Economic base of society

Mahatma Gandhi argued that the economic base of a society should not be separated from morality and spirituality. The economic base of the society should be based on love and trust in order to establish peace and harmony in the society. He never separated his economics from ethics. He observed that economics hurting the moral well-being of an individual or nation is immoral and sinful. Gandhi always worked to establish economic equality in the society. But he never used external power to establish equality, but only used spiritual power. He believed that if people develop the qualities of empathy, kindness, benevolence and a sense of unity, they would voluntarily think of the weaker section of the society.

Trusteeship

Trusteeship is a socio-economic philosophy developed by Mahatma Gandhi as a part of his nonviolent revolution. It is a concept where a person voluntarily gives up or renounces his right on the money earned by him and dedicates it for the welfare of the poor section of the society. Gandhi firmly believed that every bourgeoisie being a human being had an element of goodness in him. Therefore, when they feel that without the labor of the poor it would not be possible for them to earn money, the capitalist would act only as a trustee for the poor. They will then keep all the surplus money or money in trust for the welfare of the poor thereby establishing economic equality in the society. Gandhi described trusteeship as, "Suppose I have brought a fair amount of money by way of inheritance or through trade and industry. I must know that all that wealth is not mine. The rest of my property belongs to the community and should be used for the welfare of the community." Mahatma Gandhi used it as a powerful tool to remove economic and social inequality and eventually establish peace in the society. Gandhi had no doubts about its enduring value. He said, "My doctrine of trusteeship is not temporary, certainly no camouflage. I believe it will survive all other principles. Behind it is the acceptance of philosophy and religion”. He used trusteeship as a tool to establish economic and social equality. In fact Gandhi said that his trusteeship was a gift from India to the world.

Definition

A trustee is someone who holds assets in trust for the benefit of others, and is legally and ethically bound to manage the trust in a responsible and productive manner for the benefit of the trust's beneficiaries. The trustee can have a share of the trust's profits like other beneficiaries. Trustee cannot leave his assets to the public other than to his children as heirs. Gandhi thought that the idea of ​​ownership was basically a form of violence. So if the capitalists or rich people feel that their surplus wealth is not really their wealth and if they voluntarily put their surplus wealth in trust then it will certainly guarantee social and economic equality. Gandhi wanted the capitalists to become the trustees of the nation by running their business honestly for the welfare of the people.

Origin of trusteeship

The concept of trusteeship comes from the ideas of non-violence and non-possession. For Gandhi, non-violence is the greatest virtue. Ahimsa generally means non-violence. Gandhi gave a new dimension to the supreme human value in theory and practice. The general meaning of non-violence is not only to refrain from hurting the creature; it signifies some positive attitudes towards other living beings which one should develop. In fact, non-violence in its positive aspect is nothing but love. This positive attitude inspired Gandhi to think about the concept of trusteeship. It is true that one cannot earn extra money without exploiting the labour of others. Exploitation is a form of violence. A true believer of non-violence can never exploit the labour of others for more money. A supporter of nonviolence can then keep anything in excess as a trustee for others. Gandhi believed that at its core the concept of ownership or capitalism involves a form of violence. Centralization of power creates social and economic inequalities in the society. But Gandhi did not believe that evil could be removed from society by transferring concentrated ownership from the individual to the state. So he offered trusteeship as an option. Trusteeship based on non-violence is nothing but the ethical idea of ​​non-possession. It also means being detached from worldly things and things, and living an honest life and avoiding greed. Gandhi was deeply influenced by this moral idea and hence he developed the concept of trusteeship. He thought that complete non-possession is impossible since the body is possessed. But one must differentiate between needs and wants, minimizing one's desires. Gandhi believed that God never creates more than what is desperately needed at the moment. Hence, to possess something, more that what we need, is against the fundamental law of nature.

Key features of trusteeship

The salient features of trusteeship are:

Trusteeship and the modern world

Gandhi's concept of trusteeship has been criticized for having some limitations. Some critics are of the opinion that it seeks to destroy capitalism and support socialism. But in today's time instead of socialism, capitalism is proving to be very successful all over the world. Some people want to blame that it will take away the working spirit of the businessman which will slow down the economic development of the society. In today's competitive world again every businessman tries to accumulate more money. So a trusteeship attitude never allows a business person to accept the concept of trusteeship easily. But despite all this, we cannot consider trusteeship as an impractical and imaginary principle of Gandhi. It is true that not all the principles of Gandhi are relevant in the context of modern times, but some of them are relevant. Trusteeship is one of them. If we go deep into the corporate world then we will come to know about the concept of Corporate Social Responsibility. The welfare activities undertaken by the corporate world is known as Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). The root of Corporate Social Responsibility lies in Gandhi's concept of trusteeship. Every company takes its resources from the society so they should have some responsibilities towards the society. It has been seen that nowadays every company spends huge amount in the name of social service. Many of them have their own NGOs, some company involve themselves in charity work also.

Trusteeship in the 21st century

'Change' has been seen as an important need of every society left behind in the race of industrialization. There is a 'performance effect' where every poor country looks to global giants as a measure of progress and modernity, making wealth accumulation the primary objective of every business.

