6) Question: What should be the system of share distribution in cooperatives?

Answer: PROUT advocates the phase-wise socialization of agricultural land which should be managed by farmers cooperatives. In the initial phase of transition to cooperative management, land shares should be in the hands of those who are landholders. That is, initially the shares in agricultural or farmers cooperatives should be distributed on the basis of the land vested in the cooperative. When the cooperative system is fully implemented in the agriculture sector, there will not be any distinction between landholders and non-landholders, as all members of the cooperative will be collectively responsible for the management of the land. However, this stage can only be achieved after the proper psychological preparation of the people.

In the cooperative system there should not be any scope for interest earning shares; that is, there should not be profit earning shares in cooperatives. Rather, shares should be according to the production of the land. If there are profit earning shares in farmers or agricultural cooperatives, then these shares will be sold in the share market, capitalists will buy the shares, the rate of share prices will fluctuate according to share market prices, and cooperatives will become commercial enterprises.

Similarly, in industrial cooperatives there should be dividend earning shares and not profit earning shares as in bank interest, otherwise these cooperatives will also become commercial enterprises. If there are profit earning shares, the spirit of the cooperative system will be destroyed and cooperatives will go into the hands of the capitalists.

So, there must not be any preferential shares in any farmers, producers or consumers cooperatives, only dividend shares. Shareholders with preferential shares earn a fixed amount of interest from their shares regardless of whether the enterprise makes a loss or profit.

Preferential shares are like the sonja system in agriculture. In the sonja system, sharecroppers get a fixed amount from landowners when they initially agree to cultivate their land. This is given regardless of the amount produced by the sharecropper, even if there is crop failure. Dividend shares earn a dividend which is defined as a return on the basis of the net profit earned by the enterprise.

Shareholders must be people of high morality. In cooperatives, voting rights should be on an individual basis and not on the basis of the number of shares a person holds. In capitalist countries shares can be purchased. Democracy in capitalist countries is a farce because votes can be purchased and poor people cannot fight elections.

Neither the commune system nor capitalism can solve human problems. Only the cooperative system can solve all sorts of social, cultural and national problems.

7) Question: What are service cooperatives?

Answer: This type of cooperative will not be in the arena of producers or consumers cooperatives. Service cooperatives are a subtle type of cooperative coming within the arena of cultural cooperatives.

Let us take the example of doctors. Doctors should start service cooperatives. These cooperatives may also be called “physicians’ service cooperatives”. Suppose a doctor is not able to open his or her own practice, he or she may form a service cooperative with five or ten other doctors. Such a cooperative is an intellectual service cooperative. Doctors who have little capital and cannot afford to establish their own practices can also work in this type of cooperative. Such a system will solve the unemployment problem of doctors. In addition, doctors can start research through these cooperatives, although a doctor’s job is ninety-nine percent practical and hardly one percent theoretical.

Besides service cooperatives, there are several other types of cooperatives which include farmers cooperatives, producers cooperatives, consumers cooperatives, banking cooperatives, housing cooperatives and family annuity cooperatives.

The day is fast approaching when intellectuality will rule the earth. The commune system has failed – we do not want communistic mania or philosophical phobia. Intellectually developed human beings will rule the earth, and for this the cooperative system is indispensable.

8) Question: If the land is bountiful and the per capita income is very high, does it mean that the all-round micropsychic conations or the all-round micropsychic aspirations of the people are fully quenched?

Answer: No. To quench the all-round micropsychic longings of the people, there must be the following:

a) Psycho-spiritual education. There can be balkanization of society if there is no psycho-spiritual education. b) Rule by moralists. c) Ever increasing purchasing capacity. If the per capita income is Rs. 50,000 and the price of the quintal of rice is Rs. 80,000, the condition of the people will be very bad. d) A balanced socio-economic structure.

9) Question: Is barter trade suitable for undeveloped or developing countries?

Answer: It is suitable for both undeveloped and developing countries, especially where the number of surplus goods is limited or few in number. Bangladesh, for example, has a surplus in jute and hide. For that country, barter trade is suitable.

10) Question: What is the bonus system and the piece work system?

Answer: In capitalism production is for profit. The amount of the bonus is usually fixed. The actual profit is hidden from the workers and goes directly to the owner, so workers do not get any incentive to work harder and better. In communism production is for the state. Workers do not feel oneness with the job so there is little incentive to work. In PROUT production is for consumption – our industrial system will be based on consumption. Profit will be minimized so capitalists will not get the scope to exploit the workers. There will also be rational distribution of wealth.

The time involved in the production of commodities can be viewed from three angles – the time allotted to complete some work; the time taken to complete some work; and the time saved to complete some work. In the bonus system the calculation of the bonus is on the basis of the time saved, and the money value of this calculation is given to the worker. This is the incentive in the bonus system.

In the piece work system the incentive is calculated in a different way. Suppose you are manufacturing machines. The labour, etc., involved in the cost of production is set, so the market price will be the cost of production plus the profit. That is, price equals cost plus profit. The profit or part of it is distributed among those who manufactured the machines. This is their incentive. This is how incentives work in the piece work system. As workers get more incentive, they try to manufacture more machines. This is not the case in state capitalism because workers get fixed incentives which become part of their wages.

Incentives should encourage greater work and better quality work, so they should be directly linked to production. If this approach is followed, the per capita income and the standard of living of the workers will automatically increase.