Narendra Modi's Development Model

Narendra Modi, the lead prime ministerial candidate of BJP party, is having an eight point development model, which he is proposing to implement if he comes to power in 2014. In this succinct write-up I want to analyze this Modi model. Although for those who have a thinking head on their shoulders this model presents nothing new, we, in any case, need to analyze it because Modi is likely to be the next PM of India. Let's take a look at the eight points of this development model one by one. My analysis follows the description of this eight point development model. Here is the model:
  1. Education & Job Opportunities for Youth: IITs, IIMs and AIIMS in all states
  2. Children & Women’s Empowerment: Beti Bachao Programme
  3. Urban Develeopment / Infrastructure: 100 smart Cities, Twin City Concept,
  4. Satellite Cities, Interlinking rivers, Golden Quadilateral of bullet trains
  5. Inflation/Price Control: Price Stabilisation Fund, Special courts for black marketeers
  6. Agriculture Reform: Data bank for Agri Produce, National Agriculture Market 
  7. Health Care for All: Preventive health care
  8. Federal Structure: Addressing regional aspirations
  9. Anti Corruption Measures: Bring Back Black Money Stashed Abroad 
First thing that catches any thinking head's attention in this model is, how Modi wants to achieve these goals? What are the various means that he wants to use to fulfill the goals of his model? There is no mention of these means in this description of his model. Without the knowledge of what kinds of means he wants to use, it is difficult to analyze anything concretely. The absence of the discussion of these means itself shows how serious and sincere this model is! Notwithstanding the absence of the discussion of means, we can make few educated guesses, by using thymology, about what means Modi is likely to use. Modi is a hardcore politician, so he will definitely use political means for achieving his political goals. He basically will use the State powers of robbing Peter to pay Paul. He is very unlikely - almost impossible - to use the system of free market capitalism to achieve his model goals. The idea of Freedom won't even cross the mind of totalitarian dictator politician like Modi.

Can government provide education? Or Can government create jobs?

Government's compulsory schooling - we should strictly differentiate between schooling and education because for real education going to school is not necessary and going to school doesn't mean you are educated in a real sense - system is specifically designed for brainwashing children and create obedient zombie citizens out of them who will never question the legitimacy of the state authorities. I will let H L. Mencken, the great American journalist, speak in this regard:
“The most erroneous assumption is to the effect that the aim of public education is to fill the young of the species with knowledge and awaken their intelligence, and so make them fit to discharge the duties of citizenship in an enlightened and independent manner. Nothing could be further from the truth. The aim of public education is not to spread enlightenment at all; it is simply to reduce as many individuals as possible to the same safe level, to breed and train a standardized citizenry, to put down dissent and originality. That is its aim in the United States, whatever the pretensions of politicians, pedagogues and other such mountebanks, and that is its aim everywhere else.”
Government can not also create any jobs. To understand this I will strongly advise my readers to understand the broken window fallacy. Modi or any other politician can never ever create anything new let apart jobs by using the political means of taxes, subsidies etc. Government is a meat grinding machine and it can only destroy societal resources.

Gujarat itself, where Modi is CM, is doing miserably when it comes to infant mortality rate and maternal mortality rate or broader human development indicators (see here, here, and here).  

In the name of infrastructure and urban development Modi government has looted farmers in Gujarat, and the same is likely to happen all over India if he wins this election. Moreover, the broken window fallacy shows that building such cities or interlinking rivers or running bullet trains [sic] represent no real development; it only shows transfer of real wealth from the productive tax paying class of the society to the unproductive tax consuming class. And above all, all these economic goods, if really demanded by the consumers, can very well be produced by the system of free market capitalism. For their production we don't need any Modi or Gandhi or Kejriwal! 

Price control means disaster. 4000 years old human history shows that whenever governments have used price control measures to stop inflation, they have failed miserably. Can Modi falsify economic laws and do something which no other ruler was ever able to do in last 4000 years? No. He doesn't even understand what inflation is! His talk of price control itself shows that he is totally clueless about the true meaning of inflation. And, scapegoating black marketeers won't stop inflation because they are not responsible for it. RBI, the central bank of the Indian government, is wholly responsible for creating inflation via its loose money policy. Is Modi going to dismantle RBI? Absolutely not. Without dismantling the RBI and the adoption of pure gold standard with 100% reserve banking, inflation monster can never be slain. In fact, what actually will happen is Modi will increase government spending to fulfill his model goals, which, in turn, will create more inflation!!!

Government health care for all will be a total disaster also in the health care market like India were private providers are doing good work. Obamacare in USA is a prime example of how government health care programs create havoc amongst the populace.

Bringing back black money won't stop corruption. As I have discussed in past, the root cause of corruption is the presence of the bloated Indian government bureaucracy. Without demolishing these bureaucratic departments, corruption can't be ended. As long as bureaucrats are standing in between the peaceful buyers and sellers, they will continue to demand their share of state loot from both buyers and sellers. As long as government bureaucrats have the power of making various decisions, they will continue to gobble up tax payers' money. Bringing back black money is a pure nonsense talk.

