Is “Make In India” A Luxury Or A Neccesity?

Before I get into the argument of the topic given above I would first like to talk about the substance behind the headline “Make In India”- manufacturing. To understand the importance of manufacturing on an economy & on society in general, we must look at what happened in societies, where manufacturing has already blossom. Well manufacturing has always been there starting from the first weapons & tools manufactured by the cavemen, but it happened on a large scale only in the early 1800s in the place which we today call the “home of the industrial revolution”- England. Gradually industrial revolution began to spread throughout western civilization & it happened on an even larger scale in the second half of the 19th century in Germany & United States. This is what we call today as the “Second Industrial Revolution.”

You can all go to some site like Wikipedia or somewhere in the internet, where you will find all these things in details. But here’s a view which you will not find everywhere. In the second half of the 19th century, as industrial revolution has already taken place in England, it has become a wealthy society & with that cost of production especially labour cost had risen drastically. So the manufacturing base shifted to poorer places with cheap labour. Just like in England, at first in Germany & US low cost of production meant lower quality & cheap goods. At that time England has taken over the position of higher quality goods, which require greater technological investment along with service. Soon after World War II, the manufacturing base shifted to Japan as US became wealthier thereby producing higher quality goods & services with a large educated workforce & greater technological advancement. After the 1980s, the base shifted to regions like Taiwan & South Korea & Japan became a wealthier society. After 1990s this base again shifted to China, where production of cheap low quality goods took place. This keeps happening over & over again & is the only full proof method by which societies around the world has prospered.

Every time this happens we find that the wealthier society has moved to a more service based economy with an educated workforce. Many people say that cheap labour will never run out in China, which has over 1.3 billion people. But the reality is different, China is already a middle income country about to become a developed nation in less than a decade. Already its manufacturing base is moving towards poorer regions like Vietnam & Bangladesh, while a highly educated workforce is making China move to higher quality manufacturing along with large scale service. The problem with India is after agriculture we moved to a service base skipping the manufacturing part, which led to an educated middle class based on service, while the general people remained poor as ever. Without manufacturing, none of the 50 wealthy countries of the world has become what they are today i.e. wealthy & India is no exception. We can no longer say things like “It happens only in India” or “India with such a huge population can’t achieve this”, cause China has already shown that it can be done, no matter what their method of doing it is.

Thus all I did was to give you a different perspective of the industrial revolution & the history of the world economy. Yet it is quite obvious from this perspective that “Make In India” is not a luxury India can afford to miss, it is a necessity. Otherwise the poor population will keep on expanding, as all poor & uneducated populations of the world has done throughout history & finally we will know what is the real meaning of the word “overpopulation.” Remember we have to do this now, as time is running out on us fast. With over 1.25 billion people, India is literally a ticking time bomb & “Make In India” is the only feasible way out of it.

To whom will the 21st century belong- a new perspective

There is a lot of argument of who this century belongs to? India or China. I have found an alternative view in this, which I feel would provide you with a new perspective. I have found a strange similarity between today’s India & China with that of 19^th century Germany & France. 

From the time of the collapse of Charlemagne’s empire, France had been the dominant power on continental Europe. It’s biggest advantage was demography. According to estimates till the beginning of 19^th century, France was the 3^rd most populous nation on Earth after China & India. However, after the French revolutionary wars & the Napoleonic wars in the period 1789 to 1815, France lost a lot of young men in war. In terms of proportion of population it lost more than Germany in world war one. It was a loss that France failed to recover from. On the contrary Germany rapidly industrialised in the 19^th century since the formation of Zollverin & especially after reunification in 1871. It’s population also grew rapidly with that till by the end of the 19^th century it had overtaken France & Britain in population size. It became the dominant power in Europe not just through industrialization, but also by winning the demographic war. What has all this got to do with 21^st century India & China. Well, on one hand India’s population is growing rapidly with no politician or political party with the guts to control it( As they fear that they would loose popularity & hence the elections), on the other hand, China keeps a tight lease on its population with its one child policy being a dictatorial state. Some predictions even show that India would overtake China in population by 2022. While this is concerning initially- that bigger & younger population mean more unemployment & more people to feed, cloth & house, there is also a brighter side to this. After all, India too is rapidly industrializing & bigger population means bigger market & economy. India may just actually make this century hers by winning the demographic war against China, just like Germany did with France in the 19^th century.

But there is also another similarity that we can compare today’s China-India situation. In the 19^th century, Germany grew partly due to the discipline that it was provided with by the dictatorial states that existed in Germany at that time- biggest example is that of Prussia. On the other hand there was another nation that took a great part in this second industrial revolution that was taking place in the 19^th century. This nation was United States of America- a chaotic democracy with lots of corruption & indiscipline. But by the end of the 19^th century, it was not this disciplined, militarised dictatorial Germany that won the race. It was the USA that emerged as the largest economy on the planet thereby paving the way of the 20^th century to be the American century. What could possibly be a more closer example of dictatorial, disciplined China & chaotic, free India? 

