Answer: 

Introduction:

As per OECD, inclusive growth is economic growth that is distributed fairly across society and creates opportunities for all. The UN Brundtland commission’s report ‘Our Common Future (1987)’ defined sustainable development as development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Body:

When economic growth of a country benefits all sections of the population, reduces poverty and creates employment opportunities for all without compromising on the needs of the future generations, the growth is said to be inclusive as well as sustainable. This view can be further elaborated as follows:

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• Inclusive growth approach takes a longer-term perspective: Inclusive growth policies aim to ensure access to basic services such as education, healthcare, and housing for all members of society. All of these would lead to gains in the future development of the country.
• Inclusive growth leads to a wider distribution of wealth which creates demand. It focuses on productive employment rather than income redistribution as a means of increasing incomes for excluded groups. This will lead to domestic demand-driven growth which is sustainable in the long run.
  • For instance, the Economic survey suggests creation of jobs in the textile and leather sector. Natural fibres and leather are biodegradable and renewable natural resources (unlike jobs in the mining or plastic sector).
• Strong foundations: Inclusive growth addresses the structural and fundamental problems in society and the economy. These strategies build strong foundations that are more sustainable for long term transformations.
  • Example: Jan Dhan Yojana focused on incorporating the unbanked masses into the financial sector. Financial inclusion leads to greater savings and investment thereby starting a virtuous cycle.
• Withstanding shocks: Inclusive growth creates a strength in the economy to withstand shocks and growth becomes sustainable in the longer run.
• Environmental sustainability: Inclusive growth policies aim to protect natural resources as inclusiveness is about the environment as well. With better wealth distribution people move away from polluting sources of energy such as wood, cow dung, etc and adopt more environment-friendly energy sources such as LPG or renewable energy sources. This makes inclusiveness a sustainable process.

Conclusion:

Inclusiveness and sustainability are interwoven in the concept of inclusive growth and are part of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Inclusive growth policies aim to promote inclusiveness by ensuring that the benefits of economic growth are shared by all members of society, while also ensuring that economic growth is environmentally sustainable and does not harm future generations.

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