An Overview of Gandhian Economic Ideas: Trus...

An Overview of Gandhian Economic Ideas: Trusteeship Doctrine, Village Swaraj, Sarvodaya

Author Name : Dr. V. Muthyam Reddy

ABSTRACT Mahatma Gandhi participated in many social activities and influenced the people. He derived from the philosophy of Tolstoy the concepts of equilibrium, simplicity, and asceticism. The economic ideas of Mahatma Gandhi developed in three distinct phases. In Gandhian economic thought, man figures more prominently than wealth. Gandhiji held that economic motives and figures were more prominent than wealth. Gandhiji held that economic motives and activities should be governed by ethical considerations. To him, economics and ethics were inseparable. One of the important fields where Mahatma Gandhi extended his fight for economic equality was the factory. Mahatma Gandhi held that economic motives and activities should be governed by ethical consideration. To him, economics and ethics were inseparable. In the West, people generally hold the view that the main duty of man is to promote the material happiness of the majority of mankind, and by happiness, they simply mean physical happiness and economic prosperity. It does not matter very much to them if the laws of morality are broken for the sake of that happiness. To Gandhi, economics was a practical science that suggested practicable measures for the maximisation of human welfare. He laid great emphasis on human values and condemned the monetary basis of human relations. The paper discusses the relevance of the economic philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi in the present era.