India got Independence in August 1947 once. But today we need another kind of independence?from foreign dependency, poverty, malnutrition, deprivation, superstition, corruption, crime and apathy.

In over six decades after Independence, India has come a long way. Close to August 15, let?s take stock of some chronic problems and some current challenges facing the Indian economy. There are statistics to show how the Indian economy has grown by leaps and bounds, and there are statistics indicating that everything is not hunky-dory. As people get disillusioned about politicians and frustrated with the bureaucracy, the search for a new entity as the ?saviour? begins. This article attempts to join the search.

Between 1950-51 and 2011-12, India?s GDP grew from under R280 thousand crore to over R5,243 thousand crore; per capita income grew from R7,114 to R38,037; both saving and investment rates grew from around 9% to over 30% of GDP; production of foodgrains grew from 51 million tonnes to 257 million tonnes; steel output grew from 1 million tonnes to 83 million tonnes; cement from 2.7 million tonnes to 230.5 million tonnes; crude oil from 0.3 million tonnes to 38 million tonnes; and electricity generation from 5 billion KWH to 877 billion KWH. Both imports and exports also increased manifold, and forex reserves rose from $1,914 million to $260,742 million. Average literacy rate went up from 18% to 74% and life expectancy rose from around 32 years to 65 years.

On the other hand, death rate declined faster than birth rate, stagnating population growth rate and the population increased from 361 million to over 1,240 million. India?s population density is over 375 per sq km, while the world average is 50 and even China?s is 141! India?s HDI rank is over 135.

While some Indians have entered the world?s richest billionaires? list, masses suffer from malnutrition and there are deaths from starvation. If we redefine the poverty line to include basic amenities, half of our population will be BPL. Chronic unemployment plagues India. Our per capita income is a quarter of China?s and one-fortieth of that of the US. Technology has not diffused well; we face infrastructure bottlenecks and myopic policy decisions hurt long-term balanced development. Corruption has spread all over and red-tapism is a harassment.

Vicious spirals

The major challenge is to break the ?spirals? or vicious circles, most of them our own creations. The wage spiral is about rising wages, especially under NREGA, leading to rising cost of production and demand, and hence prices, leading to further wage hikes. The interest rate spiral happens when interest rates are raised to combat inflation, they make finances costlier, thus raising the cost of production, hence prices, prompting further ?tightening?. The vicious circle of poverty indicates low incomes leading to low savings, low capital formation, low productivity and hence low incomes. The secondary and tertiary sectors have broken through it and are already on the upward spiral, but agriculture and the rural economy covering majority of our population are still in a low-level equilibrium trap. The poor don?t have access to quality education, remain in low-paying jobs, which further denies them access to good education. As for the depreciating rupee, it raises CAD due to the price-inelastic imports of gold and oil and stagnating exports due to global recession, further depreciating the currency. The CAD needs to be covered by capital inflows. So, monetary tightening is adopted to reduce liquidity and attract foreign investments by raising rates, but it slows down the economy, creates uncertainties and foreign investors either pull out or don?t enter, thus further depreciating the rupee.

?Trickle up??

The ?trickle down? effect of economic progress is conspicuous by its near-absence. Probably we must focus on the bottom of the pyramid and aim at a ?trickle up? effect, whereby the raised standard of living of the poor will provide better human resource as also huge market and the dream of inclusive growth will come true. But neither politicians nor bureaucrats will do all this. So, rather than depending on the government, how about taking the onus on ourselves? NGOs are doing their best, one example being the 250-odd ?social entrepreneurs? and NGOs promoting rural off-grid power. Another promising ?saviour? can be India Inc. Industry has the financial muscle, high efficiency levels, creative thinking and the wherewithal to address the nation?s problems. Their benevolence is evident in their ever-increasing CSR activities.

Gen-Y?the new freedom fighters

The entire generation that witnessed India?s freedom struggle, had higher goals in life. The next generation had to chase materialistic pursuits for a better living. The generation after that, which is the youth today, has got almost everything they needed from their parents? hard work, and they are inclined towards more humanistic goals in life rather than materialism. It?s very reassuring to see the number of students in my own college who take keen interest in our CSR initiatives even over management studies at times, who are very compassionate and sensitive towards the problems of the underprivileged, and who wish to start their own NGOs. These are the ?green shoots? we must nurture.

India got Independence in August 1947 once. But today India needs another kind of independence. We need freedom from foreign dependency, poverty, malnutrition, deprivation, superstitions, corruption, crime and apathy. The young generation today can make this happen, provided the government doesn?t come in their way. Management education must play a responsible role in this context by creating awareness of the nation?s crucial problems and motivating students to consider alternative careers, thus creating managers dedicated to nation-building through a new ?freedom struggle? even while amassing wealth for their companies.

The author is a faculty of economics at the Symbiosis Institute of Management Studies, Pune, and can be contacted at shubhada.s@sims.edu or shubhadasabade@hotmail.com