India

1
India
2
Ghandhian Democracy
The Ghandhian model of development a
decentralized economy based on small industries,
a reorientation of production in terms of
criteria besides prosperity only, a possible
decentralized defense industry, and hence a
particularly Indian route to development
Once, he deplored the pathetic contentment of the
masses. In raising the conscious, India is now
characterized as restless to share the fortune of
development
3
Mehtas Philosophy
- A Western model of development is incompatible
to India
- Development must come from within (indigenous
development)
- Neither liberal democracy (excessive
individualism) nor
communism (excessive statism) are compatible with
much of the developing world
- The crisis in Indian politics is due to the
fact that the constitution and political system
are not based on the institutional and cultural
heritage of Indian society, he rejects the notion
that there is a single and universal pattern of
development
- Formulated a system of theory called integral
pluralism, which is grounded in the reality of
Indian culture, history and civilization.
4
Integral Pluralism An Indian Theory
1) A multidimensional conception of man-
constructed of four social wholes a) the
objective b) the subjective c) the ethical d) the
spiritual
2) A multidimensional view of society
(different jobs, different people, but going in
the same direction), Mehta speaks here of
Oceanic circles (spheres of influence).
3) Point 1 and point 2 logically work together
through the development of wholes. This means
that each sector of society should have autonomy
or swaraj within an overall system of harmony
(the parts strengthen the whole)
4) Therefore, development consists in
strengthening the wholes of society economics,
politics, ethics and religions as well as the
individuals.
VS. Robert Packenham (1973) That all good
things go together, that science, technology,
industry and democracy are part of a seamless web
5
(No Transcript)
6
Indian issues and conflicts
Issues - Regional disparity (i.e. Kerala 90
literacy Assam 20)--gt wide variations of the
education policy - Poverty (20 live in a state
of absolute poverty) --gt black market, narcotics,
corruption - Land occupied by China Berubari,
Haji Pir and a portion of Kachch relinquished to
Pakistan, Tin Bigha to Bangladesh
(Hindutva) Regional Conflict - Punjab Sikh
discrimination Khalistan Sikh discrimination -
Kashmir Jammu (occupied Kashmir)- Azad (free
Kashmir) a) The cause of two full scale
wars. The ongoing issue is fraught with
misunderstanding and accidents b) A
perpetuating conflict, as the costs have so far
been tolerable (200 Indian soldiers die every
year). Moreover, a bilateral agreement does not
seem possible.
7
UN Involvement
UN Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan
(UNMOGIP), responsible since 1949 for patrolling
the cease-fire line in Kashmir
UN India-Pakistan Observation Mission (UNIPOM),
established to patrol the border between India
and Pakistan during and immediately after the
1965 war.
- India has been and enthusiastic supporter
of the peacekeeping philosophy - India
outranked (1970s) all other states in the size
of total forces that had served in peacekeeping
missions
8
An Altered Perception
Indians sheltered Jewish people who faced Roman
persecution, the Zoroastrians who fled the
Islamic sword and who are the proud Parsi
community today, and the Tibetan Buddhists who
today face the communist secularism persecution
of religion. India even gave the Muslim
minority gifts such as separate personal laws,
special status to the only Muslim majority state
-- Kashmir, and other rights that are even
unheard of in the United States of America.
Islamic law was given precedence over the
national law in instances that came under Muslim
personal law. The Constitution was changed when
the courts, in the Shah Bano case, ruled that a
secular nation must have one law, not separate
religious laws. Islamic religious and educational
institutions were given a policy of non-
interference
9
Indias Economy
- India is the seventh largest and second
most populous country in the world. A new spirit
of economic freedom is now stirring in the
country, bringing sweeping changes in its wake. A
series of ambitious economic reforms aimed at
deregulating the country and stimulating foreign
investment has moved India firmly into the front
ranks of the rapidly growing Asia Pacific region
and unleashed the latent strengths of a complex
and rapidly changing nation.
- India's process of economic reform is
firmly rooted in a political consensus that spans
her diverse political parties. India's democracy
is a known and stable factor (for nearly half a
century). Importantly, India has no fundamental
conflict between its political and economic
systems. Its political institutions have fostered
an open society with strong collective and
individual rights and an environment supportive
of free economic enterprise.
- India's exports growth between February
and April this year was the highest in Asia at
5.8 per cent, a review of foreign trade trends
has said. The country's imports during the period
slid by a similar margin
- However, Indias per capita of 1, 422, still
remains problematic (Kenya, Uganda)
http//www.meadev.gov.in/news/clippings/19990807/i
e.htm
10
Economic Predictions
- Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB) has
predicted that India will be the next economic
miracle in Asia, terming the country as the
"stealth" miracle economy of the past half-decade.
- One major driver of this economic growth is
likely to be software exports. According to CSFB
chief regional economist P K Basu, software
exports will soon be capable of funding a much
higher level of imports and by 2005, annual
software exports should be over 35 billion,
which is equal to India's total exports this
year, thus reducing the external financing
constraints over this period.
- In its latest economic research article
released last week, CSFB has raised its five-year
GDP growth forecast for India to 7.5 per cent.
While its current fiscal year's growth forecast
remains unchanged, the forecast for 2000-01 has
been raised to 7.3 per cent.
Why? It is becoming increasingly evident
to foreign investors that
one can make money in India
11
Birth Rate (1981-97)
12
Infant Mortality (1981-97)
13
Death Rate (1981-97)