity of the economic principles it stands on and spreads around the globe.

Liberalisation drive in India could be safely and logically attributed to privatisation and liberalisation policies , patterned on Thatcheronomics or Regeanomics ,adopted by the Europe and America in 70s and 80s and by rest of the world somewhat later, at the compulsive diktats of the international economic and financial organizations. Chossudovsky came up the revelation that then Union Finance Minister of India, during formulation of economic policies and budgets used to take up directions and guidelines telephonically from IMF-World Bank-ADB authorities, bypassing parliament and democratic processes. 1 The liberalisation induced globalisation has a negative impact on participation, access, transparency, and accountability ,on the part of government and the people.

Exclusionary influences of the economy are growing rampantly, accompanied by exclusion from whatever little public space was available for deliberation and negotiation.

The Rosy Pictures

The governmental institutions and structures have prime raison de entre functioning to display, reflect, broadcast .disseminate and exaggerate as much extensively they can do .In their services they are also assisted by the bourgeoisie forces who have stakes in the government. The structural deception devices in the form of economic presentations, statistical miracles, informational make-believes and ideological stereotypes are repeatedly aired among the people so extensively that it is thought this alone is the absolute truth. ‘Development', GDP, Inclusive Growth, Amazing international Trade, Per Capita Income, PPP etc are the some of the eco-financial mechanisms which help in projection of rosy pictures. In the terms of the GDP ‘we' are the fourth largest economy (could we say society?) of the globe. On the measures of purchasing power parity we had GDP of $ 3.68 trillion whereas on the basis of official exchange rate it would be $1.237 trillion for 2009 .This really corresponds to the conclusion that the difference in GDP (PPP) of India and the next follower Germany is equivalent to GDP of Australia or Iran .

Rank

country

GDP (purchasing power parity)

Date of Information

 

1

United States

$14,120,000,000,000

2009 est.

2

China

$8,818,000,000,000

2009 est.

3

Japan

$4,149,000,000,000

2009 est.

4

India

$3,680,000,000,000

2009 est.

5

Germany

$2,815,000,000,000

2009 est.

17

Australia

$ 848,400,000,000

2009 est.

18

Iran

$ 825,900,000,000

2009 est.

Source: CIA Factbook https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/in.html on internet retrieved on December 05, 2010 .

But in terms of per capita GDP we are one of the most laggard nations of the world pegged at 165 TH place containing some 36% population below poverty line. We have also moved several places ahead globally in terms of absolute figures for production and consumption of electricity. With 568 billion KWh and 7.23.8 billion KWh of electricity generation and consumption respectively and india happens to be sixth biggest nation but the realistic image conjures up in the form of millions and millions of rural people ,even urban ones in towns and cities of backward states living in darkness ,without electricity at all or absconding for days frequently .The question of affordability of electricity among common masses is pitiable because those who even don't have access to survival imperatives how can dare they think of affording electricity and net of welfare state dwindling sharply. Prof. Suresh Tendulkar claims 37% of India is Below Poverty Line. 2 Electricity consumption is often taken as indicative of living standard. Industrially we are among top five nations of the world. India has ‘emerged' 3 and emerged to become a global economic super power. 4 But who is getting benefited from this abysmal industrialization or expansion of services sector? Naturally, a very shallow pocketed stratum of liberal society.

Since 1997 it has managed to grow at 7% annually on average .CIA factbook appreciates this major exporter of information technology and software ‘workers' “to have clocked second highest growth rate in 2009 at 6.5% even in aftermath of global financial crisis of 2008.” 5 We employ the second largest workforce of 467 million people but officially have 10-7 % without work/employment .Certainly these figures do not consider hidden, partial, forced and agricultural unemployment of various sorts

The question however is that how well it correlates with society and societal aspects is much more relevant which seems to have been arbitrarily forgotten by the connoisseurs of this capitalist model of economic growth , for it is their obnoxious belief that market has all the capabilities to take care of everything and myriads of aspects it might have .

