Alternative economic survey 1994 - 95

The Economic Survey gives an overty rosy, simplistic, and part of picture of the state of the Indian economy. The manner in which the economy whects the lives of the people, especially the poor, weak and marginalised is barely captured in the official Economic Survey. It is with this concem for providing a more realistic picture of the State of the economy as it impinges on the lives and living of the citizens that this Alternative Economic Survey has been brought out

This survey is part of an on-going exercise, and some of us have been contributing to this annual exercise since 1992-93. It attempts to provide a more people-centred review of the plans, policies and performance, in particular the impact of Fiscal Stabilization and Structural Adjustment Programme (FISSAP) on the Indian economy, its various sectors, social groups, and its long-term development including the state of its natural resources. The Alternative Survey Group is an informal group of concerned citizens who despite the limitations of available information, resources and time, consider it a worthwhile exercise.

We believe that the Indian economy can be steered onto an alternative path of people-centred development. People-centred development is no empty slogan for giving lip-service. It involves breaking off from the primacy of the pursuit of economic growth i.e. growth of production as an end in itself. Infact, economic growth in its isolated supremacy is a thin cover for serving the interests of big business-both Indian and foreign who are now acting as Siamese twins. On the contrary, our concept of people-centred development involves institution of processes which enable the people to acquire without delay increasing participation and stake the economy as workers, producers and consumers and in the polity as empowered decision-makers simultaneously and in a manner rooted in the cultural milieu of the masses. And we sincerely hope that this endeavour of ours would provide a meaningful input in the search for an alternative paradigm and set of policies which include elements of social justice into the economic framework, as its integral parts and not as mere after thought.