Swadeshi, self-reliance, atmanirbharata

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Self-reliance in a globalised world might seem an apparent contradiction but depending on oneself, or atmanirbharata, is an old concept whose time hasn’t certainly run out even in a fast-changing world. American essayist Ralph Waldo Emerson famously wrote about self-reliance in 1841. Then Gandhi build a complete political-economic model based on self-reliance and called it swadeshi that lived through the decades following independence till it got somewhat lost in the strong current of globalisation.

The Narendra Modi government again revived the concept and wrapped it in the new slogan atmanirbharata, which has now become the template for the country’s fight to emerge from the economic misery in which the pandemic has immersed us.

Call it by any name Swadeshi or Self-reliance or Atmanirbharata, the approach to reduce dependence on others, be it a colonial power or other countries in a globalised economy, is always a laudable goal. The word import substitution was used in the protectionist decades till the beginning of the 1990s but it has a rather restrictive ring to it. The atmanirbharata followed now, aims at creating economic value within the boundaries of the country, which is also the key to address the country’s endemic unemployment problem.

The government laid down last year the five pillars of atmanirbharata – the economy that takes quantum jumps, infrastructure that would make the country a modern nation, technology-driven systems and governance, vibrant demography and strong demand. It is obvious in the globalised world, interdependence among nations is a key theme. But overdependence is not prudent.

The emergence of China as a factory to the world is obviously an obstacle in this path. However, the pandemic has opened up possibilities of some companies also taking a serious look at India as a manufacturing base.

India has also successfully kept attracting FDI during the pandemic that raises promise for a better show as the economy emerges from the rut. The government should step up spending on infrastructure to proceed on the avowed path of self-reliance. The more we can find solutions to our problems within our boundaries, the more self-reliant we can become.