Members of the Amra Bengali movement in Kolkata protesting proposed legislation that would endanger the Bengali population of Darjeeling, West Bengal.

By Ac. Kalyaneshvarananda Avt.

What is Globalization? The process by which businesses or other organizations develop international influence or start operating internationally, is called globalization.

Globalization increases interaction and integration between people, companies and governments worldwide. Globalization spread all over the world because of improved interaction and integration between people, groups and businesses. This has happened because of improved transportation, communication technology, improved interaction in trade, ideas and culture. Another reason for the quick spreading of globalization is the importance of foreign direct investment (FDI). All of the developing world or even the developed and under-developed world need investment from far and near. Globalization connects the world as never before and has made important decision-making faster than ever before. With investment available, business handicaps were being reduced so that businesses were coming up quickly.

But humane weaknesses always dominate and although globalization could help humanity in a big way, certain weaknesses made globalization create negative developments. It is just like democracy. On the face of it, democracy is a noble principle, but without basic morality, education and socio-economic consciousness, democracy naturally reduces to mobocracy. A beautiful and noble principle becomes a huge negativity –corruption is let loose and democracy becomes a gigantic handicap. Might is Right is rule of the brute, but these days this kind of rule is becoming the norm even in culturally developed countries. Similarly, although on the face of it globalization appears to be a noble principle, in absence of humane consideration it creates a widening gap between the rich and the poor, between rich countries & poor countries, increasing exploits like never before.

Capitalism is the biggest enemy of humanity after communism. Now that communism has died everywhere in the world, capitalism is becoming the biggest hindrance to offer economy a humane touch. The greedy and self-centered capitalism takes humanity away from Dharma, and in absence of dharma our world is being reduced to a world of brute exploitation.

Human beings want to control other human beings and the resources. Colonial imperialism ended and paved way for economic imperialism. Globalization has eased their path.

Countries who had looted other countries during their imperialistic rule had lot of wealth with them and the colonies were poor. The looters with the help of the money started economic imperialism. Patent system was their tool with the help of which they prevented copying of their products and started demanding exorbitant profits.

The raw material is produced in one country, but its pricing and finished product market is controlled by these capitalistic companies of distant countries. The coco is produced in northern African countries, but the price of coco and the chocolate industry is controlled European and American companies. The mining is done in third world countries, but Japan controls the price of iron ore, aluminum ore, copper ore and its finished products.

Gold and diamonds are mined in South Africa and neighbouring countries, but its prices and products are controlled by England and Belgium.

With the huge profit margin, they have, these companies try to maintain their monopoly in the market by either killing the competition through dominating means with deceiving pricing and mass production or by outright buying of the company through share market.

Bigger companies with surplus cash at their disposal destroy smaller companies through various malpractices like influencing politicians, preparing cartels, changing rules and regulations. Consequently, it becomes very difficult for others to run their business.

Maintaining monopoly and controlling the prices of raw material and finished product is the key to the current economic system.

Because of the Internet, the business has now become boundary less and hence some companies have grown so big that they can influence many small and medium size economies or countries.

The Chinese economic might is ready to crush the small African nations, SE Asian countries and also south Asian countries like Pakistan and Shri Lanka. These countries do not have a strong economic base. Apparently, “helpful“ China devours everything they have through mischievous and deceiving means. The debt trap they fall in get them swallowed by the Chinese dragon. This creates conflicts between man and man, states vs. states and countries vs. countries. The war machine needs money as they have to buy arms from rich countries like China and USA. This is a vicious cycle wherefrom small countries can never come out. This exploitation is not limited to rich countries like USA or China. The capitalists of all countries follow the same rule because of their self-centered, inhuman and greedy approach.

How can the Indian capitalists be different? The capitalists think alike. Instead of fighting with capitalism with nationalistic spirit, they help capitalists all over the world united by globalization. But the interests of the nation for getting re-elected, force them to go away temporarily from the capitalistic exploitation and we see that both Chinese leaders and President Trump taking nationalistic lines – which appear helping their nations. But this is a make-believe world of the capitalists and the capitalists, in absence of humane approach cannot lead an anti–exploitation fight. That is why the immediate future of weak nations is very dark unless Prout like panacea is given chance to liberate the humanity.