Therefore, it has led to competitions between nation states and business companies which ultimately resulted in more problems than solutions. One could also argue that the journey of growth and accumulation of wealth has also directly contributed to the widespread poverty in countries. The issue of poverty is one of the greatest manifestations of economic violence around the world. While ideally, a company's financial success depends, over the long term, on its ability to generate positive economic, social and environmental value in every aspect of the business, in our passion for economic growth over the past few decades, we have forgotten about the other two variables, almost completely. These two variables, social and environmental values, ​​as well as economic development, can be better addressed through Gandhi's idea of ​​trusteeship. In the present scenario, the principle of trusteeship has implications at both macro and micro levels. It emphasizes equitable distribution of wealth as a real indicator of progress. Gandhi also emphasized that this equitable distribution is about ensuring human dignity and not charity. Data from the Global Consumption and Income Project (GCIP) shows that Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) countries still account for 45 percent of global poverty.

JRD Tata and the trusteeship model

The Tata Group is known for its commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility, as expressed in Gandhi's concept of Trusteeship. The enduring principle of doing business for the Tata founders was to integrate environmental and social principles into businesses, ensuring that what comes from the people often goes back to the people. JRD Tata spoke of VARIG, which was once Brazil's largest airline, in 1977 at a seminar on trusteeship. To him, the special thing about Varig was that it was self-owned by the employees to the extent of 50-60 percent. A few decades ahead of time, when the airline was still very young, employees bought it, for practically nothing, to save their jobs and keep the airline from collapsing. He acted very wisely; put his shares in a trust and set the perfect example of trusteeship in the industry. Tata Trusts holds 60 percent of Tata Group assets that flow back to community projects, demonstrating a unique global model that makes it possible to generate profit while doing social good. Following in the footsteps of its founder, Jamsetji Tata, the group has treated its employees with respect since its inception. Through grant-making, direct implementation and co-participation strategies, the Trusts support and drive innovation in the areas of health care and nutrition; water and sanitation; energy; rural livelihood; natural resource management; urban poverty alleviation; and education. JRD Tata's philosophy and approach to business deeply exposed business and philanthropy that were intrinsic to him. NIAS was conceived in 1988 by JRD Tata in the exercise of trusteeship. Small companies committed to their mission usually have a sense of community to build and feel. They are young, spirited and united like a close family. But maintaining this sense of community is not easy as the company matures.

Jamnalal bajaj and the trusteeship model

An honest industrialist might be a myth in India, considering how often scams of various sizes come to the fore. In the 1920s, however, when India was fighting for independence, Jamnalal Bajaj emerged as a moral entrepreneur who was dubbed the 'merchant prince' by Mahatma Gandhi. Jamnalal was born on November 4, 1889, in a village in Rajasthan to small Marwari moneylenders. At the age of 5, he was adopted by a merchant family from Wardha. After a brief schooling period, at the age of 12 he was married off to the daughter of a fine merchant from Javra. He took over the family business of his adoptive parents in Wardha at the age of 17 and established several factories and companies. After Mahatma Gandhi returned to India from South Africa, Bajaj immediately took a liking to his teachings. In order for Gandhi to make Wardha the center of his independence movement, Bajaj donated 20 acres of land to Gandhi, who later adopted him as a son. Despite the Marwari business community enjoying warm relations with the British, Jamnalal renounced the title of Rai Bahadur and the honorary magistrate given to him during the First World War and joined the independence movement. Jamnalal participated in the non-cooperation movement (1920-22), Nagpur Jhanda Satyagraha (1923), boycott of Simon Commission (1928), Dandi March (1930), other important events till 1942. After Gandhi's arrest followed the Dandi March and the ensuing arrest, Jamnalal found himself in the Nashik Central Jail for two years. In 1942, at the height of the freedom movement, Gandhi wrote of Jamnalal in Harijan, "There was no work of mine in which I did not receive his full cooperation in body, mind and wealth. He had neither interest in what is called politics, nor in him. I was attracted to it. He was drawn to it because I was into it. My real politics was constructive work, and so was his politics. I hoped that after me he would do my best to do those things that were of special importance”. But Bajaj was more than just an industrialist or freedom fighter, he was also a philanthropist. He, as the founder-president of Gandhi SevaSangh, and toured all over India urging the establishment of Khadi industries. Actively promoted Hindi as the national language, Jamnalal breathed his last on 11 February 1942 at his Wardha home, after 53 years of political and social activism.

Jamnalal Bajaj founded the Bajaj group of companies in 1926. Jamnalal Bajaj was known for his association with Mahatma Gandhi and for his active participation in India’s freedom struggle and social reforms. Jamnalal Bajaj opened their family temple to Harijans, who were earlier not allowed inside temples. Jamnalal Bajaj says, “Business should be pursued with a view to benefit the poor, not just to become a millionaire or a billionaire”. His life indicates his message of “Truth and Integrity form the bedrock of prosperity in business”.1 The Bajaj group has named their foundation as 'Jamnalal Bajaj foundation'. While the British government bestowed Jamnalal Bajaj with the titles of ‘Honorary Magistrate’ and ‘Rai Bahadur’, he renounced them due to his involvement in India's freedom movement and his endeavours to understand the soul of India. In his tribute to Bajaj in 1942 shortly after his death, Gandhi wrote, "Whenever I wrote about the wealthy becoming trustees for the common good of their wealth, I always had this merchant prince in my mind."