What should be pursued instead is the humanisation of human beings. Development, as a goal, often ends up relocating or using people. The real need is to unleash the potential of each individual so that everyone can become a substantial human being.
The challenge is that human potential remains culturally and politically constrained. People need to be unchained to realise their humanity.
The task begins with pedagogy. Pupils must be cultivated with a sense of service and learn to value basic public work such as cleaning shared spaces, caring for the sick, and respecting other living beings and nature. At the final stage of education, they should undergo compulsory internships in places of intense humane work like hospitals, nursing homes, and municipal services.
They must also develop fellowship, rise above jealousy, appreciate others’ achievements, and strive to excel with humility. At the same time, they should be trained to stand on their own, be courageous, adventurous, and willing to take risks.
Human substantialization also requires the freedom to do what is worth doing. It means maximising autonomy and safety for all. A free market is a basic and substantive means of achieving this. The market is not a site of predation, as is often propagated, but the most efficient process through which people serve one another.
The government has a clear role: to ensure safety, protect property, and enforce obligations. The government, to be true to its purpose, must function as it is: a collective agency that fairly manages the commons.
If such pedagogy and practice shape public life, development will follow as a byproduct. It would mean clean living spaces, an unpolluted environment, undisturbed natural landscapes, comfortable and aesthetic habitats, safe surroundings, and reliable, humane public services like healthcare.
Niraj Kumar Jha
