With more than 15 percent of the world’s population occupying land one-third the size of the United States, India is quickly becoming a major player on the world stage.
    Second in population only to China, the potential effect that Indians could have as consumers and producers is unimaginable. According to the U.S. State Department, 60 percent of the 450 million workforce labor within the agricultural sector in India.
    Yet, while the majority of India’s workforce is engaged in agricultural production, this sector brings the least market value to the country’s economy — only 18 percent of the gross domestic product. When such a large percentage of the population brings in significantly small revenue in proportion to the total GDP, income is distributed disproportionately throughout the country. 
    The size of India’s economy is the 12th largest in the world, yet more than 700 million individuals within the country subsist on less than $2 per day, a measure of extreme poverty.
    The impoverished population within India does not have the disposable income to participate as consumers within the local or global economy. The middle class, however, does have the opportunity and ability to do so, and the middle class within India is experiencing growth. 
    Anywhere from 325 to 350 million individuals comprise the middle class, with that number on the rise.
    The growth of the middle class largely can be attributed to the growth of the sector which comprises the majority of India’s GDP—services. Just read Thomas Friedman’s “The World is Flat,” and one will get an idea of the immense growth that India has experienced.
    While India’s growth in this sector has contributed to a tremendous increase in the number of individuals who have been successful in moving to the middle class, there is a vast population within India which remains impoverished and uneducated.
    In fact, the World Bank plans to increase funding to India to $3 billion per year, almost twice the amount of current funding levels.
    In the recent past and yet today, perhaps India is recognized most for the severe social and economic stratification that predominate the country. Beyond financial status, the U.S. State Department points out that “religion, caste and language are major determinants of social and political organization in India today.”
    The Hindu caste system separates the Indian people into four separate divisions. These categories are Brahmin, who are priests; Kshatriya, who are warriors; Vaishya, who are traders; and the Shudra, who are farmers and laborers. 
    Another category, the “untouchables,” describes those who traditionally were considered the lowest in Indian society. Though any form of discrimination that is based on the caste system is illegal, the caste system still leaves an indelible mark on modern India. 
    The caste system holds an especially strong influence in rural areas throughout the country. This influence is an important factor as the rural population is expansive, and therefore the caste system is still widespread.  
    There is hope, however, that the emerging economy of India has the potential to contribute to the minimization and eventual elimination of the caste system.
    For instance, the State Department’s Web site explains that “expanding education, land reform and economic opportunity through access to information, communication, transport and credit have lessened the harshest elements of the caste system” in rural areas across the country.
    If economic growth has the ability to move more of India’s population into the middle class, then perhaps it also can do the unthinkable and eliminate the caste system altogether. 
    The state of India is coming full force into the 21st century. If played right, India’s emerging economy has the ability to increase its wealth and influence while simultaneously lifting its people out of poverty.



Molly Hamm is a senior in English. Please send comments to opinion@spub.ksu.edu.