The effect of globalization on rural India is different from the effect on urban India. Examine.
Since 1991, when the new industrial policy of India came into force, globalization started taking momentum in India. Globalization means uninterrupted flow of trade, capital and technology across the national borders by considering the whole world as a big market. Globalization has converted the whole world into a single society. Globalization leads to higher productivity and cultural intermingling.
Variation of globalization in rural and urban India
- Globalization is held responsible for unemployment, cultural degradation and difficulties of competition. It seems that benefits of globalization are mainly absorbed by the urban population of India.
- Globalization is held responsible for unemployment, cultural degradation and difficulties of competition.
The following points show that the villages have been neglected from the sweet fruits of globalization-
- The farmers are still living in Kuccha houses made of mud etc.
- Due to globalization some countries specially developed countries, have become industrial hubs covering the global demand. This has decreased entrepreneurial activities in developing countries which leads to unemployment.
- Rural population is still suffering from unemployment as rural labour is mostly uneducated and unskilled. Machines and latest technologies have reduced the number of manpower a lot.
- Electrification of villages have not yet been completed by the govt. Adding further the villages having electricity get on an average only 3-4 hours of supply daily.
- Toilet system in Indian villages are otherwise lacking or of poor standards.
- Though the govt. has made the primary education compulsory, but many villages lack in educational facilities. Children have to cover a long distance to get to their schools.
- Study material available to rural children and mid –day meal is of sub-standard quality.
- Globalization has caused intermingling of cultures. Though it has curtailed narrow mindedness of humans, but it has caused cultural degradation also specially in India. Western ideas and culture has started killing the social ethics of Indian mass. More and more people have become ignorant about social, ethical and moral values.
- Indian villages lack in facilities of technical education and it is not always possible for everyone to get access to urban areas for technical education. That is why rural labour remains unskilled. • As most of the villages don’t have adequate electricity and modern means of communication, so the knowledge-base in rural Indian mass becomes weak.
- Govt. has not done satisfactory work for promoting of small-cottage industries in villages. So educated rural youth remains unemployed and migrates to urban areas.
- Indian rural population is still conservative. Culture and social values are preferred more. Tradition is still more important than science.
- Imports make the farmers’ position worse as they are not able to compete with imported goods in terms of price and quality.
- The position of artisans is also bad in villages. They are also not able to compete with machine-made goods.
- As life standards have risen up significantly so the wants are increasing day by day but the resource generation is not increasing with a significant speed. So globalization is increasing the numbers of poor citizens having a long list of requirements.
- As the competition has become global, so it has become quite difficult for small, cottage, handicraft & medium industries to maintain constant continuity and development track.
- Countries specially developing countries have assumed Foreign Capital as a perfect medicine for economic development. But it has created several hurdles in free and successful functioning of entrepreneurial activities. Also, excessive use of foreign capital is also harmful for the political survival of the country.
- As it is human nature that evils are grasped hurriedly not the merits. So, in the context of globalization, it has changed the cultural values of Indian mass & due to this villages have suffered a lot.
It is claimed that globalization increases the economic prosperity and opportunity in the developing world. The civil liberties are enhanced and there is a more efficient use of resources. All the countries involved in the free trade are at a profit. As a result, there are lower prices, more employment and a better standard of life in these developing nations. It is feared that some developing regions progress at the expense of other developed regions. However, such doubts are futile as globalization is a positive-sum chance in which the skills and technologies enable to increase the living standards throughout the world.