Impact of Gandhian Thoughts on Globalization with special reference to Swadeshi

Sunanda Sharma

Abstracts : Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi the great national hero has given valuable contribution to make India independent and economically sound. Mahatma Gandhi and his ideologies were quite successful among the common masses. He employed of non cooperation, non violence and peaceful resistance as his weapons in the struggle against British rule. He found the clue to hold Indian people together against the western concepts of ‘Nation’ being one race, one religion and one language. He always believed in the idea of “unity in diversity”. In his whole life he battled against the cult of violence and war against the cruelty of man to man in equality and discrimination. He fought to give equal rights to each and every person of the society irrespective of their cast and religion. By the efforts of Mahatma Gandhi India became independent and economically sound because outsourcing of raw material from India to England had ceased. Indian capital remained in India and gave best utility to the Indians. He encourages cottage and village industries to improve the economic condition of the country. By the encouragement of Mahatma Gandhi small scale trading of pure Indian products started and gradually small scale business changed into industries. After a passage of time the small scale industries grew in the form of large scale industries and worked rapidly. By industrialization Indian economy became sound. After independence during five years planning there have been great changes in Indian economy and composition of Indian foreign trade. India became self sufficient and started exporting goods to many countries. As a result of Gandhiji’s efforts, after 1991, India became global and started trading with various countries.

Mohan Das Karamchand Gandhi the great national hero has given valuable contribution to make India independent and economically sound. Mahatma Gandhi and his ideologies were quite successful among the common masses. He employed non cooperation, non violence and peaceful resistance as his weapons in the struggle against British rule. He found the clue to hold Indian people together against the western concepts of ‘Nation’ being one race, one religion and one language. He always believed in the idea of “unity in diversity”. In his whole life he battled against the cult of violence and war against the cruelty of man to man in equality and discrimination. He fought to give equal rights to each and every person of the society irrespective of their caste and religion. By the efforts of Mahatma Gandhi India became independent and economically sound because the outsourcing of raw material from India to England had ceased. Indian capital remained in India and gave best utility to the Indians. He encourages cottage and village industries to improve the economic condition of the country. By the encouragement of Mahatma Gandhi small scale trading of pure Indian products started and gradually small scale business changed into industries. After a passage of time the small scale industries grew in the form of large scale industries and worked rapidly. By industrialization Indian economy became sound. After independence during five years planning there have been great changes in Indian economy and composition of Indian foreign trade. India became self sufficient and started exporting goods to many countries. As a result of Gandhi ji efforts after 1991, India became global and started trading with various countries.

Mahatma Gandhi started Swadeshi movement which was a popular strategy for removing the British rule and improving the economic condition of the country. The concept of Swadeshi as explained by Gandhi is employment of unemployed or semi employed peoples by encouraging cottage industries. He described the Swadeshi movements as soul of self rule in the country. Gandhi realized that India was the country with flourishing economy but Britain’s policies had destroyed India. Britain was the cause of poverty in India. He felt that Britain had made Indian economic condition very bad. East India Company which was started by the British had spread its branches all over the country. Company exploited the country at its maximum extent. The raw material of various categories was sent to England at cheaper rates, and after making finished goods from that raw material it was again imported in India by the British at higher rates. Therefore unemployment increased in the country. Gandhi realized that the British were exploiting the country and that was the main reason of the country’s worse condition. Thus the main policies of Swadeshi movement included boycotting all types of British goods and restoration of all types of domestic products.

Further Swadeshi movement gave tremendous inputs to Indian industries. It started with the manufacturing of Swadeshi salt, sugar and other products on large scale. This movement gave birth to Indian industries like Bengal chemical works, famous steel plant in Bihar by Jamshedji Tata. Furthermore industries were started and Indian capital became accelerated and funds mobilized in various sectors of the country by stopping outsourcing of Indian raw material and capital to Britain.

