Growing inequalities in the South in the Present Era of primitive capitalist accumulation

Abstract

The prevalent view among many economic historians is that, given free trade and neoliberatisation, developing countries will traverse the same path of industrial development as the developed north. This article contests the view: first, the prevalent narrative of European industrial development is partial: it overstates the effect of modern agriculture in Europe as well as employment creation by industry, since it ignores (a) the factor of colonial plunder and (b) the ‘white’ migration out of Europe as an effect of, as well as safety-value for, the crisis created by unemployment in industrialising Europe. Neither of these supporting factors is available to the South, where, as in India, per capita growth is accompanied by growing inequality and mass impoverishment. Clearly, freewheeling capitalism is not an equitable option for India.