The humane heart of Shri Prabhat Rainjan Sarkar has given a way out of this tricky situation. The seemingly noble approach of globalization creates unequal fight between rich and poor nations and as such there is no chance for poor nations to come up. The imposition of neo-imperialism today all over the world through globalization has increased gap between rich and poor further and the process is on.

The capitalists know no mercy and lead the situation of extreme exploitation. The fight between man and man, the state vs. state, and country vs. country has been going on for long time, as in NE states of India where several chieftains are created who adapt to terrorist methods.

Shri P.R. Sarkar says that it is extremely difficult to understand the machinations methods of the capitalists. The confusing situation hides the real enemy and fight against exploiters is difficult to start. The capitalists purchase the intellectuals and the ksatriyas and instead of fighting with capitalists and their agents they sing their glories. Only the proutists intellectuals can expose these exploiters that is loose the effects of capitalistic globalization is here & everybody can see them by the capitalists under the garb of globalization.

1. The gap between rich and poor is increasing and will continue to do so
2. The capitalists purchase intelligence of the intellectuals and valour of the ksatriyas. The shudras are already purchased by them
3. The unemployment is increasing to the extreme. Farmers and village labour are the most affected class. They take recourse to suicides because they never earn enough to survive. The raw materials produced by them are not properly priced and because of distress sale, they resort to, they never come out of debt trap. The politicians offer them easy solutions – offer debt relief, but never price their product suitably so that they will never fall in debt trap and will be able to pay their debts.

What is the Proutists way out of this situation?

The best way out is what we call Samaj in Prout. The samaj creates strong cultural bond through language, literature, history and heritage. The economic issues, same economic problems, and the same economic potentiality along with socio-cultural and spiritual bond from ages make this samaj a strong group which can easily fight with capitalists. As local people are given priority in Samaj, unemployment and migration are stopped.

Samaj and Socio Economic Groupification

In today’s world large animals are on the verge of extinction. Environmental conditions do not support the existence of big animals any longer. In the past many large creatures inhabited the earth, but as environmental conditions changed and human beings extended their domination over the planet, giant animals became extinct.

Similarly, small states are struggling to survive. People are more interested in forming larger and larger socio-economic units to ensure the welfare of all than in maintaining many small states. Narrow sentiments are gradually fading away and a universal outlook is arising in the minds of human beings. Science and technological development have exposed the blind faith and dogma that have suffocated many sections of society, and gradually humanity is advancing towards an age of rationality and common interest. The present age is not the age of large animals and small states.

In accordance with this trend, PROUT advocates the formation of self-sufficient socio-economic units throughout the world. They will work to enhance the all-round welfare of the people in their respective areas and unite humanity on a common ideological base. The interests of all local people will be guaranteed and gain proper recognition. As each unit becomes strong and prosperous it will merge with other units. The formation of a world government will assist this process of integration. Socio-economic units will thus facilitate the comprehensive, multifarious liberation of humanity.

Liberty

Since the beginning of history there has been an incessant fight for freedom from natural, social, economic and political bondages. This fight is inherent in human nature. Human beings want freedom both as individuals and as members of society, and to achieve this freedom they must fight against all types of oppression. Yet we find that when any oppressed group or class gained some measure of freedom it in turn oppressed others.

Whatever liberty exists in society today is the result of prolonged struggle by many individuals and groups. At the root of this struggle is the innate human desire for happiness – the longing to establish oneself in the supreme flow of bliss. To fulfil this longing in individual life, human beings have to attain the absolute state and break all shackles of relativity. It is a natural human tendency to liberate the mind from the bondages of time, space and person, but only the attainment of the absolute can fulfil the innate desire for happiness.

Society will have to encourage the individual search for absolute freedom because the psychic and spiritual realms are unlimited, and possession in these spheres does not hinder the progress of others. But unrestricted freedom to acquire wealth in the physical sphere has every possibility of permitting a few people to roll in luxury while hampering the all-round growth of the majority, because physical resources are limited. Individual liberty in the physical sphere must not be allowed to hamper the development of the complete human personality, and at the same time it must not be so drastically curtailed that the all-round growth of society is impeded.

Freedom is a right of every human being. To encourage comprehensive, unbarred human expression in the different spheres of social life a congenial socio-economic environment has to be created, because as such an environment does not exist today.