Gandhian thoughts encouraged that Indian capital should be remained in India and it must be used for the welfare of the country men. Indian buying Indian products will make Indian economy strong and global. Indian capital was helpful in establishing industries which led to the high levels of production and availability of commodities at lesser rates to all citizens of every sections of society. Employment opportunities increased which improved purchasing capacity of general public. Per capital income also increased. More establishments of industries made India self-sufficient to some extent and made the country capable for export to various countries. All of these activities helped India become global.

Gandhi started the Non-Cooperation movement which was the important phase of Indian structure for freedom from British rule. This movement Lasted from 1920 to 1922 and was led by Mahatma Gandhi and supported by Indian National Congress. It was the revolutionary step of direct action. It aimed to resist British occupation of India through non violent means. Protestors refused to buy British made goods, adopt the use of local handicrafts like cotton thread, jute and salt, Sugar tea etc and tried to uphold the values of Indian honor and integrity. The Gandhian idea of non violence was first time seen on large scale when thousands of common citizens started non-cooperation for Indian independence. Non cooperators started resigning from respectable post. Countrymen refused to attend any kind of govt. function with the passage of time people withdraw their children from schools which were run by British government. They refused to buy foreign made goods. Swadeshi products were continuously purchased by country men, non cooperation movement became popular among general public. Foreign goods were burnt, student left schools and collages which were owned by the British. Now the indigenous educational institutions like Kashi Vidyapith and Jamia Millia were initiated to provide educational facilities to the Indians interested in getting education. About 20000 charkhas were manufactured. It was start of self sufficiency by non-cooperation to the British Non-cooperation movement challenged the colonial economy and power structure of the British goods.

Besides that Gandhi also started Quit India movement. This was Gandhi’s and congress party most definitive revolt aimed at securing the British exit from India on 8th August 1942. Indian movement became most powerful in the history of the struggle. Gandhi and his supporter made it clear that they would not support the war efforts unless India was granted immediate independence because the presence of the British and their policies destroyed Indian economy and exploited the country. Mr. Gandhi thought about condition of the country. He emphasized on making India self sustained and capable of managing its affairs boycotting the British Quit India movement was non- violent civil movement to force the British to leave India. Gandhi gave the slogan ‘Do or Die’. He said “Congress is at stake. It will either be victorious or will finish”

According to Gandhi and thoughts the success of a country depends upon the success of villages. If we have Swadeshi spirit in us, villages and village industries would flourish then there would be all around development of India. This ideology of Gandhi made India financially sound and various small scale industries changed into large scale industries, with the passage of time. India became independent and financially solid. Numbers of industries increased and the capital employed into them also increased. Besides that domestic production also become high, industries received large scale economics, which generated high profits. Employment opportunities increased which resulted in high gross domestic products and increased purchasing capacity of the general public. Standard of the living of the people became high. After the independence, the foreign trade substantially increased. Before independence only traditional goods were exported like tea, jute, iron cashew etc. but now India started exporting modern goods i.e. software, readymade garments, capital and engineering goods, chemical products, handcrafts, etc composition of foreign trade changed. All of these activities led India to Globalization. Program of India in this field based on Swadeshi movement which was started by Gandhi to safeguard the interests of India and its Countrymen. Gandhi was not opposed to technology and industrialization as such, he was opposed to technology that masters us and is beyond human control. He was for technology that empowers individuals and small groups and is dependent on renewable sources of energy, and non-polluting; one that leads to peace, cooperation and fellow feeling, universal brotherhood. The fact that India is now concentrating on the production of bio-gas and solar energy is itself vindication of Gandhi’s ideas.

