Self-Reliance Through Swadeshi – Need of the Hour
The COVID -19 pandemics has created an unprecedented
situation in the World. It is not just the lives and the economies, but also
the ideas and approaches that are at stake.
The ideas that have been put forth and the approaches that have been advocated
by the West over the previous centuries, have once and for all failed miserably.
Even after the 2008 global economic crisis, the West –particularly
the US - was hoping that they would be able to hold on to a higher position
through their ‘advancements’ in science and technology and the status they
enjoyed. But the corona virus has proved them wrong. As a result, the US
President has now been reiterating openly the need for manufacturing within their
country. This only reveals the ultimate collapse of the very concept that they
have been so painfully propagating over many decades, globalization.
So there is a definite U-turn towards a new paradigm with
nation-centric approaches even in the West, that benefited a lot from their own
versions of policies during the previous centuries. Even though nationalism and
nation based manufacturing were being advocated in countries such as the US
during the recent years, the intent seems to be definite now.
The economic approaches of the West beginning the
middle of the second millennium have always been with the objective of
benefiting the ruling and the dominant classes by exploiting the larger population
in their territories and outside. The dominant economic system that prevailed
from the sixteenth to eighteenth century called mercantilism, paved the
way for colonialism leading to exploitation of different countries in the
World.
Later during the late eighteenth century, their initial
version of capitalism was put forth, which went through different processes over
the years ultimately leading to market fundamentalism. Communism which came up
in the second half of the nineteenth century failed in about hundred years.
Each of their approaches was based on exploitation of one kind or the other and
focused only on narrow aspects, at the cost of progress and development of all
the sections of the society.
Hence history had to fail them. Besides, beginning from
the end of the fifteenth century and even earlier, the native systems in
different parts of the World were subjected to disturbances and destructions by
the invaders and colonizers.
But a look at our history would reveal that Indian tradition
has always believed in the well-being and betterment of all in the society. In
fact, it went many steps further and emphasized the welfare of all the different
creations of nature. The overall objective of our approaches remained the
protection and progress of all.
Swadeshi and Self-reliance remained the pillars of our
approaches since the ancient periods. Accordingly, India society developed its own
systems and devised suitable methodologies in different fields of life. The Indian life always aimed higher and
sought to achieve perfection in diverse fields. Hence even while it was the most dominant
economy in the World, it was also the incomparable intellectual power touching
the highest limits.
India remained a powerful nation, besides being
peaceful at the same time. As a result, she remained as a model to the rest of
the World since the ancient periods. We never wanted to dominate others through
power, but assimilate all through acceptance and understanding. Since our civilization
believed in the larger welfare of the humanity as a whole, we have been giving
and sharing with others throughout history.
Field studies in different parts of the country show
that the developments over the last seven decades after Independence was
largely through the native approaches of the local societies. Our larger
society, by nature, is energetic, vibrant, entrepreneurial and has enormous
economic wisdom.
This is the reason why we were able to emerge as the nation
with a very high potential in the World now, even after being decimated by the
Europeans in two hundred years and savaged by the invaders for nearly eight centuries
earlier. All these developments happening in a period of about seventy years is
a great achievement in the modern economic history of the World. This is in spite of the policy making circles advocating
and implementing the alien approaches most of the time in free India.
The Indian society, used to deadly assaults and severe
onslaughts for about a millennium, withstood all the non-Indian, and many times
even the anti-Indian, steps that were thrust on it. It charted out a path of
its own as soon as it realized that it was politically free, without worrying
about the course of action that the policy makers would take. It continued its
journey, based on its inherent beliefs and innate strengths, nurtured by the
age-old culture of this great nation.
Crisis is not new to the Indian society. It must have
faced several hundreds of crises – of different types such as political and
economic and of different sizes – during its long and arduous journey. But it
has the inherent tenacity to fight hard and get back to normalcy. There are several examples for this in history
and during the contemporary times, besides the steady progress of the macro-
economy. There are hundreds of cases at the local levels.
Morvi (also Morbi) is a town near Rajkot in Gujarat,
brimming with diverse industrial and business activities. Called as the
‘ceramic city of India’, it manufactures more than 80 per cent of ceramics in
the country and is the second largest tiles manufacturing zone in the World.
The town is equally popular for its wall clocks, contributing the highest
number in India, with the popular brands such as Ajanta and Samay having
their base.
The town is also involved in the manufacture of the
sanitary wares and diamond cutting. As a result, Morvi is known throughout the
country and abroad for its products. Earlier in 1979 this town was devastated
by floods when the dam on the Macchu river got burst. It resulted in serious damage to the local
economy running into several crores, besides taking away the lives of an
estimated 1500 persons. But it was
re-built by the society with the help of the state within a short period,
emerging today as one of the well-known business clusters in the country.
Even during the lock down period of two months between
the late March and May, 2020, the Indian society proved its ability to fight
back and contribute in the required fields. When the corona virus started
attacking us, we did not have the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) that is
required to protect the doctors, medical personnel and others involved in the
treatment of and assistance to the affected persons. We had to depend on
imports for them. But within a very short period, India realized the need for
them and started making it within the country. As a result, we now make more
than three lakh units per day and in the process have emerged as the second
largest manufacturer of PPEs in the World.
This is how our societies turn adversities into
opportunities. There are many other activities in which we have been able to
scale up in a quick time, when the deadly was spreading everywhere. Even while
lakhs of people were voluntarily helping the affected segments of population,
many others were involved in finding out the solutions to the problems and striving
to solve them. It is this native spirit,
called Swadeshi, that is required in full force for Self-Reliance at all levels
now.
Centuries of alien rules and the dominance of the Western
ideas after independence have killed the native spirit, among the educated, the
intellectual and policy making circles. Hence even when the larger societies at
the local levels are functioning with the spirit of Swadeshi, the opinion
making and the influential circles largely believe in the approaches from
outside, particularly the West.
As a result, the academia, the administration and the educated
circles ignore and even have serious contempt for the performing sections.
Hence there remains a wide gap in the system, between the groups that debate
and decide, and the sections that perform. So our society with all its
strengths could not reach higher levels, as there are serious misconceptions
and lack of coordination.
But the corona lock- down has taught many lessons to
all in the World, including us in India. This is time for us to revive the
Swadeshi spirit in the minds of all the different sections of the population
and make it as a mass movement in all walks of life. Here the educated sections
have a huge role to play in understanding and disseminating the realities and
contributing with suitable suggestions for improvement.
Nature has given an opportunity to take stock of the
situation, realise our potential and reorient our approaches based on our
foundations. Fortunately, the top leadership of the nation is taking this
initiative forward. Hence it our duty to work towards creating a nation that
will emerge stronger with all prosperity, so that the entire humanity would be
able to benefit.
( Yuva Bharati, Chennai, June 2020)
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