Farmers:

Policies driven by corporate globalization are pushing farmers off the land, and peasants out of agriculture. This is not a natural evolutionary process. It is a violent and imposed process. The 150,000 farmers' suicides are one aspect of this violence. The killing of dozens of peasants in Nandigram like SEZ induced scenes who resists land acquisition for a Special Economic Zone is another aspect of the violence involved in the forced uprooting of India's small farmers. 6 the Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission, Montek Singh Ahluwalia has talked of "the feasibility of large corporate ownership of farmland" to add just extra salt on the already wounded agricultural alndscape.Thousands of poor farmers in India committed suicide over the past decade as changes in India's agricultural policy set off a widening spiral of debt and despair, says environmental activist Vandana Shiva."The farmer suicides started in 1997. That's when the corporate seed control started," Vandana Shiva told CNN's Christiane Amanpour."And it's directly related to indebtedness, and indebtedness created by two factors linked to globalisation." For Shiva, who works with farming communities across India, those two factors were the ceding of control of the seed supply to the corporate chemical industry – leading to increased production costs for already-struggling farmers – as well as falling food prices in a global agricultural economy.An estimated 200,000 farmers have taken their own lives in India over the past 13 years, according to Indian government statistics. 7

Agricultural reforms that are being introduced in the name of increasing food production and minimizing the price risks that the farmers continue to be faced with, is actually aimed at destroying the production capacity of the farm lands and would lead to further marginalization of the farming communities. Encouraging contract farming, future trading in agriculture commodities, land leasing, forming land-sharing companies, allotment of homestead-cum-garden plots, direct procurement of farm commodities and setting up of special purchase centres will drive out a majority of the 600 million farmers out of agriculture. Village for sale will then become a common feature of the Indian landscape . 8

Women:

Women have been tormented heavily by the liberalization process .They are main source of ‘comparatively advantageous', economic and casual workforce. Given their socio-economic conditions are less likely to take advantages of the open economy processes .For example in comparison to male literacy of 73.4% women still hover strategically behind at just 47.8% ,according to 2001 census. They form largest portion of unskilled workforce along with dalits and tribals communities.The scenario of reduced job opportunities and emphasis on laying-offs stalks the soft targets first, and in a patriarchal society of ours where intellectual and behavioral ‘liberalisation' of value system has not transformed adequately .They are suffering serious marginalization from benefits of the economic structures. On the contrary the cosmetics industry in india has grown ten-fold from Rs.2311 crores to Rs.18,950 in 2000. 9 Side by side it will not be out of place to show the dualistic game of capitalism in terms of commercial human trafficking of women and children. India is a source, destination and transit country for men, women and children, trafficked for the purpose of forced labour, commercial sexual expoitation, internal forced labour, bonded labour.

Poverty

India spiritually is claimed to be the home to the gods and heavens, of not less than crores, do they dwell in the acute poverty and paupers! Today in 2010 we have 37% people below poverty line and a significant percentage of people who hip-hop the BPL line sometimes up, sometimes down. This is approximately half of the poverty of the world in toto which is said to make neoliberal India a great power . The benefits of the strong economy which according to the Galbraithian logic shall trickle down to make the life of masses livable when affluence nests in hands of just a small scum of economically well-to-do e.g. 10% consuming 31% of resources and the lowest 10% struggling on 3.6% resources only. The poverty has grave sociological and geographical implications .The certain areas and sections of the society are more negatively placed at receiving ends.

Punjab ,Haryana,Maharastra ,Gujarat may have reaped benefits of liberalized policies but most of the Eastern and north Eastern India and Central India has not been able to taste the fruits of ‘liberalized' economy which appears to be literally opposite of its sense-intensely confined and closed.

Another grave aspect related with the poverty is malnutrition and non-availability of food to poor and specially children which is worst in the world and at par with most lowly placed Sub-Saharan Africa .According to the reports of the special commissioners appointed by the Supreme Court of India in regard to ascertain degree of food security –it found 46 % children of ‘emerged India are malnourished and 30%-40% PDS food grain is hijacked by food-mafia. Interestingly, to coincide with the attitude of trickle down, it may be illuminating that 85%of richest Indians have ration cards, even 16% of these have BPL cards whereas only 49% of really BPL have got BPL entitlement cards. It is hyped frequently in media and elsewhere that economic liberalisation had begotten some 300 million middle class consumers, reported Reuters(Aug.10,2007),being cause and result of amazing economic growth albeit at the cost of some 400 million ‘untouched' Indians who make their ends meet at just half dollar a day.

