MURLI MANOHAR JOSHI
The Indian Express Sunday, July 28, 2002The United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) Human Resource Development indices have been designed on the basis of suggestions and modules provided by the international financial institutions. These mostly relate to and reflect the material development of a society. My basic point is that development of the human personality does not entirely depend on material values. Going by any definition, there are four components in a human personality—body, mind, intellect and soul. Any development parameter should reflect the influences of all these four parameters. For instance, if a society is affluent but fails to impart human values to its individual, then its development indices should not be counted as high. In an affluent society, the crime graph could very high, whereas in a less materially endowed society the same incidents of crime could be low. Which then is the developed or the under-developed society? Similarly, a social set up may have a well evolved aesthetic-cultural value system in place, but can be less affluent with less economic mobility. It is time that we look at the world through a different looking glass—new parameters—in order to understand how peace, democracy and development is inter-connected and inter-dependent. How by encouraging and sustaining the human values of even an under-developed society, the conditions of strife can be reduced. On the question of human value, the conditions that need to be looked into are compassion, the instinct to share with others, tolerance, respect for diversity. A society should also be judged against these inherent human, civilisational values. All these aspects needs to be factored in the indices along with the educational attainment, life expectancy and income levels. There should a redefining of the parameters. Only then can the human development index reflect the true ground reality. There is a need to re-evaluate and re-define what is ‘a developed society’ and what is an ‘under-developed society’. In fact, the UNDP agreed that there is substance in the view that I am taking on the developing of new parameters to evaluate human development index. They agreed that factors like the human values, happiness index of a society, spiritual level of a society should find a place in the parameters.Individuals of a society can attain fulfillment, happiness and sense of achievement without owning a Mercedes car. Whereas, an upwardly mobile society which enables it individuals to achieve a high level of material comfort may not provide mental and spiritual succour.
The Indian Express Sunday, July 28, 2002The United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) Human Resource Development indices have been designed on the basis of suggestions and modules provided by the international financial institutions. These mostly relate to and reflect the material development of a society. My basic point is that development of the human personality does not entirely depend on material values. Going by any definition, there are four components in a human personality—body, mind, intellect and soul. Any development parameter should reflect the influences of all these four parameters. For instance, if a society is affluent but fails to impart human values to its individual, then its development indices should not be counted as high. In an affluent society, the crime graph could very high, whereas in a less materially endowed society the same incidents of crime could be low. Which then is the developed or the under-developed society? Similarly, a social set up may have a well evolved aesthetic-cultural value system in place, but can be less affluent with less economic mobility. It is time that we look at the world through a different looking glass—new parameters—in order to understand how peace, democracy and development is inter-connected and inter-dependent. How by encouraging and sustaining the human values of even an under-developed society, the conditions of strife can be reduced. On the question of human value, the conditions that need to be looked into are compassion, the instinct to share with others, tolerance, respect for diversity. A society should also be judged against these inherent human, civilisational values. All these aspects needs to be factored in the indices along with the educational attainment, life expectancy and income levels. There should a redefining of the parameters. Only then can the human development index reflect the true ground reality. There is a need to re-evaluate and re-define what is ‘a developed society’ and what is an ‘under-developed society’. In fact, the UNDP agreed that there is substance in the view that I am taking on the developing of new parameters to evaluate human development index. They agreed that factors like the human values, happiness index of a society, spiritual level of a society should find a place in the parameters.Individuals of a society can attain fulfillment, happiness and sense of achievement without owning a Mercedes car. Whereas, an upwardly mobile society which enables it individuals to achieve a high level of material comfort may not provide mental and spiritual succour.
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