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V. Prasanna Bhat

Inclusive Econimics Gandhian Method and Contemporary Policy By Narendar Pani Publishers: Sage, New Delhi Price: Rs 380

The Gandhian method of economic solutions does not see any action in isolation; an action is not evaluated in terms of its pre-determined consequence alone and all possible consequences are taken into account. An action that is taken instantly changes a given situation dramatically and this is a consequence in itself. The goodness of the consequences automatically implies the goodness of the actions as well.

This will obviously be decided by the morality that exists at a particular point of time. But this morality is not absolute as it changes both over time and across people. In defining this relative morality there will be a tendency for each individual to emphasise the rights that suit him or her.

A policy maker who is expected to follow moral standards that are out of tune with what society accepts, could find it difficult to implement them. It is therefore imperative that the relative morality on the basis of which the goodness of consequences is to be judged is closely related to what a society can accept at a given point of time. The right to work would be linked to the duty to work efficiently so that the economy could grow at a pace that generates an increasing number of jobs. The moment a duty is not performed the corresponding right cannot be protected. The danger in this approach is, of course, that lower and lower standards of relative morality can be set on the grounds that society cannot accept higher standards.

For this downward spiral to be avoided, the relative morality followed by a policy maker must be defined by those whose moral credentials are above board. In order to be considered moral, the person had to back his morality with sacrifice. Once this relative morality is defined, it would create the basis for deciding on the goodness of consequences. The policy maker will tend to be preoccupied with consequences that directly affect him or those whom he represents. There is thus an inherent tendency to prefer the immediate surroundings.

This method develops into the concept of Swadeshi. Through this concept the method advocates a focus on immediate surroundings when choosing the desired consequences. But the immediate surroundings would depend on the level of aggregation. The immediate surroundings for a rural individual would be his village, while for a nation it could be a regional bloc.

The Gandhian method makes no attempt to reduce subjectivity. It is quite clear that an appropriate action to achieve a desired consequence cannot be based only on what is objectively known at a point of time. The focus of the method is thus on improving the quality of subjective assessments. While the understanding of any situation will involve the use of both reason and faith, the method emphasizes that faith cannot get precedence over reason. Faith will then only play a role where the answers are not provided by reason alone.

The volume under review is a rare work, which recognises the possibility of accepting Gandhian methods even without supporting all his assessments and is more concerned with contemporary economy. The formal presentation follows a methodical approach and tries to argue more humanly yet logically. This is without the rigors of formal economic models.

Peter Drucker once, rightly called Economics as Dismal Science; this work though merits exclusiveness, is not an exception — Inclusive Economics is perhaps `Inconclusive Economics'!

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