The Economy of Permanence: A Quest for a Social Order Based on Non-violence (स्थायी अर्थतन्त्र)

Economy of Permanence
Big towns and cities, where proportionately larger stocks of grain are to be
held, can build pucca cement godowns. These can be built either by the
Municipality or by private people to be rented out for grain storage, or better
still, by Co-operative Societies.. These godowns should be licensed and
subjected to periodical inspection, like the boilers, as at present.
If the stocks are held in the villages where they are produced and all their
movements to town and back to villages are eliminated, the chances of their
getting damaged are, of course, reduced.
Individual holders of stock also should be educated in the methods for the
preservation of grain.
Conservation of Raw Materials in the Villages : The greatest handicap from
which village industries suffer is the utter resourcelessness of the artisan. Being
unorganised he is unable to stand against the competition from his resourceful
and organised rivals, the mills. With all the resources at their command, the
mills practically monopolise the raw materials and corner the market even for
the finished products, leaving the isolated artisans utterly helpless. The
financial policy of the banks, discriminative railway freight rates and the
capitalistic marketing organization, all favour the working of large-scale
production to the exclusion of the artisans. The artisans are left with hardly
any raw materials in the villages. This process needs to be reversed. All raw
materials produced in the villages should be conserved and consumed in their
place of production and only the surplus that remains after satisfying local
needs should be allowed to be sent out. Production should be directed towards
raw materials needed by village industries rather than towards those required
by factories.
Supply of Tools and Implements: Tools and implements of village industries
are not generally of uniform efficiency throughout the land and often even in
one province. Research should be directed towards devising suitable
instruments.
Multi-purpose Co-operative Societies should arrange for the regular supply of
equipment and spare parts to village artisans.
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