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HOW CAN INDIVIDUALS CONTRIBUTE TO THE GROWTH OF A NATIONS ECONOMY?

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Essay Contest for UPSC Exam for IAS

Firstly, we want to know what is economic growth and how an individual can contribute to a nation's economy.

Economic growth -- Economic growth is an increase in the production of economic goods and services, compared from one period of time to another. The most common way to measure economic growth is real gross domestic product or real GDP. GDP is the total value of everything- goods and services produced in our economy in that particular year. India GDP growth rate for 2019 was 5.02%, a 1.1% decline from 2018. India GDP growth rate for 2018 was 6.12%, a 0.92% decline from 2017. GDP growth rate for 2017 was 7.04%, a 1.21% decline from 2016.

Economic growth takes place when the income of people increases.

We want to know what creates wealth?

I am thrilled to see an economist frame wealth creation in Canada in terms of creativity. According, to Todd Hirsch and Robert Roach- “Economic wealth is not created by oil, gas molecules in the ground, nor by the auto assembly plant. It is not created by tax credits or subsidies. It is not even created by economic development programs. Wealth starts with one thing: an idea.”

How wealth starts with a thing; an idea?

We can start by talking about it. Here I will present two famous personalities who created wealth from nothing, without taking anyone's help.

The late Padmashree Banda Vasudev Rao (Dr.B.V.RAO), Father of the modern poultry industry in India, started Venkateshwara Hatcheries (VH) in 1971. Slowly, he made international standard quality products and services available to indian poultry farmers virtually at their doorsteps and enabled the industry to achieve high rates of growth.         

Second is the most inspiring biography of Padma Shri T. Venkatapathi Reddiar (an illiterate who never had any formal education) is an indian horticulturist and florist, created over 100 varieties of crossandra flowers and casuarinas. In 2012 he was awarded with the fourth highest indian civilian award of “Padma Shri”.

How can an idea be created in the mind of an individual? Or how creative minds are ignited. If we look closely at progressive societies, we come across examples of great educational institutions where knowledge is imparted freely and people from deprived backgrounds are given the best possible avenues of learning freely. Hence, we can classify societies into two groups viz., societies that promote creative people who in turn create wealth and those that produce or create people with a slavish mind set.  Societies with a slavish mind set can never progress because they never think, plan and work for a bright future. This mindset is amply illustrated by boiling frog theory.

Put a frog in a vessel of water and start heating water. As the temperature of the water rises, the frog is able to adjust its body temperature accordingly. The frog keeps on adjusting with increase in temperature. When water is about to reach boiling point, the frog is not able to adjust anymore. At that point the frog decides to jump but is unable to do so… because it lost all its strength in adjusting with the water temperature… Very soon the frog dies. Here what killed the frog?

Many of us would say the boiling water….. But, the truth is, its inability to decide when it has to jump out, killed it.

We live in a dynamic world. It always changes and throws new challenges to us. Karsanbai Patel (Nirma Industries), Ratan tata etc…. People I mentioned in above have taken new challenges and they decide when they have to jump and become an ideal to everyone. Many of us will adjust to the new challenges and be unable to decide when we have to jump.

So, it is the hardworking individuals who created wealth and not any other factors. 

- G.VAISHNAVI

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