Wednesday, March 21, 2018



Hanumantha Rao 

My Journey From Marxism—Leninism to Nehruvian Socialism  by Dr.C.H.Hanumantha Rao ; Published by Academic Foundation ; Pages 309 ; Price Rs 1295/-
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 The Communist Manifesto begins thus:-
A spectre is haunting Europe -- the spectre of communism.
 That same spectre was haunting the minds of intelligentsia and youth in India during the Forties and the Fifties. The London School of Economics and the dynamic teachers there swayed the thoughts of young Indians. Jawaharalal Nehru favoured a Fabian type of socialism after he fell under the influence of Sidney and Beatrice Webb and Harold Laski.
One of the young students who were swept by this intellectual tsunami is Prof Hanumantha Rao (hereafter Prof.Rao ). During the 12 years ending in 1957 when Prof.Rao completed his post graduation he came under the spell of Marxist ideology. Prof.Rao analyses  this and the subsequent phase of disillusionment with the relevance of Marxism-Leninism.
 As a young communist Prof.Rao  “was exposed almost exclusively to Marxian literature and interaction with communist leaders and workers for six years, including the period spent in jails and underground until 1951-52 with hardly any exposure to other streams of thought.”
 We have an incisive analysis of the discussions between P.C.Joshi, B.T.Ranadive and Chandra Rajasekhara Rao—all doughty, fiery leaders of the Left. With the downfall of the Soviet Union the communist movement in India lost its “independence of approach towards a  proper understanding of the  prevailing social structure and analysing the evolving socio—political situation.”  All of us know the C P I strongly defended the infamous promulgation of Emergency  by Indira Gandhi.
 After joining the Delhi School of Economics, the author ceased to be “ active in the political movement and was concentrating on  his studies in Nehruvian socialism through planning in a mixed economy under democracy--which proved to be decisive for  him. It appealed to him by “ it’s emphasis on openness  and democratic framework which provided ample scope for alterations in the model in response to changing needs.”
 Prof.Rao found himself immersed by the Nehruvian approach and this certainly proved a source of inspiration for his work of the next three decades at the Institute of Economic Growth. Total belief by the Indian communist movement in the basic tenets of Marxism-Leninism rendered them unable “ to take a proper stand on many issues.”
Prof.Rao was in the Planning Commission when the Government was headed by Smt.Indira Gandhi and her son Rajiv Gandhi. About  his years with the Planning Commission (1982—1986) Prof.Rao writes,   “ The greatest contribution of Indira Gandhi in the field of economic planning was to make the whole planning process relevant to the common people”. Prof.Rao believed that “ there is a need to step up public investment in physical and social infrastructure as this would strengthen private investment.”
He found Rajiv Gandhi “ forward looking, highly technology conscious, keen on inducting talent and expertise in the process of planning and decision making. Rajiv took two mature initiatives----Introduction of Information Technology and Panchayati Raj institutions.The latter went into a limbo.
One interesting anecdote is worth recounting Rajiv Gandhi during a meeting of economists, members of the Planning Commission and government officials declared “… with all respect to the senior economists present here, I would like to mention a saying that economists are those who are heavily paid for making forecasts which often go wrong”. At this, Dr.Raja Chelliah who was equally forthright and relaxed gently retorted, “Sir, since we are not paid heavily our forecasts can never go wrong”. The PM greeted the remark with a heavy laugh. 
Prof.Rao resigned from the Planning Commission to resume his academic work in the Institute of Economic Growth.
 One chapter of the book brings out the resources position of States flowing from the recommendations of the 7th and 8th Finance Commissions. Other subjects discussed are Globalisation and economic reforms in India consequent to the breakdown of centralised planning in the erstwhile socialist nations and the relevance of the Nehruvian model of development. 
The Chapter “From Vishal Andhra to Telengana” discusses thoroughly issues relating to the viability  of smaller States and development issues. Issues germane to Telengana are discussed at length. Fears about the demands for smaller States cropping up as well as Telengana becoming a stronghold for Naxalism and religious fundamentalism have been discussed . Prof.Rao has provided  an incisive  analysis of the problems faced by Telengana.

Prof.Rao has devoted one full section on “Inclusive Growth”. There are twelve essays which  analyse succinctly a variety of problems—Issues related to Agriculture, Rural Development, Adivasis, Children, Poverty Alleviation, Sustainable Development.  There is an essay on the “Language Question” very relevant today even though written in 1954.
 There are delightful pen portraits of leading intellectuals of India –V.K.R.V.Rao,P.N.Dhar, Dharm Narain. Thought provoking comments are provided on books by Michael Lipton, K.N.Raj and Deepak Nayyar among others.
This is a volume that is at once refreshing and full of insights which portrays one intellectual’s journey from semi-darkness to light and it is told with astonishing honesty and modesty. The book deserves to be read by the youth of the country and those interested in the development of Indian polity in the last 50 years.
P.P.Ramachandran.
18/03/2018

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