Gandhiji’s birthday celebrations this year led to some serious efforts to examine our economy and society today. I had occasion to participate in two such discussions. A couple of things struck me in these discussions. In one, a politician said that part of the reason for our underdevelopment vis a vis Southeast Asian countries and China is that we are constrained by Democracy! In the other, some participants talked of the evil impact of globalization on our economy and culture! Let us examine the facts and fiction on both these hypotheses.

Noted columnists Thomas Friedman, with tongue firmly in his cheek, queried: “Was your grand-mother playing bridge with the Frenchmen on the internet in 1900?” This simple question encapsulates the world that we are living in. There is growing integration and the interdependence of societies and economies across the world, which we call as globalization. However much some of us may despise it and however much one may argue against it, we cannot wish away the fact that we are living in a globalized world.