Developing India’s outstanding gross domestic product (GDP) growth rates have disguised rapidly rising relative and absolute inequalities. The importance of inclusive growth in a developing country like INDIA is to share the benefits of growing economy equally among all parts of society. There are leading two faces of INDIA. One is “Rural India” and another is “Urban India”. Rural India, i.e. Villages comprising of 70% of the population, lives in backward part of the country where education, health, clean drinking water, sanitation etc. is not proper. This has excluded many poor and dispossessed them from the main stream of growth. In contrast, Urban India, comprising of 30% of population, lives in citified area, i.e. towns and is competing internationally and benefiting from the forces of globalization and technological change. According to Asian Development Bank, a growth is inclusive when it allows all the member of a society to participate in and contribute to the growth process on an equal basis regardless of their individual circumstances. India's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate is rapidly rising as economy consists of traditional village farming, modern agriculture, handicrafts, a wide-range MSME (micro small and medium enterprises), and service sector industry, which is the major source of economic growth. The economy has posted an average growth rate of more than 7% in the decade since 1997, reducing poverty by about 10 percentage points. However, still, despite of fast economic growth, India faces massive income inequalities, high unemployment and widespread malnourished children especially in rural part of the country where there is an absence of health facilities. Seeing to the problem a concept of Inclusive growth comes into the being which would focus on creating economic opportunities and ensuring equal access to them. This will play an important role in the development of the country.
In addressing these challenges, India is adopting this concept of inclusive growth as the goal of development policy in 12th five year plan. This plan will encourage the development of India’s agriculture, education, health and social welfare through government spending .Since last 50 years after the independence the policies of India had a central focus on the poverty alleviation but now the vision has been recently switched to a new strategy focusing on two objectives: raising economic growth and making growth more inclusive (Planning commission of India 2006).
ISSUES FOR INCLUSIVE GROWTH
Inclusive growth means growth with equal opportunities. Therefore, this focuses on both creating opportunities and making opportunity accessible to all. The Importance of opportunity to all lies into fundamental values which is based on the belief that equal opportunity is a basic right of a human being, and it is not fair to treat individuals differently in accessing the opportunities. Opportunities should not be biased assuming religious background, parental education, geographic location and caste. Inclusive growth not only means inequality issues, but also enhances the poverty reduction. The impact of inclusive growth will be higher on poverty reduction when the initial level of inequality is lower and by creating the productive employment opportunities and making them equally accessible for all.
As Agriculture is the predominant occupation in India, accounting for about 52% of employment and contributes meagerly about 14.6% to the country GDP. In that case special policies should be made to strengthen the agriculture sector to increase the per capita of the agrarian.
CHALLENGING OPPORTUNITY
Development strategy with inclusive growth as the overall goal should have two supports. Firstly, high and sustainable growth to create productive and decent employment opportunities and secondly, social inclusion to ensure access to opportunities. Challenges lies at the time of implementation when the high and sustainable growth needs be driven from both private sector as well as from the public sector (Government Programs) by bringing both sector on the same path. Likewise there is one of the schemes of Ministry of Rural development i.e.Swarnjayanti gram Swarozgar Yojana in which the youths belonging to rural area and to BPL (below poverty line) families, are given skills on different trades and during the training the placement is tied up with the different companies as per the requirement. As soon as the training finishes these candidates are placed in the company with decent amount of wages. Both Industry and people get benefited as Industry gets a skilled labour to work and people get a skill as well as an employment to start their livelihood. The central role of the government should be to develop and maintain an enabling environment for business investment and private entrepreneurship by addressing market failures, institutional weakness, and policy short coming, maintaining macroeconomic stability, adopting market friendly policies and maintaining rules of law. Promoting social inclusion requires public intervention into three areas: -
(i) Investing in education, health and other social services to provide people with basic needs and to enhance human capacities,
(ii) Promoting good policies and sound institution to advance economic and social justice,
(iii) Providing social safety nets to prevent extreme deprivation.
CONCLUSION
Inclusive growth is the challenging opportunity for India as we know what needs to done so that every person contributes towards the GDP of country i.e. India. But the implementation of the plan will be a challenge as it promises a lot for rural development and growth by increasing urbanization and industrial efforts. Financial inclusion in rural areas can play a major role in strengthening the economic condition of the people who lives in the rural areas. The services can be facilitated by the Non-government organization by making awareness. However until Non –government organization, MFIs (Micro finance Institution) do not work simultaneously the inclusive growth concept cannot be implemented in effective way.
Mr. Rohit Dheer
Birla Institute of Management Technology
Birla Institute of Management Technology