According to Gandhi an ideology, India can trade with other country or countries if it serves its interests. India can permit a foreign investor to invest in India. He can invest his capital to run his business through his own agents or in partnership with Indian party. Goods available in Indian market may be produced by foreign company but must be in collaboration with an Indian party. According to his views if a foreign company runs its trade in India in the form of monopoly it will adopt the same path which was adopted by East India Company and will exploit the country. He himself was a clearly product of Globalization. He was educated in London started his political activities in South Africa before he joined the political affairs in India and was greatly influenced by western figures such as Jesus, Tolstoy, thoreon and Ruskin. Gandhi himself identifies globalization as an ancient phenomenon. He favored multinational trade. According to Gandhi’s idea multinational trade should be favorable to India and its citizens. He was against the British rule and East India Company and its supporting business because he realized that it exploited India to its maximum extent. He felt that Consumers should be aware about their exploratation. Industries related to British resulted in poverty, harm to workers, to humans and other creatures. Gandhi was not against mechanism. He welcomed machinery but he felt that the use of machines must be done with proper planning and caution so that it can be useful to masses rather than helping a few who can monopolies the industry. Gandhi was not against India’s having Global contracts or Global collaboration enterprises.

Globalization as a system has its own rules, logics and pressures. It seems from history that Globalization is a process which has been going on for a long time.  Globalization results in increase at goods and services increase in investments and explosion in functional transactions. These changes increased choices and created more goods and services for consumption. By Globalization goods were being produced in multiple stages at various locations.

The free trade policy of the govt. of India stood in the way of development of the country when the British were exploiting the country by sending raw material to England and by making some modifications and making final touch, importing back in India at higher rates. Globalization gave to the country’s trade, a new shape and the country become global. It has started trading with various countries. Volume of foreign trade also increased. In 1947, the volume of foreign trade was Rs.792 crore, in 1951 it increased to Rs.1250 crore there is significant industrial development of foreign trade. By Globalization total economic and trading environment has changed.

At Present, India is a developing country and has achieved success with leaps and bonds after Independence. Gradually it is going towards prosperity. It has high level of export of modern things like chemical products, software, machinery, readymade garments, etc. Globalization has increased trading of goods and services. High level of trading of goods services has resulted in high national income or per capita income. Standard of living of general public has become high. Technical or international research and development flows, technological advances such as telephone, motor cars, broad band etc. have also increased. Infect changing world economic scenario ratio of world trade to world output has been rising since 1950.

With the efforts of Gandhi Ji, India initiated to start industries in the form of very small scale and cottage industries for self sufficiency. With the passage of time these small scale trading changed its shape into industries and those small scale industries gradually converted into large scale industries. Gandhi Ji thought to develop country, development of village is must. He made efforts to improve the overall conditions of the country at local level called village improvement. He started the improvements like art and craft, clean drinking water, good sanitations, facilities of medical treatment, Indian schools and hand woven threads. He started working at village level by Swadeshi movement. Gradually gross domestic product (GDP) and per capital income increased balance of payment become favorable by industrialization. Now not only India is producing mostly everything which is needed by its countrymen but it is doing export to other countries also. Now India has capital to make everything from needle to plane with its own resources. Recently it has made its own fighter plane named “Tejas” with heavily costs in crores with endless efforts of 27 years.

India is one of the members of WTO and has 90% of its trade with those countries which are members of WTO. As a result of Globalization foreign money entered in Indian market, New Technology from foreign has created revolution in industrial sector of India. But it seems that Gandhi Ji would not have preferred Globalization to the extent to which or in the manner in which, it is being preferred today. He is in favour of having an indigenous way of development using as for as possible indigenous and ethical resource with India’s cultural tradition. Gandhi Ji’s views rested on the principles of co-optation and understanding--today it is more about competition and profit making Gandhi’s desire to safeguard the interests of Peasants seem valid even today where one of the most heated debates on the WTO is between the US, EU led by India and Brazil about agricultural subsidi. Gandhi would have highly appreciated a true global culture without adverse effect on India which was witnessed in the first phase of Globalization and undisputed western dominance? Gandhi was in favour of India’s Global contracts as well as safe guarding the interests of common man and overall development. Present economic condition of India and its prosperity is due to efforts of M. Gandhi because a little plant planted by Gandhi in the form of cottage and small scale industries by running “Swadeshi Movement”, has grown a big lush green tree, having its large branches which have reached in each and every corner of the country. Now our country is not only self sufficient but capable of doing Global trade also. If Gandhi Ji would not have given his contribution in the way of Swadeshi Movement then India would have been dependent on foreign made goods only and under rule of the British.

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