Criteria for Groupification

While forming socio-economic units, several factors should be considered. These include same economic problems; uniform economic potentialities; ethnic similarities; the sentimental legacy of the people; and similar geographical features.

“Same economic problems” refers to the common economic problems confronting people in a particular unit and may include the lack of markets for locally produced goods, surplus or deficit labour problems, communication or transportation difficulties and lack of irrigation water. Ascertaining whether or not a similar set of economic problems exists in an area is the first thing which should be clearly analysed when forming a socio-economic unit. The economic problems of the socio-economic unit, and their solutions, should be well understood.

Secondly, there should be uniform economic potentialities in the unit. Despite natural variations from place to place, overall the people throughout a unit should enjoy similar opportunities for economic prosperity. Disparity between the haves and the have-nots and the rich and the poor will have to be progressively reduced so that the collective wealth will increase, and society will become bountiful.

Thirdly, there should be ethnic similarities. In the past many races and sub-races have been suppressed and exploited by powerful or dominant races. Racism has been propagated by those with evil designs in order to divide society and establish their own pre-eminence. Society must guard against such narrow and dangerous sentiments. This can be done only if every ethnic group has adequate scope for its expression and development. The multi-coloured garland of humanity will be enriched to the extent diverse human groups blend together from a position of strength and independence out of a genuine love for each other and are not forced together through fear or compulsion. The unequal development between a nation and another nation is the main reason that does not allow process of globalization to begin. When a particular socio-economic unit develops on the basis of Samaj system, the one socio economic unit will merge into neighboring compatible socio-economic unit and this process will continue. Slowly all of India or all South East Asia will become one socio economic zone with continuation of this process. The Whole world will develop into one socio economic zone. This is the time when globalization will yield results that will make entire world enter the golden era.

Fourthly, sentimental legacy includes factors such as language, historical traditions, literature, common usages and cultural expressions. It is the common chord in the collective psychology of a particular group of people which gives them their unique identity and sense of affinity.

Human beings are predominantly sentimental by nature. They establish some kind of relationship with the many objects of the world through their day-to-day activities. If the sentiment for a particular favourite object is adjusted with the collective sentiment, then that sentiment can be utilized for establishing unity in human society. The human sentiment for many objects may sometimes run counter to the collective sentiment and create great disunity, so those sentiments which are conducive to human unity should be encouraged, and the sentiments which divide human society should be rejected. This is the approach adopted by PROUT’s socio-economic units.

Finally, similar geographical features such as topography, river systems, rainfall and irrigation water should also be considered in the formation of a socio-economic unit.
Socio-economic units will give expression to popular sentiments and fight against all forms of exploitation to meet the demands and aspirations of the local people. Movements will have to be launched throughout the world to establish self-sufficient socio-economic units based on the maxim, “Know the area, prepare the plan and serve the people.” Local people are those who have merged their individual socio-economic interests with the socio-economic interests of the socio-economic unit they live in.

Self-Sufficient Socio-Economic Units

Each socio-economic unit should prepare and implement its own developmental programs. Factors like natural resources, topography, river systems, cultural conditions, communication and industrial potential need to be considered to facilitate proper planning and development so that each unit will become economically self-sufficient and prosperous. If a significant part of the production of a unit is misutilized or capital is sent outside, the unit cannot increase its prosperity, hence there should be maximum utilization of all resources and no drainage of capital.

The Indian state of Orissa is very rich in mineral resources such as coal, bauxite and manganese, but the present leaders export these mineral resources to other countries. If the raw materials had been utilized for indigenous industrial production, then four big steel plants could easily have been established. This would have substantially raised per capita income. But the leaders, instead of paying attention to those things, whimsically frame five-year plans. These plans neither remove economic disparity nor increase collective wealth.

To achieve these objectives, the Indian economy has to be thoroughly overhauled. At the very outset, to facilitate socio-economic development, the country should be divided into socio-economic units. If state boundaries are demarcated on the basis of political and linguistic considerations, then socio-economic plans can never be properly prepared and implemented, and various economic problems will not be given due attention. Self-sufficient units are indispensable for expediting the country’s economic progress.

Merging Socio-Economic Units

Where there is economic parity, cultural mixing, communication facilities and administrative efficiency, it will be easy and natural for two or more adjoining units to cooperate, because they will have attained a high degree of socio-economic uniformity. In such cases they should merge to form a single larger unit. This will further the welfare of their respective citizens and enhance their socio-economic interests.

