Gandhi and Development

I know this is a long time coming, but the pace of life here has really started to pick up! Really didn't think it would happen.
It's been a while since I've come back from Dehradun, but maybe its for the better that I didn't update right away, the last couple weeks have given me the chance to internalize the things that I learnt up there. But instead of once again rehashing everything about the trip, I just want to talk about Gandhi and development, in a couple simple points.
1. Small is beautiful. When I first heard the phrase, coupled with other phrases such as 'appropriate technology', I immediately associated it with a reactionary fear- against mechanization, against industralization, against anything big. It took me a while to realize what the concept really meant. The way I understand it now, its a practical strategy to make sure humans dont overstep our bounds. It's a lot easier to interact favorably with the environment, do a public good, and distribute the benefits equitably (in short, function sustainably) when you are working on a small scale...but once you start trying to scale up, then inevitably certain elements of sustainability start to break down. And you start having to make compromises. In that end, it makes sense to adhere to small is beautiful. Although big can promise more efficiency or better economics, there are usually costs overlooked.
2. Swaraj. I think this is a beautiful concept. I took it, as most of us took it, at first to mean independent rule- obviously linked to the indian struggle for independence. But understood more clearly, it translates better as self-governance. Basically, how you conduct yourself. I think in development it is so easy to get carried away and lost in trying to improve the lives of others around you, that you tend to forget that you can't set the world straight without putting your own house in order. And from that blooms the other concept, that once you govern yourself the way you'd like to see the world govern itself (be the change you wish to see...), then that in itself is the most powerful weapon towards engendering change in others. Action by example.
3. Decentralization. This ties in to the concept of 'small is beautiful', but I think it is a more real-world concept. Even in our world today, we see different systems of governance in different parts of the world, each with their own levels of success. Often, when an area is underdeveloped, we put the responsbility on the central government, and try to remedy the problem by heaping even more power into the center.
Although I am a firm believer in the idea that a strong central government is critical for the development of any country, I also am starting to understand that this power must be limited to certain spheres, and to be honest, much of it has to be simply psychological. The idea of a strong, coherent, inspirational central government is critical for a united nation, but much of the actual development in a country must be handled in a more decentralized fashion. "The localization of production must depend on the frequency of its need" Thus the food we eat, the water we drink, and the clothes we wear must be produced locally, otherwise we are susceptible to the ebb and flow of supply that is much too far away to be reliable. For example, if instead of creating large scale energy projects, the government allowed for independent, off-grid local projects, (regulated both locally and centrally), provision of electricity would probably be more consistent. This is particularly important in a country as diverse and heavily populated as India- it is impossible for a heavily centralized development strategy to be effective. Of course there is the argument that more decentralization means more bureaucracy, more chances for corruption, and there is validity to this. But these problems can and must be combatted through better regulation at all levels.
The effect that this has on development is that the responsibility of development falls into the hands of the communities in question, and it becomes more participatory rather than directed externally (by entities who naturally come with their own agendas).
All the ideas are swirling in my head again. It's time to take a break. Hope I provided some good food for thought.
-Nikhil