Essays

India at the time of independence was a country beset with great economic problems. It had suffered colonial exploitation for about two centuries' and was recovering painfully from the blight of a distressing famine. The disruption of life caused by the Second World War had aggravated the crisis. Large parts of the country were under the feudal rule of Indian princes and only a miniscule minority had taken any initiative to modernise their states. In any case, the benefits of industrialisation remained confined to a small privileged section be the society. With freedom from foreign rule also came partition and the government was confronted with the awesome task of rehabilitating millions of refugees.

Perhaps the most remarkable achievement of India since independence has been to overcome the trauma of partition and forge a unified modern nation from a bewildering diversity. India today can take pride in its federal form of governance that gives full scope to the development of the country's diverse ethnic and linguistic groups within the overall framework of a united nation.

The process of political integration was completed in two stages after the adoption of a federal constitution on January 26,1950(the date is commemorated as Republic Day}- The first step was to secure the merger of princely states and second by redrawing the boundaries of the states to accommodate the aspirations of major linguistic or ethnic groups. This political transformation synchronised a revolutionary social change with far reaching consequences.

Jawaharlal Nehru, who became the first Prime Minister of India, was influenced by socialist thought. Many young leaders also seriously attempted to give the policies of the Indian National Congress - the party in the vanguard of the anti-imperialist struggle - a socialist ideological orientation. Mahatma Gandhi too was unequivocal in his championing of the impoverished masses. God for him was no other but the Daridranarayan, poorest of the poor.

The new government gave top priority to economic planning for development. Land reforms were undertaken to ensure greater social justice and eradicate bondage. Steps were taken to accelerate industrialisation and redress regional imbalances. Progress was slow, as the infrastructure was not there. People had very high expectations and the government had to provide for education, health care and employment for hundreds of millions of people. For more than three decades, India's national income grew by no more than 3.6 per cent a year, one of the slowest growth rates in the developing world. Its per capita income was among the lowest.

It took the nation almost half a century to find its feet. Today India is a nuclear power, has launched satellites into space, produces its own steel, and builds its own warships and many of its aircrafts. It has an impressive heavy engineering base, and is one of the few developing countries that is able to bid successfully for heavy engineering turnkey contracts in other developing countries. Its progress m agriculture is equally impressive. India's most impressive achievement is that the Indian economy today is stable and self-reliant. A powerful entrepreneurial class has emerged - almost as important an objective as securing all- round industrial development.

India's strategy for development has had many critics. It was pointed out that the emphasis on heavy industry made capital inefficient and. lowered the annual rate of growth of GNP to about 3.6 per cent between 1950 and 1975.

But the philosophy of self-reliance is finally paying off. By the 80's, the first phase of industrialisation was largely over. India now has a well-developed industrial base that can produce almost anything that the country needs. The scientific and technical infrastructure is capable of responding to complex challenges. With the success of the green revolution that began in 1975 spearheaded by Dr. Swaminathan, India has also become self- sufficient in food grains.

A self-confident nation, India is prepared to interact with the rest of the world without anxiety or inhibition. Just when other countries began to increase protection, the Indian government began to lower protective barriers, invite global tenders for its major investment projects, and encourage industry to secure the most up-to-date technology from abroad. Globalisation of the economy began in the early nineties.