I tried addressing Doug's question on changing material basis of the Indian society. My answer is yes, it has been changing. Statistics show the Indian poverty rate is declining, although debate persists on the extent of this decline. There is nothing in my presentation that talks about closing the global gap. In fact I would argue that it is meaningless to talk about international gaps. Retired white collar workers live on a pension of less than $50 a month and they live quite comfortably, including fresh fish every goddam day! The gaps must be internal first and foremost, be it at the village, local community, or state levels. As for abolishing the capitalist system I am not sure who, when, how, and where that will take place. India has its share of insurrectionary movements of all stripes, none of them have come close to any meaningful resolution except co-optation, let alone revolution. Whether you can have socialism (undefined) in a particular country is also subject to debate. This is not an apology for capitalism its just that people too close to struggling for a living don't have the luxury of thinking in those terms. As for the env degradation it is a price that India is paying heavily. But there are activists, including Vandana Shiva and others. But the story is not all dismal. Last year the Delhi court on the basis of class action suit ordered the entire Delhi transportation system to switch to compressed natural gas. So all the taxis, auto rickshaws, and buses have switched overnight (they still face supply problems of CNG). There is a remarkable difference in the air quality and all the Delhites are quite pleased with the outcome. Delhi has also started construction on the underground. This is a significant development, given Delhi has enough road surface to carry on with buses and the like. As for the rural areas, they are still quite pristine, even a few kms away from bustling Kolkata. All said and done rural incomes are rising in many states even if poverty is quite entrenched. Let us not forget India's rural population growth rate is still high, thus adding to the stock of poor people, especially if they are on the margins. On the other hand there are many rural people who through their sheer effort are actually making it in the formal, urban sector. The Indian Adm Service (civil service) formerly a bastion of westernized, educated elite, is essentially now a cadre of officers of rural background. In the area of science-based research an informant tells me that increasingly rural-based students are entering the science professions while their urban counterparts are joining the IT industry in hordes. But as I said there are others which are failing miserably. My friend wants a "buy one and get one free" approach, whereby Kashmir should be given away along with these failed states!
Cheers, Anthony xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Anthony P. D'Costa, Associate Professor Comparative International Development University of Washington Campus Box 358436 1900 Commerce Street Tacoma, WA 98402, USA Phone: (253) 692-4462 Fax : (253) 692-5718 xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx On Wed, 18 Sep 2002, Louis Proyect wrote: > Anthony D'Costa wrote: > > >If you are a long time observer of the Indian economy in an > >anthropological sense (which I am) the picture is rather mixed but I would > >say overall there are material gains (unevenly no doubt across class, > >caste, and region) and the poverty rate is declining, though this may not > >be visible to the visitor outside of the big cities. > > > > > I fail to understand what conclusion can be drawn from this empirical > observation. In the mid 1700s, Great Britain and India were roughly > equivalent in terms of living standards. After Britain colonized India, > it went through a very long period of absolute decline, accompanied by > famine, epidemic and other catastrophes that were a side-effect of > capitalist plunder. Since independence, the Indian bourgeoisie has been > on a rapid development course that has had terrible environmental > consequences as well as robbing the small farmer of his livelihood. In > exchange, a layer of the working class and middle-class has enjoyed some > success in the software industry, etc. But the overall statistic that is > most telling is this: the gap between G7 type nations and nations like > India has grown by a magnitude from $1,286 in 1870 to $12,662 in 1990. > There is nothing in the current mode of production in India that can > reverse that trend. In order to enjoy material well-being, it will be > necessary to abolish the capitalist system and produce for human need > rather than private profit. Anything else is a grand illusion. > > > -- > > Louis Proyect > www.marxmail.org > > >
