Why Urbanization is a necessity in India

Data is the new oil. A phrase we all must have heard. Just like oil, Data also holds potential for future wars. Either the abundance of it or the lack of it. Data, like oil, comes without any baggage. One can choose to use it for the good of society or for the ill of it.

 

 

 

India is a second largest country in the world and soon to be the largest country, vis a vis population. Naturally India also has a lot of potential to produce data. This data doesn't just limit itself to humans, but even gathering such data about animals can also benefit us to analyse any situation. India is one the fastest growing economies of the world. In order to get rich sooner and avoid the dreadful middle-income trap, India needs to urbanize much faster and in an organized manner. This urbanization not only produces a lot of growth in India but it also solves many other social as well as environmental issues. If India wishes to be a superpower in the near to medium future, India needs to have an extremely strong economy and a prosperous wealthy society. Because this economy acts as an engine to our military, which projects any countries power. Ancient Indian empires like Mauryan and Gupta empire, Ming and Qing dynasties in China, in west, Alexander’s empire or Roman empire in the later part all these were superpowers because of strong military and strong economy. One can stretch it to the latest British empire and now the USA. In order to achieve this enormous military power, the economy must create ‘excess’ and in order to create excess, there is no other way but to urbanize.

 

Also Read: Is BJP loosing ground in Maharashtra? 

 

Livestock: Animals that are kept on a farm, such as cows, pigs, sheep, etc.

India has a large number of livestock in the world. In the recent livestock census of 2019, India had 53.6 crore livestock. But the concentration of this is inversely proportional to the prosperity of a state. States like UP, Bihar, WB, Rajasthan and MP (BIMARU states and WB) have maximum number of livestock, i.e., 680, 365, 375,568,406, respectively. On the other hand, states like Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka and TamilNadu have much fewer livestock, i.e., 331, 269, 290, 245, respectively.

 

 

 

GDP/GSDP: The total value of all the goods and services produced in a country in one year. /The total value of all the goods and services produced in a state in one year. 

Now, if we look at three more data points, the inverse proportion between wealth and livestock becomes clear. Among the Indian states, if we look at the GDP of states (GSDP), then according to Ministry of statistics data, in 2019, Maharashtra had a GDP of $400 bn, TamilNadu, $248 bn, Gujarat $228 bn and Karnataka, $226 bn. On the other hand, UP has the third largest GDP of any Indian state ie., $240 bn, WB, $165 bn, Rajasthan $143 bn, MP $123 bn and Bihar $80 bn. Although this data point itself shows the difference between wealth in these states, if we add a couple of more data points, it makes this difference startling. So, the next is, Per Capita Income.

 

 

 

Per Capita Income: Per capita income is a measure of the amount of money earned per person in a nation or geographic region.

Per Capita income (PCI) of Maharashtra in 2019 was $3083, TamilNadu $3407, Karnataka $3358 and Gujarat $3275. Which is substantially higher than India’s PCI of $2191. While in UP, PCI was $991, Bihar, $681, WB $1632, MP $1466 and Rajasthan $1692.

 

 

 

Urbanization: Urbanization means the population shift from rural to urban areas in a country or state.

Lastly, Urbanization in a state. According to 2011 census figures, urbanization in Maharashtra was 45%, Tamil Nadu 48%, Karnataka, 38.6% and Gujarat 43%. While UP was 22%, Bihar 11%, WB, 32%, MP 28% and Rajasthan 25%.

 

 

 

These four data points, Livestock, Per Capita Income, GDP of states and Urbanization show us a correlation between urbanization and livestock vis a vis Prosperity and wealth creation in a state. Based on this Data, we can also say that the reduction in livestock is also due to urbanization, which is critical for wealth creation. Hence the key to India’s development lies in urbanization, which will result in less dependence on livestock for the livelihood.

 

 

If one wishes to maintain the balance in the number of livestock, one must adhere to the Austrian economist’s Joseph Schumpeter’s ‘creative destruction’. As this urbanization will slowly but surely makes the shepherds and other communities migrate in the cities, private funded NGO’s and businesses must take this place, which will maintain the number of livestock without hampering the wealth creation. But one must always be cautious not to expect or even allow any government to do such ‘protection’ work, as it will inevitably destroys the market and hampers the economic growth while failing to protect the animals simultaneously. Which is why the only way to protect animals while growing at a high rate is to have creative destruction.