While the current economic liberalisation policy in India can be traced back to before the 1990s, the Indian government’s explicit acceptance and implementation of the economic liberalisation programme in mid-1991 can be seen as the beginning of the new reform programme, as well as its subsequent change of approach and priorities in terms of governance. It was founded on the premise that commerce, direct foreign investment, short-term money flows, international flow of labour and humans, and technology flow all contributed to the integration of national economies into the international economy. However, as the economy has liberalised, the state’s role has shifted to one of prioritising strong military, police, and judicial structures, as well as functions, to safeguard private property rights and assure proper market functioning. If markets do not exist in sectors such as land, water, education, health care, social security, and so on, the government must create them. Following the creation of such markets, the state should limit its actions to the absolute minimum, avoiding interfering with the market’s operations in order for it to function efficiently. During the 1970s, Neoliberal thinking began to occupy the minds of policymakers around the world in a measured manner, leading to a major shift in political-economic practises, with a move toward deregulation, privatisation, and the withdrawal of the state from many areas of social security in favour of efficient market-based governance. Such policy shifts in India since the 1990s (officially) have altered not only the nature of the state but also had a wide range of educational ramifications.
Given the significant inequality and poverty among India’s people, the country’s track record on social development spending has been terrible. According to Dreze and Sen (1995), India’s social development indicators were lower in 1991 (when economic reforms began) than in several East and Southeast Asian countries. The Indian government deliberately restricted development-oriented investment in the social sector after the 1990s, with fiscal deficit reduction being a fundamental component of the neoliberal policy. During the years following the implementation of the economic liberalization program in 1990, the General Government’s (Central and State combined) expenditure on social services did not increase much. General government expenditures have climbed from 20.3 percent in 1990-1991 to barely 24 percent in 2011-2012. When we look at social service spending, we discover that education and health are being overlooked, as their percentage of spending has not expanded in response to the rising population and existing backwardness. Other social services spending has increased significantly from 5.4 percent in 1990-1991 to 8% in 2011-2012. Education spending as a percentage of GDP climbed from 10.4 percent in 1990-1991 to 11.4 percent in 2011-2012. During the last two decades, the share of health spending has only risen by 0.1 percent. In India, state spending in the social sector is critical since a considerable portion of the population is still reliant on government-sponsored health and education. Despite the economy’s overall good growth, the above table reveals a diminishing or stagnant trend in India’s social sector expenditure. This tendency is concerning because, in the long run, it will have a direct impact on disadvantaged groups.
- Advertisement -
For deep details, you can read the full article. Click the link below :
