- Gandhi had an innate sympathy for the poor and deprived. A direct observation of predicament of the poor and oppressed both in India and in South Africa led him to design an economic model that would alleviate the condition of the poor and deprived.
- Cause of capitalism: Gandhi believed that the high capitalist endeavours were at the root of all suffering. He believed that business without ethical considerations was fundamentally evil. This led to discrimination, oppression and exploitation.
- Economic inequality: Gandhi also held that there is enough in this world to feed and clothe all. However, there is poverty and deprivation because one group of people thrives on the labour put in by others. Gandhi strongly believed in the ethics of hard work and that one is entitled to take from the system only as much as he can produce. This according to Gandhi, was the only way to fight poverty and disarm the world of all its economic woes.
- Gandhi also strongly believed that laziness and lack of work can cause immense physical and spiritual deprivation among the populace. It is impossible to ignite the masses towards a revolution leading to a bigger political or ideological goal if they are weak, both physically and morally.
- He understood that the new industrial modes of mass and large-scale production that have been ousting the age-old indigenous village techniques are ultimately leading towards unemployment and laziness. Therefore, he worked hard for a resurrection of the village modes of production.
- Equitable distribution: The most unique feature of Gandhi’s economic model was he wanted to turn the entire flow of profits from the pockets of the big industrialists into the workers. The consumer should, he believed, not only be concerned with acquiring high-quality, inexpensive products but also consider which sections of society profited from his investment.
- Foreign clothes may be better and cheaper than the home-spun khadi, but the relentless use of the imported fabric would lead to unemployment of thousands of villagers who have traditionally earned a living by spinning and weaving homemade clothes. The same logic extends to agro-based products as well. Choosing such imported goods would lead to a degeneration of the entire village economy, which was the backbone of Indian economy, Gandhi believed.
- Issue of mechanization: Gandhi knew the actual implications of aggressive capitalism,no such humanitarian economic considerations can curb the relentless advance of the big mechanizations initiated by high capitalist agencies.
- Therefore, he devised a scheme to suit everyone. A nation low on manpower can well use mechanization to enhance its agricultural and mechanical production. But for a nation with a teeming population like India, it would augur no good.
- Secondly, he thought that a nation should produce only as much as it needs to produce. Extra production, results in an international economic race, which would only lead to exploitation. The condition in India, for Gandhi, was ultimately a manifestation of the aggressive mechanization promoted by the British colonialists.