In some places regions with different economic problems are located within the same political unit. For example, in the Chotanagpur Hills in Bihar there is an acute problem of irrigation, whereas in the plains of north Bihar there is the problem of water drainage. These two regions should be formed into distinct socio-economic units. Royalseema, Shrii Kakulam and Telengana have all been annexed to the one political state of Andhra, although their economic problems are different. In the interests of the people living in these three regions, each should be formed into a distinct socio-economic unit. If these three regions are converted into a single economic unit right now simply for administrative purposes, it may lead to complications.

Thus, in some cases one political unit may be divided into two or more socio-economic units. That is, there can be more than one socio-economic unit in a political unit. This approach will enable different socio-economic units to develop to a level which fulfils their potentiality.

If a particular state in a federal system cannot get economic justice, it may agitate for the separate allocation of funds within the federal budget. If, after launching such an agitation, it still fails to secure proper justice, it will have no alternative but to demand the formation of a separate state.

However, PROUT does not favour the formation of many small states, each with its separate budget and administration. Numerous state divisions will only compound socio-economic problems, causing unnecessary duplication, and are costly and wasteful. Rather, small states should be expanded into larger socio-economic units.

When two units reach a similar level of development, they should merge together to form a larger unit. This process of unification will gradually result in the formation of one socio-economic unit for all India. In the next phase, through continued growth and development, the whole of South and Southeast Asia will become one socio-economic unit. Eventually, the whole world will function as one integrated socio-economic unit. After reaching this stage of development, socio-economic groupifications will have attained a state of equipoise and equilibrium, and universal fraternity will become a reality.

Universal in Spirit, Regional in Approach

Socio-economic units are bound to gain great popularity all over the world within a short time. While there may be diverse cultural expressions and socio-economic potentialities in different units, the points of difference should not be allowed to divide humanity. If the common sentiments of human beings are given prominence and the points of unity are made the basis of collective development, diversity will enrich humanity rather than tear it asunder. If each socio-economic unit is inspired by a comprehensive ideology and a universal outlook, human society will move ahead with accelerating speed towards a sublime ideal.

A sound ideological base is a prerequisite for socio-economic groupifications. Such a foundation is provided by universal humanism, which has the potential to unite all humanity. Universal humanism will not be established on the hard crust of the earth overnight, but will come to fruition gradually, stage by stage. It will include each and every person in the world, as well as animals, plants and inanimate objects. If a single person remains outside the influence of universalism and becomes a victim of exploitation, then the foundation of universal humanism will be undermined. Hence, PROUT has adopted a rational method to solve socio-economic problems which may be characterized as universal in spirit but regional in approach.

Protection from Exploitation

Once socio-economic units are established throughout the world, how will exploitation be avoided in the future? Society will enjoy lasting protection from all types of exploitation only if an integrated ideology, an empirical spiritual base, spiritually oriented cadres and proper institutions are well established in social life.

An integrated ideology should have several aspects. It must be the basis for the rational analysis of socio-economic problems and the formulation of comprehensive, appropriate and logical solutions. Secondly, it must not ignore the human need for psychic expansion and spiritual emancipation. And thirdly, it should be imbued with inherent dynamism and vitality so that it can guide humanity forward in its quest for all-round progress.

An empirical spiritual base will protect society from all fissiparous tendencies and group or clan sentiments which create shackles of narrow-mindedness. Spirituality does not recognize any unnatural distinctions between human beings. It stands for evolution and elevation and not for superstition or pessimism.

Spiritually oriented cadres will provide a moral check against all forms of exploitation and propagate moral and spiritual values throughout society according to the maxim, “Self-realization and service to humanity.”

Finally, proper institutions are necessary to reflect the needs and aspirations of the people and work for the cause of human welfare. The need for a world government is already apparent to many people, and in the future, once it is established, its powers should be progressively strengthened. Each socio-economic unit will have to get ample scope for its integrated development within the framework of the world government.

PROUT’s system of socio-economic groupifications is a comprehensive approach to the socio-economic problems confronting society. If people adopt such an approach, society will move along the path of progress with increasing speed, overcoming all bondages and hindrances. Human society will enjoy a bright and glorious future with globalization