The Indian debates on globalisation, not surprisingly, have been dominated by the economists. Ever since the country embarked on a new path of economic development veering more towards the free play of market forces than state-directed planning, an orientation towards external rather than national markets and a policy of welcoming foreign private capital both as equality and in the stock markets, there have been apprehensions of a dilution of national sovereignty, if not charges of re-colonisation.

At one level the debate at the cusp of the 20th and 21st centuries reminds of the discourse prevalent a century back. At that stage the country was under British rule and economic policies were clearly designed to favour British capital, leading to drain, de-industrialisation and consequent pauperisation. Despite striking differences in context, the fears today are similar, with visions of multinational firms ruling the roost under arrangements designed to favour western, mainly U.S., capital.

The debate has got complicated and contentious because, fears about the current dispensation apart, it is widely accepted that the earlier model of state-directed and controlled development has exhausted itself. Thus social forces struggling against the current policy mix have equally to provide a viable critique of the earlier order. Social movements seeking to locate themselves in base communities, their cultures and production systems, are facing an uphill political task given the unequal distribution of power in the system.

Only marginally has the debate sought to grapple with deeper issues of autonomy, intellectual and cultural self-reliance, and the need to resuscitate local knowledges. This is partly due to the infirmities and inequities intrinsic to local systems-in particular the exclusions created by caste, community and gender. Primary reliance on local forces raises the danger of slipping into obscurantism.

The challenge before policy planners and social forces for emancipation is how to construct an open, pluralistic and inclusive social project which can engage with global forces and institutions without losing its sense of the self. The tallest of the leaders of national independence had argued in similar terms. It remains to be seen whether the current leadership of the country can rise to the challenge.