These examples show us that what matters is who is going to win in the long term. India may not overtake China in 5-10 or even 20 years, but in the long run it will be the winner.

Why Should You Get The Quality Of A Home Checked

Real estate developers, as well as, builders often tend to juggle on several projects at once, as a result of which the quality of construction is definitely go on the rails. This happens to give sleepless nights to the buyers of these homes. Therefore, you must ensure to buy a home, which will result in safety & security for your family. Some homes may look like as if they are built with good quality materials. But later on, there may be a lot of repair and maintenance costs to keep it in proper shape. Remember that the construction quality also portrays the home resale value, when you decide that it is time to sell it.

When you purchase a property, you have to be sure of its construction quality. This is because it is probably the biggest investment that you will make in your lifetime. In recent years, many new and better technologies have come up, which promises to give your home quality and security as far as the sturdiness of the property is concerned. But I would still recommend that it is always better to have a closer look at it. You must never invest in a property that you suspect is made of poor quality materials. 

With lack of an efficient construction authority, there tends to be rampant corruption, mismanagement, as well as, undue project delays. This in turn will result in compromising the quality. These buildings made from low quality materials, are much more susceptible to structural and safety malfunctions. It literally poses a potential danger, not only to the inhabitants, but also to the neighbors. 

The worst part about such bad defects is that most of them are not visible to the eyes of a layman. For example, a person who is not well versed with the science of architecture won’t be able to determine if the property is structurally sound or not. The only option in such a case is to get the entire structure reviewed by an independent professional home inspection service, who is capable of giving an unbiased opinion.

When you are planning to purchase a property, do make a few unannounced visits to the site. It will help you take decision wisely. When the agent is informed in advance of your visit, he can manipulate things. However if you visit the site unannounced, there are less chances for such manipulation and fabrication. This might help you to catch anomalies in the construction process.

When, it comes to buying a home you should not make the mistake of blindly trusting anyone. This is because builders often tend to compromise on quality of the building in order to earn more profits. Of course the reputed ones do strictly follow quality guidelines, but when you’re making such a huge investment it is better to be safe than sorry. 

Tote Bags- Is It Better Than Plastic Bags?

The tote is usually made of sturdy cloth with thick leather at its handles or bottom. The leathered versions often have a pebbled surface. Common fabrics include heavy canvas possibly dyed, or treated to resist moisture and mold. Jute is another traditional material is often used for this purpose. In recent decades, heavy nylon and other easy-care synthetics have become more common, although there is a chance that these may degrade with prolonged sun-exposure. Many of the inexpensive or free totes are usually made from recycled matter or from minimally-processed natural fibers. They may also be manufactured from byproducts of processes that refine organic materials.

The tote bag craze in the United States began in the 1940s. It started with the release of L.L. Bean's Boat Bag in 1944. Most people opted for using tote bags, because they were easier than carrying luggage. It was during the 1950s, that tote bags began to enter into the main culture. Women mainly utilized them as practical handheld bags because they didn't require much care. It was in the 1960s when the tote bag embraced personal style. Bonnie Cashin started her own line of tote bags called Cashin Carry Tote Bags which was a combination of style and functionality. In the 1990s, Kate Spade completely transformed the way American culture embraced tote bags- she began carrying them as fashion bags. Nowadays, fashion lovers and consumers can find tote bags in a variety of decorations and themes.

In time these tote bags have grown in stature and ubiquity. Their abundance has encouraged consumers to see them as a disposable item that they don't need to reuse. It defeats their very purpose. Not only do many stores offer inexpensive or even free tote bags at the register, they've also become a common marketing tool stamped with logos and used by nonprofits and businesses as promotional gifts.Recently, tote bags have been sold as a more eco-friendly replacement for disposable plastic bags given how they can be reused multiples times over. However, a study by the UK Environment Agency found that cotton canvas bags have to be reused at least 327 times before they can match the carbon expenditure of a single disposable plastic bag. Meanwhile, tote bags made from recycled polypropylene plastic require 26 reuses to match.

This can be seen by a 2014 study which found that owners of reusable bags forget them on approximately 40% of their grocery trips and use them only about 15 times each before being discarded. Moreover, about half of respondents typically chose to use plastic bags over reusable ones, despite owning reusable bags and recognizing their benefits. Due to its environmental benefits & reusability, bags made of products such as jute, cotton & canvas should be utilised.