If ten years ago you had said India’s economy would leave all other countries biting dust, nobody would have believed it.
Fast forward to now and it seems that it is. The Indian economy posted a hat trick of 7.5% growth in the past three years. The economy of India seems to be leading Indian people to a better life. The stock market has sky-rocketed beyond expectations and projections are now being made that in 20 years, India will be the third largest economy after China and the US. WOW!
BUT...
Does this mean there is less poverty in India? Or are the rich getting richer and everybody else being left behind?
Let me throw a few numbers at you, 320 million Indians work in the unorganised sector and 300 million people are living below the poverty line.
Could these two facts be linked? The unorganised sector is made up of a series of people working from home or in factories for cash in hand minus a contract with little to no benefits. The average garment worker is paid 24p an hour.
How would you feel if you worked for a company that had a profit of 200 million pounds but could just about afford to pay you 24p?
Although India’s financial economy is booming due to the influx of multinational corporations, the quality of life for all the labourers is not improving.
Define poverty anyway. People are only poor in the 'financial economy' because the formal system is exclusive and locks them out. Then the formal system calls the excluded "informal", "unregulated", "illegal" or as we do here in the UK "unemployed". Go figure!
ReplyDeletePeople are not born poor. They are born rich because they are made in the image of a rich God. The world did not suddenly become unjust. We live in a world which has an inherent ability to provide for everyone BUT... the financially dominated system of living that many of us we subscribe to keep us imprisoned to the whims of market forces... and the like.
India has 320 million who are financially poor because 'the predominant system' says they are. It’s not the people that are poor but the choice of system. Change the system or STOP subscribing to it!
Why do so many suffer? Because it’s hard to break out of the system... BUT not impossible. Why is it hard to break out? Because 'the system' is designed to stop individuals from breaking out... BUT when collectives break out 'the system' will struggle to deal with that... that's what you call 'community economics' and that is part of a bigger concept called 'the Kingdom of God' – there.. I said it.
'The Kingdom of God' is the thing Jesus was talking alot about when he came to earth and told the Pharisaic capitalists where to "stick it" ...That’s the answer to this big hash on earth... if you want to know more: mail me... Amalan100@yahoo.co.uk. I am not just a ranting radical either... I just did my MSc thesis with the urban poor in India...
cheers
A company with a profit of £2million can afford to pay workers much more than 24p. The issue is that the profits get shared out to other people - people who generally have lots already. Until society stops the continual demand to make more and more money, there will be no chance of equity in how resources/money is distributed.
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