Introduction
Where mind is without fear
Where the head is held high
Where knowledge is free
Where the world is undivided by
narrow domestic walls
Where the clear stream of
reason is not lost in dead customs
Where tireless striving
stretches towards perfection
INTO that heaven of freedom, my
Father
Let my country awake.
Eventually we did achieve Independence and with
the above noble intentions we established India as a Republic on the
twenty-sixth of January 1950. But alas! The dreams and aspirations of our great
martyrs have been systematically betrayed and democracy has been hijacked by
the cunning, criminal, greedy and capitalistic forces. What we witness today is
injustice, exploitation, dadagiri, criminality and corruption in every phase of
life and every aspect of political structure. Consequently unemployment, gross
poverty, want and wretchedness, neglect and dereliction of duty have become the
rule while the poor, the masses, the aam aadmi look on helplessly.
The greatest mockery is: to ward off the scare
of any agitation against this hopeless situation and to continue their sway
over kursi, society has been shrewdly divided into scheduled classes, dalits,
backwards and so on through the allurement of supports in the form of
Reservation which have further fragmented the already fragmented society. Thus,
instead of social cohesion Bharat stands today divided against itself and there
appears no chance of fraternity and cooperation.
Divisiveness, sectarian and communal hatreds
have raised their ugly heads. In this chaos and confusion, undoubtedly a great
nexus has developed between the wily politician, the greedy businessman and the
arrogant bureaucrat. This alliance has further aggravated the ugly situation
and accelerated the wheels of exploitation, corruption and injustice. There
appears no light at the end of the tunnel.
To dispel this darkness, bring solace to the
suffering masses, and make independence and democracy meaningful, PROUT stands
for a balanced and decentralized economy, free from exploitation, which will
help eradicate unemployment, poverty, inflation and injustice, end social,
economic and political torture and establish a strong system of governance
responsive to the aspirations of aam aadmi. To achieve this objective PROUT
DECLARES:
Since God is the sole Creator of the entire
Universe, He alone is the owner of all animate and inanimate objects and we are
all His children. Therefore, we share a common fraternity which entitles us to
equal rights, as in a joint family, to utilize all the resources of this
planet. Hence all existing wealth such as rivers, streams, mountains, land,
forest and subterranean and oceanic resources such as minerals, metals, coal,
petroleum, etc. belong to all. No individual, group, region or country can have
sole claim over them. Rather, it is the common property of the entire human
race. As such, their utilization must be for the welfare of all.
There are abundant resources for the survival
and well-being of all forms of life, whether plants, animals or human beings.
Death and deprivation are the result of poor utilization and unequal
distribution. Therefore the need of the hour is proper and maximum utilization
of these resources and their rational distribution.
Since all the physical resources (land, forests,
mountains, rivers, oceans, etc.) have been created by Parama Purusha and Parama
Prakrti for the benefit of all living beings, the produce derived from them –
food, clothes, fruits, vegetables, petroleum products, metals and minerals,
etc. – belong jointly to all. Hence, we have to work unitedly to fulfill the
wants of all sections and all individuals in the following manner:
We need a socio-economic ideology which
eliminates the differences of caste, creed, class and community so inimical to
the all-round progress of our people and which establishes an egalitarian
society infused with the spirit of fraternity and cooperation.
Prout believes that this can be possible only
when our ideas have the Cosmic (universal) perspective derived from a spiritual
orientation. Hence, it advocates a system which is spiritually centered.
We have to establish a system which guarantees
basic needs – food, clothes, housing, education, health-care, water,
electricity, transport and communication, etc.. For this sufficient purchasing
power must be guaranteed to all according to the needs of the times.
According to Prout: Yugasya sarvanimna prayojanam’
sarves’a’m’ vidheyam. “The minimum requirements of the age must be guaranteed
to all. “
Prout believes in granting special facilities
and privileges to talented individuals and persons at high places engaged in
essential public services such as education, higher administration, judiciary ,
scientific & technological research or who are otherwise specially
qualified. However, such facilities and privileges are to be arranged only from
the surplus remaining after the basic needs of all have been satisfied.
According to Prout: Atiriktam’ prada’tavyam’
gun’a’nupa’tena. “The surplus wealth should be distributed according to merit.”
(Note: Point D safeguards against the
suffocation of talent and retardation of progress which resulted from the
communist fallacy of equal distribution or ‘to each according to his needs and
from each according to his capacity’. Point C protects us from the rampant
inequality characteristic of capitalism. In short, by combining C and D a
harmonious balance is struck between individual and collective needs).
Human beings prefer progress rather than
stagnancy. Therefore the standard of minimum requirements or basic necessities
must change with time and be progressive in nature. This will ensure social
progress.
