Policy

What is the party's approach to policy making?

You can expect us to tackle matters of policy with a strict attention to finer points. For example, economic policy will be addressed as the sum total of taxation policy, fiscal policy, monetary policy, agricultural development policy, industrial policy, export-import policy and a host of other variables that inform the economic whole. Ours will be a meticulous and holistic approach. No shortcuts or compromises.

What about a guiding principle? Does the party have a wide-sweeping vision that will serve as an aid to policy making?

Yes, we do. Our vision statement must be understood as an expression of overall intent. This is the common denominator - the glue holding it together.

Simply put, we seek to make India self-sufficient, self-reliant and relevant in an increasingly interconnected world.

How is this underlying objective likely to inform your policies? Give us a sense of Lok Paritran's vision at work.

All right, let's take a look at some of our priorities.

Governance and Implementation

Undoubtedly, some of the most pressing problems facing our country. Transparency International, the Berlin-based global civil society watchdog, rates India at an appalling 2.9/100 on its 2005 Corruption Perception Index. Put another way, we're perilously corrupt, and it's beginning to infuse our democracy with a sense of hopelessness and pessimism. We've come to accept such detriments as bribery and nepotism as part of our interactions with the political and administrative system. This is a ruinous trend. If the system of implementation and delivery is so corrupt and inefficient, no policy - meticulously planned, thoroughly researched and well-intentioned though it may be - will be able to carry out what it promises.

Consider, for instance, the policy of farming subsidies. We've found in our examination of this beleaguered program that much of the money that is intended to benefit poor farmers is lost to the many tiers of a pervasively corrupt bureaucracy. This bureaucratic meandering also has the unfortunate effect of redirecting government aid to benefit not the poor farmers, many of whom might be in dire need of assistance, but the wealthy few, who use their influence to manipulate policy loopholes to their advantage. It therefore becomes practically impossible to evaluate the overall efficacy of the program.

Good governance is the centerpiece of our policy agenda, and pursuant to this, we pledge to undertake a substantial overhaul of the country's massive bureaucracy. We will not seek to reinvent the wheel. Rather, it is our intention to streamline the current system by examining bureaucratic processes to make them more efficient.

Economic Policy

Let us be as clear as we possibly can. To the extent that we oppose segregation and compartmentalization, we are in fundamental opposition to a closed economy. The modern world is best characterized as a world of webs and interdependencies. Economic interaction is the chief facilitator of this new global paradigm. Consequently, it would be a case of burying one's head in the sand to follow a policy of complete isolationism.

That said, we aren't in favor of boundless internationalization. There are a plethora of factors working simultaneously that determine the level of openness and regulation that is optimal in global economic exchange. It is important that we do not stay dogmatic, but rather, recognize the pros and cons of each alternative as we endeavor to find our own happy medium.

Infrastructure Development

We view India's chronic infrastructural inadequacies as the single major stumbling block to the country's overall economic progress. And we don't mean just technological infrastructure or the grandiose projects that lend an air of modernity to a place. Our concern is that basic amenities ought to be made accessible to all citizens.

For example, developing infrastructure for the provision of water is vitally important to the people of rural India. But this imperative is mired in complex legal and administrative issues that need attention. Moreover, it is essential that we develop alternative systems of water collection, such as rain water harvesting, to help alleviate current pressures.

Other areas of infrastructure development that concern us include: transportation and metropolitan growth, better roads in rural areas, and improved industrial and technological infrastructure.

Judicial Policy

Without resorting to tired clichés, it is our position that the current judicial system is in need of substantive change. At a practical level, the most pressing issue facing the system, in our view, is the absence of a speedy mechanism for delivering justice.

But perhaps even more importantly, at an ideological level, the main issue is the ability of the system to keep pace with the dynamic nature of society's values and mores. The values of a society are not constant, and it is essential that our laws change continually to reflect shifting attitudes and perceptions. The dynamic component of social morality is not currently incorporated in the judicial structure, and we believe that must change if our laws are to be made more relevant to the contemporary Indian context.

Our approach to tackling these issues is essentially to make greater provisions for judicial autonomy, separation of powers and judicial review - giving the courts a degree of flexibility to interpret laws according to the particular circumstances of a case.

Education Policy

Broadly speaking, we believe education ought to have both value and utility. The experience must be aimed at instilling a civic consciousness in our citizenry since education is an integral part of societal development.

Specifically, we wish to focus our efforts in this arena on primary education. Our reasoning is simple. Primary education merits special consideration given the decisiveness of its role in molding young minds in their formative years. Most of the values that sink deep in one's personality are developed and shaped earlier on in life. It is therefore important that we revamp and restructure the primary education system to improve the quality of human resources essential to the efficient functioning of an economically vital and politically democratic society.

We believe primary education in India is languishing in neglect, and we propose to remedy the situation by suggesting greater opportunities for private investment, albeit with a few necessary controls. This limited autonomy, in our view, will reduce inefficiencies due to bureaucracy and corruption while allowing educational institutions to focus on the quality of their curricular training.

Where higher education is concerned, it is our view that college-level instruction should be more research-oriented, practical and industry relevant than it is now. Theoretical proficiency ought to be emphasized only to the degree of practical application of the ideas in a work setting.

Foreign Policy

Our foreign policy approach is rooted in the post-Cold War metaphor of a world of webs. We recognize and affirm the interconnectedness of the modern world, and realize the need for vigorous interaction with our allies on multiple fronts: political, economic, cultural and intellectual.

We believe in policy coherence and stability. Changes in India's ruling parties affect too intensely the foreign policy of our country. The instability wrought by the failure of democratic governments in recent years has only fuelled the perception of India as an unreliable ally in the international sphere. This impression must be corrected. We must endeavor to build a broad consensus on a foreign policy position so that there is a sense of predictability and continuity in India's interactions with the world.

To further the dialogue, we wish to make plain our agenda as it concerns the subcontinent.

We are for a robust national defense policy, rooted in an appreciation of the history of conflict that has long characterized India's relationship with its neighbors, notably Pakistan. While we believe in the virtue of peaceful dialogue on matters of crucial import, we cannot - and will not - compromise on unwarranted acts of aggression and political terrorism directed against the Indian state. Our approach might best be described as “aggressive engagement” - what the Middle East expert Stephen Cohen has defined as “something between outright military engagement and useless constructive engagement.” To this end, we support a strong military, unstinting investment in defense technologies and a foreign policy that pursues technology transfer agreements with democratic allies who share our concerns for the stability and security of the region.

Defense Policy

We subscribe to the notion that peace is a process not a state. It is, like everything else, dynamic in nature. Prosperity is ultimately derived from stability, which depends heavily on the security environment. This is as true internationally as it is in the domestic sphere. Consequently, the need for a ready and mighty defense force cannot be emphasized enough. It is our view that a massive and modern military establishment is the only effective deterrent against threats to India's sovereignty.