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Code No: TIFAC:V:08:X:ESDR Price: 1500 Category:Driving Forces- Impedances
Vision: The Vision suggested for India of year 2020 has three components:
- economic, indicated by per capita income
- socio-economic, characterised by the fulfilment of needs
- social, as a function of disparities.
Economic Vision: The UNDP has argued that a Purchasing Power Parity per capita income in excess of the world average of US $ 5120 has little marginal utility. So, the target for per capita income has been set at this figure. That will require a real per capita income growth rate of 6 per cent per year, and a GDP growth rate of 7-8 per cent year - depending on population growth.
Socio-economic Vision: The following components of infrastructure have been identified as inputs necessary to fulfil Maslow Needs.
- Physical Needs - Drinking water, Domestic fuel, Primary schooling
- Security Needs - Land for housing, Computer literacy, Vocational education
- Social Needs - Connectivity (Roads, Public Transport )
- Autonomy Needs - Personal transport, Telecommunications
- Ecology Needs - Decongestion, Sanitation
- Self-actualisation Needs - Recreational and cultural facilities.
Factors of Development: Economic: Land, labour, capital, management, government, trade. Socio-economic: Maslow Needs
Vision 2020: Impednces and Driving Forces
viii Social: Disparities - forward-backward castes; rich-poor, urban-rural; private sectorpublic sector; male-female; Western states-Eastern states. Minimal Infrastructure Targets The following targets have been suggested for above items of infrastructure.
A list of Minimal Infrastructure Targets Components of Growth in United States: According to Denison, the major components
of growth in United States between 1929 and 1983 were: Technology (advances in knowledge) 64 per cent Item Quantity per person
A. HOUSEHOLDS
Drinking and cooking water 5 litres per day Water for bathing, cleaning 50 litres per day Unfiltered water for toilets etc. 50 litres per day Energy for cooking 50 kg oil equivalent per year Electricity 2000 units per year Residential space 20 square metres Access Street 10 square metres Playgrounds and parks 5 square metres
B. GENERAL
Mean years of schooling 12 years including paid leave of 2 years of continuing education Arterial and distributory roads 5 square metres Vehicle parking space 10 square metres Office, institutional space 5 square metres Manufacturing industry 5 square metres Waste disposal etc 5 square metres Local public transport One hour connectivity to 3-500,000 people Telephones Local call connectivity to a million lines
Summary ix
- Education 30 per cent
- Management 19 per cent
- Growth itself (economies of scale) 20 per cent
- Capital 10 per cent
Other factors were found to be negative. A particularly interesting case of negative contribution is that of rent which is a major growth factor in India. Driving Forces: The following six resources have been identified as basic. Each one has a matching
Driving Force as indicated below:
- Land Infrastructure
- Labour Education
- Capital Liberalisation
- Management Competition
- External Trade Globalisation
- Government Rule of Law
Technology is a universal multiplier which magnifies the effectiveness of each of the above six Driving Forces. This report has largely confined itself to (a) infrastructure,(b) education and(c) technology but discusses financial issues too. Impedances:
The Impedances that have been identified are:
- Land Congestion
- Labour Irrelevance
- Capital Controls
- Management Apathy
- External Trade Protection
- Government Populism
This report debates how congested urban development can be avoided and how the work force may be matched to the needs of the economy. Suggestions are also made how technology capability can be improved. Issues Considered
A. Education:
- how to improve the quality of rural schools;
- how to match vocational education to market needs;
- Vision 2020: Impednces and Driving Forces
how demand for higher education be made self-limiting.
Also, an alternative to reservation policy.
B. Infrastructure:
Two basic questions have been analysed
- Why is it that where infrastructure can be built cheap, there is no demand, and where there is demand, it cannot be built cheap.
- How to empower rural areas to attract business as well as cities do and thereby rurbanise villages at a fraction of the cost of urban expansion.
- How to ensure water supply and sanitation of good quality.
C. Technology:
- How to induce Indian industry to invest in technology development
- How to ensure that laboratory ideas become marketable products.
- How to encourage scientific talent.
Recommendations:
A. Education:
- Reduce number of schools by a factor of ten, and institute larger and well equipped schools rather than have a large number of ill equipped ones.
- As a corollary to the above, move students each day to good schools rather than move unwilling teachers to bad schools.
- As an essential support for the above, organise commuting facilities for small children, particularly in rural areas.
- Impart universal computer literacy right from the primary stage.
- Offer vocational education on a sandwich pattern with students attending alternately (a) academic classes in schools, and (b) work training sessions under master crafts-persons in commercial establishments
- Replace a large comprehensive syllabus by the minimum syllabus that is absolutely essential.
- As an extension of the above, replace expectation of minimum comprehension by an insistence on complete mastery.
- Replace secret examinations by a question bank given out months in advance.
- Ideally, remove all restrictions to joining any course of study by replacing the filtering that now occurs at entry by filtering at the exit.
- In higher education, let the state support only that number of students which the economy needs and no more.
- Entitle all employees to, say, 3 years of paid leave for continuing education.
B. Infrastructure:
1. Empower villages to support large Business Districts the way cities do by
a. establishing a dedicated transport corridor linking together loops of villages;
b. running frequent and fast transport services round each loop.
2. Ensure abundant water supply by harvesting rainwater and re-using it four times:
a. as potable water,
b. for flushing toilets,
c. for operating biodigesters and
d. for irrigating energy farms.
C. Technology:
1. Have Technology Product Missions for all major products with Department of Science and Technology acting (a) as facilitator and financial contributor to
technology development, and
(b) as a force to bring together research engineers, manufacturers and venture capitalists.
2. Legislate a suitable scheme for “sweat capital”.
3. Institute an insurance system to help induct new technology products into the market.
4. Establish a system of Technology Watch and a national digital database for patents and other industrial product information.
5. Separate scientific careers from administrative careers with attractive opportunities for contract appointments on deputation. Technology Missions The fields which are commercially the most significant are not necessarily in the most glamorous branches of technology. Given below are areas of technology which the country needs badly, and where technology missions will have the greatest social impact.
1. Ensuring rural connectivity comparable to what medium sized cities enjoy.
2. Harvesting of rainfall and multiple re-use of water.
3. Domestic fuel.
4. Electrical vehicles.
5.Building materials
6. Computer literacy and learning technical English.
7. Internet connectivity to all schools.
8. National digital library.
Vision 2020: Impednces and Driving Forces
xii In brief, an attempt has been made to identify the manner Impedances come in the way
of progress, and to devise infrastructure, education and technology as effective Driving
Forces for rapid need-based economic progress of a socially just society.