According to Prout: Sarvanimna’ manabardhanam’
samaja jiiva laks’an’am. “Increasing the minimum standard of living of the
people is the indication of the vitality of society”.
Taking into account that world resources, though
vast, are limited, and being sharply aware that excessive accumulation by some
results in deprivation for others the PBI will fix the maximum limit of wealth
which can be held by individuals in order to guarantee the availability of the
basic necessities for all. Holding excess wealth will be considered a crime.
According to Prout: Sama’ja’deshana vina’
dhanasainchayah akartavya. “No individual should be allowed to accumulate any
physical wealth without the clear permission or approval of the collective
body”.
(This will eliminate the gross inequality of
wealth occurring under the capitalist system and promote healthy and Sattvic
propensities. It will reduce opportunities for criminality and go a long way
towards establishing a perfect society. The resultant redistribution of wealth
will stimulate maximum production for the welfare of all.)
In order to provide basic needs for all and make
them continually progressive (improving in quantity and quality) we will have
to make maximum utilization of all available mundane, rare and causal
(spiritual) resources.
Presently many educated people, even highly
qualified people, are without employment. At the same time, the resources at
hand are either not being fully utilized or are not being properly exploited.
The result is stagnancy and lack of progress. Hence, the resources will have to
be fully utilized in a sustainable manner i.e., considering ecology and long
term impact.
We need moral people in every sphere of life –
social, political and economic. The masses of the poor are constantly cheated
and deceived by the immoral forces in a systematic way. Therefore Prout puts a
strong emphasis on morality.
According to Prout: Cakrakendre sadvipra’h
cakraniyantraka’h. “Located in the nucleus of the social cycle, Sadvipras
(spiritually-minded leaders) control the social cycle”
Meaning: In the center of the social cycle,
there will be Sadvipras who will control the rotation of successive leading
groups (representing the dominant psychology of the age) and keep a watch on
the overall process of government. History shows that so far all the
revolutions have degenerated into chaos and confusion and lost the bright light
of the revolution in part because post-revolutionary leadership was not
separately evolved and the reins of government were entrusted to the same
people who had brought in change but who were unfit for the new role of
constructing society. According to Prout’s concept Sadvipras will not be part
of government rather they will be the watchdog of the government and its
institutions.
(Sadvipras are those who are intellectually
keen, spiritually elevated and ready to fight against every kind of injustice
and exploitation.)
Essential Concrete Steps According to Prout:
The vast body of economic resources seized by
the corporate sector, businessmen, bureaucrats and politicians will have to be
decentralized and entrusted to aam aadmi while dividing economic activity into
three tiers:
Very large economic institutions and industries such as the
railways, electricity generation plants, transport systems, mining and
metallurgy etc, requiring large capital and personnel will be run by the
immediate local governments.
Medium scale industries will be
run as cooperatives
Small scale enterprises can be
run by private individuals.
Note that 85% of the world’s wealth is owned by
a mere 17% of people. Thus only a mere 15% – crumbs from the table – remains
for the majority of the population. This indeed, perhaps more than any other
circumstance in the world today, is a crime against humanity. Should the 85% of
wealth presently in the hands of the few be re-organized and made available for
the welfare of all there would be all-round economic prosperity and the aam
aadmi, everywhere, would not have to starve or live in abject poverty.
During the past 64 years we have adopted
economic policies in the form of mixed economy and liberalism which have led to
gross corruption and glaring disparity. These policies have been favorable to
the few and inimical to the people – so much so that while the bulk of the
population still languish in poverty there is a growing crop of billionaires
and some of the richest men in the world reside in India.
The wages of kissan and mazdoors have been
raised by merely 2% per annum during the last 25 years while the wealthy
classes have gained by almost 25% per annum. While the Land Ceiling Act limits
the tilling of land by an individual to 12 ½ acres, vast amounts of fertile
land continue to be acquired from poor tillers in the name of development and
bartered to big builders who are minting money at the cost of poor kissans.
Article 51-A of the Constitution has
specifically directed the State to make all attempts to narrow the gap between
rich and poor but, in total contradiction to this directive , almost everywhere,
whether Nandigram, Sangrur or Greater Noida, Jaitpur, the State machinery is
actively engaged in dislodging the poor and daridranarayan.
In India today there are 84 crore poor whereas 7
crores are living in abject poverty and can hardly spend Rs. 9/- a day. In 1952
there were only 4 crores in this category. Taking into account our annual GDP
growth of 9% we can calculate that the benefits have reached only 3 crore of
our massive population of 120 crores. This makes it plain that these 2.5% of
people at the top are enjoying at the cost of the sweat and labor of the
remaining 97.5%. This criminal situation cannot be allowed to continue.
