Birthday Special
Birthday Special
published and received much appreciation.
Dr. Ambedkar ' s PhD thesis was titled The National Dividend of India- A Historical and Analytical Study, which was indeed a historical research work. From 1918 to 1920, Dr. Ambedkar served as a professor of political economy at a college in Bombay, where he taught students about various economic issues related to the Indian economy and provided practical solutions.
Dr. Ambedkar’ s approach to economic issues was pragmatic. He believed that the primary reason for India’ s backwardness was the delay in land reforms. He suggested that democratic socialism could solve this problem, leading to an increase in economic efficiency and productivity, which would transform the rural economy. The most important feature of his approach was his critique of both laissez-faire and scientific socialism.
Dr. Ambedkar strongly advocated for the elimination of the capitalist system, which created economic and social inequalities. In 1920, he left his position as a professor and went to the London School of Economics for further studies. There, he completed his MSc in Economics in 1921. His thesis on Provincial Decentralization of Imperial Finance in British India was approved by the London School of Economics and was a significant research on the British imperial financial system. Through this research, Dr. Ambedkar introduced the concept of financial decentralization. He believed that decentralization would benefit all provinces. Even today, intellectuals advocating for decentralization in India refer to his work on financial autonomy for states.
In 1923, he received his DSc in Economics from the London School of Economics, and his thesis, The Problem of the Rupee- Its Origin and Its Solution, addressed the issue of currency devaluation, which was a highly relevant and practical research topic at the time. His suggestions on reducing the devaluation of the rupee are still relevant today. He believed that by abolishing mints, internal value distortions in the Indian economy could be prevented and inflation reduced. Dr. Ambedkar suggested that gold should be the standard for currency, and the elasticity of currency should depend on it.
Dr. Ambedkar’ s economic research remains pertinent even in the present day. The major social and economic issues India faces today, such as poverty, unemployment, inflation, backwardness, inequality( both personal and regional), and the devaluation of the rupee, can be linked to Dr. Ambedkar’ s economic studies.
Dr. Ambedkar wanted to establish a just economy in India, one in which there would be equality, the elimination
12 Dalit Andolan Patrika | April 2025