GLOBALIZATION: Good or Bad

1. What do you understand by Globalization?

• It is the process of interaction and integration of domestic economies with the international economy. 
• It happens through movement of people, technology, capital, trade, investment and services.
• Apart from material things, even values are transferred. For e.g. Sunny Leone !!!!.

2. What facilitates globalization?

• Government policies. Basically the degree of openness of the economy.
• Information Technology and telecommunications infrastructure.
• Electronic economy i.e. transfer of money at click of a mouse.
• Transnational Corporations as they produce and sell goods in different countries.
• International Organizations such as WTO, UN, etc.

3. How has globalization impacted various sector of our Country?

• Employment: In-formalization of economy is happening. MNC's are outsourcing the work to informal sector. Closure of sick and loss making enterprises along with downsizing has resulted in unemployment. As competition is tough, companies are hiring more on contract basis to avoid giving benefits to the employees.
•  Trade Unions: They are voluntarily suspending their trade union rights for a specific period. Thy are accepting cut in wages and salaries. Thus, their bargaining power has decreased.
• Agriculture: Input cost is increasing as HYVs, fertilizers and other inputs are controlled by profit seeking MNCs.GM crops will further affect them as they will have to buy new seeds every time. Even government can't subsidize them beyond 10% as mandated under WTO rules.
• Women: Feminization of agriculture as men migrate to other areas for jobs. Women are more involved in home based work which is low paying and unskilled work.
• Environment: Global warming as countries are all connected. MNCs are taking benefits of lax environment rules of developing countries. Kyoto protocol is also helping the process.
• Trade and Investment: FDIs and FIIs are coming to developing countries leading to more jobs. But, the share of LDCs is much less than the developed countries. Economies are connected leading to the spread of recession to other countries. Exports and imports are affecting the value of currency.
• Inequality: Rich is becoming more rich and poor more poorer. Those who have skills, assets and capital are benefited at the cost of others. Those absolute poverty has gone down but the relative poverty is increasing. Regional inequality is also growing as MNCs are investing in those states who have better infrastructure.
• Family: From joint to nuclear family.
• Education: E-universities. foreign universities setting their campuses in India.
• Democracy: Spread of democratic ideals. For e.g. Arab Spring
• Crime: Organized and cross border crime has increased. Terrorism and cyber crime are new challenges to internal security.
• Technology: More transfer of technology is taking place both for war and peace.
• Consumerism: Consumerism is growing. Demand for fast food and consumer durables have increased.
• Migration: Illegal migration of people and animals is happening.
• Human Rights: Awareness about these have increased. Awareness about disability has increased.

4. Is globalization bad in itself or is there any problem in its management?

• Globalization is not new but is happening from ages. 
• Globalization as such is neutral. Problem is not the globalization but about managing it properly.
• Economy is becoming increasingly global but the social and political institutions are still local in character. For e.g. use of caste in politics and Khap panchayats.
• Power has shifted from local authorities to unaccountable MNCs.

5. How to mitigate the negative impacts of globalization?

• Invest in agriculture through ago-processing industries. Go for cooperative farming and incentivize MSME's more.
• Promote those sectors and technologies which are labor intensive as India is a labor surplus country.
• Hugely invest in backward areas through building infrastructure, developing irrigation and watershed management in central India.
• Increase spending in social sector. Don't privatize the facilities which are basic rights of people such as water.
• Make NREGA universal (urban + rural) and also for the skilled people.
• Raise the productivity of informal sector by investing in appropriate technology.
• Skills development of new people and re-skilling of old so that they can get jobs in MNCs.