Dalits and Tribals

The sociological dimension of stark penury and deprivation is that a sort of ‘economic untouchability' is being incorporated through new age corporatism and the major portions of the society affected are dalits, tribals, women and other marginal identities. “Negligence or unwillingness to reform society was responsible for the failure of past attempts to economically empower dalits; now, economic reform is being undertaken without paying attention to social reform. …….Dalits apprehension about being left behind is turning into despondency.” 10

The non-responsible new face of liberalized state with no intention or will to take social security and human development affects the most disadvantageous most and this process is ‘automatically going to worsen the economic and socially weaker sections . For example government spending on have continuously decreased from 6% of GDP in 1970-80 to 3.6% in early 1990s and to mere 3% recently.The government in an escapist manner has moved away from rural ,agrarian issues to high-brow services sector significantly. Issues like land reforms are left discounted,being critical to undeveloped regions and communities. As observed ,”land reforms and increased wages for rural laborers are the central demands of most of the leftist guerrillas organizations active in west Bengal ,Bihar and Andhra Pradesh (Jharkhand,Chhatisgarh,Orrisa -mine)….the failure of most of state governments to implement land reform legislation has only added to the sense of economic vulnerability that fuels militant movements .” 11 The extant and reach of these naxal activities since adoption of liberalisation regime has increased.

Liberalization seeks to enhance productivity at any cost, by adopting brutally or unethically the most efficient and effective ways that usually align with huge capital, increased mechanization and automation. This insures withdrawal of labor-a perpetual source of dissidence to capitalists. The arrival of foreign direct investment and MNCs has also badly affected traditional life styles based on nature, and left displaced.”Dalits are the main laborers and tenants of the coastal areas, due to increased acquisition of coastal lands by the multinationals , are being forced to emigrate or dispelled from their roots ,as foreign direct investment rises.” 12

The conclusive remarks of Anand Teltumbade further clearly show the impact of liberalized economy and coupled challenges in reference to dalits- “social consequences of economic miseries associated with the Reforms are indeed ominous for Dalits .On one side they shall be subject to increasing pauperization and on the other stand in competition with the multitudes of masses in the job markets.” 13

To Conclude

The societal implications of the Reforms are very grave and grim. They have biased preferences .These policies have fostered and deepened the inequality in a society which was already tuned to the advantages of privileged few whether socially or in terms of wealth and power. The new regime of liberalized globalisation is creating unsustainable structures of deceptive development which is inherently and advertently hollow in its essence. It has detrementaly abused existing levels of mariganilisation of several communities in our country.It has not been able to serve the demands, needs and challenges of the rapidly democratizing social dynamics.

________________________________________________________

References:

1. Chossudovesky, Michel, “The Globalization of Poverty”,Madhyam Books , Delhi ,Pg.125

2. Kundu , Kunal Kumar “ India 's Food Inflation Hardens”, Asia Times Online,Sept.11,2010

3. Obama's recent visit in December, 2010 too asserted this outlook. Source The Telegraph, Patna

4. BRICS And Beyond, Goldman Sachs Global Economics Group, 2007.

5 . Source: CIA Factbook @ https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/in.html on internet retrieved on December 05, 2010 .

6. Shiva,Vandana, 30 April, 2007 @ http://www.countercurrents.org/shiva300407.htm

7 . Lerner, George, 07 January 2010 @ http://southasia.oneworld.net/todaysheadlines/farmer-suicides-in-india-linked-to-globalisation

8 . Sharma, Devinder, 13 February,2006 , http://www.countercurrents.org/glSharma130206.htm

9 . Arvind, “Globalisation: An Attack on India 's Sovereignty”, New Vistas Publications, NewDelhi, Pg.225

10 . Babu ,D.Shyam, “ India 's liberalistion and the Dalits “,Asia Programme Working Papers, The Royal Institute of International affairs, August 2004,Chatham House , London

11. Narula,Smrita & Martin Macwan,Untouchability:The economic exclusion of the Dalits in india,Seminar on Economics of Racism,Geneva,Switzerland,January 24-25,2007)

12. Narula,Smrita & Martin Macwan,Untouchability:The economic exclusion of the Dalits in india,Seminar on Economics of Racism,Geneva,Switzerland,January 24-25,2007)

13.Teltumbde, Dr. Anand, “Globalisation and the Dalits”, paper presented at Oxford University , Oxford ,pg.16

Dr.Narendra K. Arya, Born and raised in Varanasi, India, educated at Banaras Hindu University and Patna University with Masters in Political Scientist and Business Management and Doctorate on issues of Globalization and Sovereignty of States. Worked as Senior Lecturer ,Assistant Regional Director, IGNOU and presently working at managerial capacity in Government of India Public Undertaking .Several Poems, articles and published in reputed Hindi and English magzaines and Journals and online journals 'Hans', 'Vaak', Yudharat Aam Aadami', Apeksha',Byaan', ‘Janpath' 'Deliquent (USA),'Tether'(India)', Everydaypoem'(USA), Rabbit (Australia) etc online journals, besides in academic journals .

 




 

 


Comments are moderated