The Impact Of The Current And Future Globalization On India

By Author: Henry Ford
Total Articles: 189
Comment this article

Globalization means different things to different states and nations. This is especially so when one considers the levels of development of the different states. At one end we have the developed nations which are the major drivers and to some extend beneficiaries of the process whereas on the other side we have the developing countries such as India that are still awakening to the reality of a global world. The latter countries already experience and hope for more benefits, suspicious of hidden costs and express concern of the apparent drawbacks such as the loss of cultural values, continued diminishing of power and influence of the nation state and general exploitation by the rich nations (Apodaca, 2002). In the modern world there is a swift flow of information, less restrictions in the exchange of goods and services through a multitude of mediums. It is common for people to come across terms such as human rights, democracy, free trade and equality among the genders etc. However some of these ideologies are opposed to the religious and cultural practices of the Indian people. Not to mention the fact that the ideas are yet to ...
... take root in most of the developed countries though the countries strongly continue to advocate for the same in the developing countries. It is for this reason that some Indian scholars remain skeptical of globalization labeling it as the new form of colonialism. The structural changes in society are purportedly embraced by the marginalized groups who view the alteration as the only means to recovery. These ones among many others view globalization as the only savior of the Indian people. The reasons being the boom in the economy, incidences of unemployment and poverty being significantly reduced and most importantly the country has emerged as a major competitor in the global market. The culture of the Indian people which had been oppressive to a fraction of the population is fast fading off. This has enabled a universal culture that cuts across the cultural boundaries enabling the people to live together in harmony (Rudra N (2005).
The Indian economy
There are four major economic flows in a global society. There are the goods and services such as imports/ exports, labor that is characterized by the population, capital in terms of investment, technology, e.g. use of inventions and coming up with innovations of various kinds. The Indian economy has been able to grow considerably in the last decade or so years due to the opening up of the government on the much controlled and oppressed economy. This opening up came as a result of globalization. The economic growth of the country have been quite high, there was a boom in the exports, reduction in poverty levels, rate of inflation and also the government has stopped begging for aid. Similarly the qualities of goods in the Indian market have improved as some of the local companies have ventured into international business by ensuring that they set companies abroad. The common man also benefits from the advancement in technology since commodities such as mobiles, clothes and services like transportation have been made quite affordable.
The industries in India are becoming more efficient and focused on the needs of the customers. Since the international market is open, industrial growth has gotten a major boost thus improving competitiveness (Apodaca, 2002). This is in terms of prices, costs, variety and quality of the goods. This impressive performance of the industrial sector would not have been possible if it were not for the globalization. The fact that the Indian industries have expanded their operations abroad the government has also allowed foreign investors in the country. This has been very significant as it has helped to improve the wage levels and the productivity of the workers.
In the agricultural sector there have been fewer reforms that would enable the stakeholders to benefit from globalization. However even with the little globalization there are farmers that utilize modern technology and got their goods into international markets. These led to improvement of the yields and secure competitive prices for their goods. The goods that benefited from the high priced exports include flowers, fruits, rice mangoes and spices. Similarly an Indian company dealing with mobile telephone has provided the farmers with an on line information on climate and market price. This is on a real-time basis thus enabling the farmers to access competitive prices for their goods. In so doing the farmers are saved from the exploitation of the middlemen. There is however some resistance from politicians and traders such that the farmers benefit but little from globalization. These restrictive measures and policies have strongly acted in disfavor of the farmers attempts at more profitable large scale farming. These policies by the government have been major impediments in the agricultural sector thus limiting the benefits of globalization.
In India the service sector has been transformed by globalization. The most notable growth has been recorded in telecommunication, capital markets and entertainment industry. A boom in these sectors has greatly enhanced employment opportunities, created wealth and income to those that are doing the business. These sectors had remained inefficient and dormant under the government monopolies. If it were not for globalization the citizens would still be getting poor services from these government enterprises. At the moment India boasts of capital market which is highly rated in the world, it is the leading in the software industry worldwide in addition to the continued thriving of a number of other industries including tourism, travel, steel, hotels, engineering and food processing.
Those opposed to globalization on the other hand argue that the economies of the rich and developed countries are likely to be the beneficiaries of globalization and not Indian and other developing countries. The foreign companies that are established in India for instance require highly skilled personnel that cannot be accessed from the local population (Gidwani and Sivaramakrishnan 2003). This means the foreign companies not only repatriate profits but also guarantee employment to their citizens. The local labor force is employed for the unskilled and semi-skilled work that is not well paying. Equally globalization is in favor of free trade which encourages damping in the country. The continued flow of cheap and sometimes low quality goods and services from other countries threatens the existence of infant industries in India.

The author is associated with

The author is senior writer at https://www.allacademicanswers.com