Regarding federal structure I am thinking, and I definitely can be wrong in my thinking, that Modi will break-up this country, and for good. As I have said in past also that instead of having one central state power ruling over billions of lives, it is better to have smaller private cities in this geographic region called India. India never was united historically. It was always a decentralized place full of smaller independent principalities. If Modi's coming to power can again divide this country into such decentralized local powers, then, that will be much better compared to today's centralized federal structure.

Overall, this so-called Modi development model is a pure baloney. There is nothing new in this model. It is a same old boring politician's promises of doing this and that. Modi and his BJP party has no clear cut vision. They cannot have one because they, like all other state officials, are only interested in getting elected and re-elected. They want power and nothing else. Pretty soon peoples' delusions are going to end regarding Modi. Pretty soon people will start complaining about his government too!   

Comments

  1. "Regarding federal structure I am thinking, and I definitely can be wrong in my thinking, that Modi will break-up this country, and for good."
    Why would a Fascist break up the state? I dont think Federalism is in Modi's agenda. What was Statue of Unity all about?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am not saying that Modi will deliberately or intentionally break-up India into small independent principalities, but based on his policy and personality I am thinking that he might unintentionally end up breaking up this country, and for good.

      Delete
  2. Wonderful article, raj! Very well explained in easy way...

    ReplyDelete
  3. A logical deduction... However, sadly, he manages to hoodwink the 'simple' people through his words. Apart from the topic of discussion here, the manner in which his party propagates communal hatred in many of their campaigns and even their posters and chants in social media in broad daylight is also what I find disgusting...

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  4. I'm really looking forward to your next article, which I assume will showcase a better model for attaining the same ends without using, for example, the tools of government and public education--and of course an example of where your model has actually worked at scale.

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    Replies
    1. Valerie, I have already written some articles on how the free market can and has in past produced education, roads and highways, defense, health etc. all so-called public goods. Please take a look at my past articles in archive. To fully understand these very important issues one has to devote lifetime's reading and research. The literature in this area is vast, which I sure can't cover fully in these articles.

      Delete
  5. oh please do not peddle your bunk as science. why should anything new be there in the Modi model? why can it not be the same old common sense applied by a Indian Capitalist?

    Modi will reduce the size of the government and reduce government spending, this is what we need and this is what we will get under Modi.

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    Replies
    1. I don't know what you are talking about Mr. Shravan. What Indian Capitalist? Modi has already put Gujarati tax payers under a tremendous burden of Lakhs of crores of government debt. Just read this: "Chief minister Narendra Modi's supporters may feel that he has served Gujarat enough and now wants to repay the debt to 'Bharat Mata', but Gujarat's actual debt has mounted from Rs 45,301 crore in 2001-02, when he first came to power, and is projected to touch Rs 1.76 lakh crore by 2013-14, when he plans his flight to New Delhi." And this, "Besides, if Modi leaves for Delhi after "settling his debt" with Gujarat, he is leaving behind the highest ever per capita debt of Rs 23,163 - if the population is taken at exactly six crore."

      Do you think he is going to do anything different in Delhi? If you do then I have to sell the Narmada Dam to you!!! And of course, if Modi reduces the size of the government and reduces spending, then, of course, I will welcome that. Do I seriously think that he is going to do that? No. I will be the most happiest person if Modi can prove me wrong in this regard, Mr. Shravan.

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  6. Electorate gets what it deserves, a politician talking about the rule of law, spontaneous order and benefits of the exercise of human action will get zero attention but everyone will fancy a business man who claims to deliver concrete ends. Modi and rest of the politicians reflect the state of Indian democracy and how our nation has absorbed a western institution.

    To analyze politics we need to have scientific or at least a cultural framework but we lack both, in the west there is a history of coservatism and skepticism of authority. We have managed to erect a foreign political institution on top of our social order but it works in a different manner compare to the west because of the cultural differences, not many will expect everyone to read classical liberalism or Austrian school to develop the critical faculties to comprehend our social issues. The least we can expect is that there will be a cultural evolution which will drive us to towards liberty.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Electorate gets what it deserves, a politician talking about the rule of law, spontaneous order and benefits of the exercise of human action will get zero attention but everyone will fancy a business man who claims to deliver concrete ends. Modi and rest of the politicians reflect the state of Indian democracy and how our nation has absorbed a western institution.

    To analyze politics we need to have scientific or at least a cultural framework but we lack both, in the west there is a history of coservatism and skepticism of authority. We have managed to erect a foreign political institution on top of our social order but it works in a different manner compare to the west because of the cultural differences, not many will expect everyone to read classical liberalism or Austrian school to develop the critical faculties to comprehend our social issues. The least we can expect is that there will be a cultural evolution which will drive us to towards liberty.

    ReplyDelete

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