IKS Cover Page

Journal of Indian Knowledge Systems and Contemporary Learnings

ISSN: 3107-7722 (Online) | Frequency: Half-yearly | Type: Hybrid (Subscription + Open Access) | Peer Review: Double Blind

Editor in Chief : Prof. (Dr.) Teena Bagga

About : The Journal of Indian Knowledge Systems and Contemporary Learnings is a bi-annual, peer-reviewed, national e-journal, it is the first journal globally that integrates traditional Indian wisdom with cutting-edge developments across scientific, technological, economic, and strategic domains. This pion Read more

Article Metrics
78
Views
58
Downloads
0
Citations
Crossref Crossref
Dimensions
Altmetric
PlumX
View in Google Scholar View DOI record
Similar Articles
Browse all articles

Kauṭilya, Gandhi, and Sustainable Development in Indian Economic Thought

  • Rupesh Thakur* Rupesh Thakur Corresponding author Assistant Professor Department of Commerce, Government Degree College Nihri, District Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, India India ,  
  • Karam Singh Karam Singh Assistant Professor Department of Political Science, Government Degree College Nihri, District Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, India India ,  
  • Shashi Kumar Shashi Kumar Assistant Professor Department of History, Government Degree College Nihri, District Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, India India
Received: October 05, 2025
Accepted: November 20, 2025
Published: December 26, 2025
Volume: 1 (2) | Page: 30-40

Abstract

This paper examined whether Kauṭilya’s Arthaśāstra and M. K. Gandhi’s doctrine of trusteeship articulated a coherent logic of sustainable resource stewardship independently of the 1987 Brundtland Report and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals framework.

The study used a qualitative, interpretive, and comparative textual design. It read the translated Arthaśāstra and Gandhi’s own writings on trusteeship alongside peer-reviewed economic-history scholarship, and mapped the resulting propositions against Elinor Ostrom’s design principles for durable common-pool resource governance and against a documented case of Indian community irrigation institutions.

The analysis found that Kauṭilyan and Gandhian economic thought converged with Ostrom’s principles and with the Sustainable Development Goals on three points: bounded stewardship of a shared resource base, restraint on accumulation, and accountability of power to the group that depended on the resource. The convergence was structural rather than a matter of direct historical influence, and it was strongest on welfare and weakest on ecological and user-governance dimensions.

The comparison offered Indian policymakers and educators a textually grounded, indigenous vocabulary for welfare-conditioned governance and responsible consumption that could complement, rather than replace, the internationally sourced Sustainable Development Goals framework.

This paper was, to the authors’ knowledge, the first to read Kauṭilyan and Gandhian economic thought together against Ostrom’s empirically derived design principles, extending recent Indian Knowledge Systems scholarship beyond single-tradition readings.

Keywords: Arthaśāstra; Gandhian trusteeship; common-pool resources; sustainable development; Indian economic thought

References

  1. Agarwal, C., & Kumar, L. (2026). Aligning Indian Knowledge Systems with SDG 8: Strategic insights from Kauṭilya’s Arthashastra. International Journal of Research & Technology, 14(S1), 427–436. https://doi.org/10.64882/ijrt.v14.iS1.1036
  2. Asagar, M. S. (2025). Integrating the Indian knowledge system with modern pedagogy for a holistic educational renaissance under NEP 2020. Journal of Indian Knowledge Systems and Contemporary Learnings, 1(1), 30–38. https://doi.org/10.64006/iks/1104
  3. Borah, R. (2025). Kautilya's enduring economic philosophy and its contemporary relevance. International Journal of Creative Research Thoughts, 13(9), 163–170.
  4. Chakrabarty, B. (2015). Universal benefit: Gandhi's doctrine of trusteeship: A review article. Modern Asian Studies, 49(2), 572–608. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0026749X13000383
  5. Dasgupta, A. K. (1996). Gandhi's economic thought. Routledge.
  6. Deka, D. (2025). Economic order determined by social necessities and removal of inequalities: Gandhi's philosophy of trusteeship. International Journal of Social Science Research, 2(3), 372–378.
  7. Gandhi, M. K. (1947). India of my dreams (R. K. Prabhu, Ed.). Navajivan Publishing House.
  8. Gandhi, M. K. (1960). Trusteeship. Navajivan Mudranalaya.
  9. Joselin, D., Singh, A., & Tiwary, K. S. (2025). The nexus between CSR practices and financial performance: Empirical evidence from the manufacturing sector in India. Environment, Social and Governance Insights, 1(1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.64006/esgi/1101
  10. Kangle, R. P. (1972). The Kauṭilīya Arthaśāstra, Part II: An English translation with critical and explanatory notes (2nd ed.). University of Bombay.
  11. Kerwal, D. (2026). Economic philosophy of Kauṭilya's Arthashastra and its relevance to modern development policy. EPRA International Journal of Economics, Business and Management Studies, 13(5), 1. https://doi.org/10.36713/epra27470
  12. Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India. (2020). National Education Policy 2020.
  13. Ostrom, E. (1990). Governing the commons: The evolution of institutions for collective action. Cambridge University Press.
  14. Rangarajan, L. N. (1992). Kautilya: The Arthashastra. Penguin Books.
  15. Sen, A. (2005). The argumentative Indian: Writings on Indian history, culture and identity. Farrar, Straus and Giroux.
  16. Sihag, B. S. (2005a). Kautilya on ethics and economics. Humanomics, 21(3), 1–28. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb018902
  17. Sihag, B. S. (2005b). Kautilya on public goods and taxation. History of Political Economy, 37(4), 723–751.
  18. Sihag, B. S. (2007). Kautilya on institutions, governance, knowledge, ethics and prosperity. Humanomics, 23(1), 5–28. https://doi.org/10.1108/08288660710725109
  19. Sihag, B. S. (2009). Kautilya on economics as a separate science. Humanomics, 25(1), 8–36. https://doi.org/10.1108/08288660910934754
  20. Ummer Farooque, M. K., & Ranjan, P. (2025). Appraising efficiency of conventional and Islamic microfinance institutions in India using data envelopment analysis. Journal of Commerce, Economics and Finance, 1(1), 13–24. https://doi.org/10.64006/jcef/1102
  21. United Nations. (2015). Transforming our world: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (A/RES/70/1).
  22. United Nations System Chief Executives Board for Coordination. (2023). Duties to the future through an intergenerational equity lens [Discussion paper].
  23. Wade , R. (1988). Village republics: Economic conditions for collective action in South India. Cambridge University Press.
  24. World Commission on Environment and Development. (1987). Our common future. Oxford University Press.
Citation copied to clipboard
×
Cite this Article