Mr. Prime Minister, environment is more important than development!

The Dharmic civilization is surviving under eclipse of the Western civilization. This is visible in the inability of Bharata in developing policy that is conducive to local situation.

All developmental ideals and models are either copied from developed countries or are forcefully sold to developing countries through multilateral treaties and institutions. Such is the impact of the Western economic thinking that some really successful local initiatives like zero budget farming, weaver group initiatives are finding no supporting agencies and schemes with zero results, like Jatropha farming, Artificial Insemination of exotic breeds, eucalyptus and other plantations drives continue to find subsidies and budgetary allocations year after year.

The indifference or hostility of government and bureaucratic machinery towards local sustainable options and propensity towards wasteful and corruption infested schemes is all too well known and this is not unique to India. We are not going into the reasons for this sorry state of affairs for that is a futile exercise. Herewith are some reflections of broad alternate policy environment from dharmic perspective that can bypass this known predicament and lead us towards developmental paradigm that is more focused, connected and responsible to Indian civilizational values.

-         Primacy of preservation of nature and its offerings
-         No development through loan or counter guarantees
-         Ethical investment policy

Government’s primary responsibility should be preservation of nature and its offerings

The dharmic civilization cannot survive without natural flora, fauna, rivers, mountains and sound ecology. If we see the thought of India right from the Veda, Itihasa, Purana the close interdependence and connection with the nature is unmistakably present. This is not true with Islam or Christianity, which has stumbled upon environmental concerns due to hazards, thus the environmentalism prevalent is the West is shallow and utilitarian. As a policy prerogative the Government’s role should be preservation of nature and bio-diversity as it is the ethos of our civilization. Government’s policy should provide favorable atmosphere for primacy to protect flora, fauna and biodiversity

The present development model of global integration is inequitable. It provides undue leverage to the developed nations. If Indian Government makes environment its primary concern, the policy will help development that would benefit all. Otherwise this would lead to loot of natural resources with help of local-informers and the wealth would be sucked by the global capitalist structure. The smart cities can lead to civil war situation with rural India becoming resource base for consumerist urban class. Government should develop a policy which would genuinely reward economical use of resources and punish for the wasteful consumption.

Government should not be concerned with brining development

The government should not concern itself with development because it is going to happen anyway. Capital moves world over searching for efficient returns. When Governments think in terms of developing cities, infrastructure and industries, through loans and counter guarantees, it becomes susceptible to infrastructure development cartels that provides shortcut ways to development without honest and hard way of increasing efficiency. Governments should limit themselves to providing right, just, equitable and ethical policy atmosphere that is locally rooted.

Dharmic Ethical investment doctrine

The sinful power and effects of unethical loot and plunder moves with money. If we can control such money on ethical grounds, we can avoid the ill effects of that system. This would mean that we won’t welcome any FDI but shall seek ethical background of its origins. Being a representative of a great civilization it is our duty to take steps that shall promote dharmic ethics and morality thinking people across the world. We could use this to reward ethical pro-local-natural policies across the world.

If accepted, it translates into some policy changes:

1.   Housing by locally available (non-industrial) bio degradable material
2.   Low energy (carbon emission) consumption
3.   Development through ethical and smart investment and not mindless questionable FDI
4.   Labor intensive technologies in industries
5.   Low-consumption, less wastage based urban planning
6.   Restriction of high end technology for sectors of national security and safety
7.   Restricting wasteful part of entertainment/education industry
8.   Promoting trade relations that follow ethical policy towards nature and local tradition

Since we have started from value perspective, the economic aspects of it needs further exploration. Hope competent people will take this forward and improve upon it.