Globalisation And The Challenges Of Development In Contemporary India

This volume brings together multidisciplinary, situated and nuanced analyses of contingent issues framing a rapidly changing India in the 21st century. It moves beyond the ready dichotomies that are often extended to understand India as a series of contrasts and offers new insights into the complex realities of India today, thereby enabling us to anticipate the decades to come. The editors focus on three major themes, each discussed in a section: The first section, Framing the Macro-Economic Environment, defines the framework for interrogating globalisation and socio-economic changes in India over the last few decades of the 20th century spiraling into India in the 21st century. The next section, Food Security and Natural Resources, highlights critical considerations involved in feeding a burgeoning population. The discussions pose important questions in relation to the resilience of both people and planet confronting increasingly unpredictable climate-induced scenarios. The final section, Development, Activism and Changing Technologies, discusses some of the social challenges of contemporary India through the lens of inequalities and emergent activisms. The section concludes with an elaboration of the potential and promise of changing technologies and new social media to build an informed and active citizenry across existing social divides.

Since the last decade of twentieth century, India has strived for an experienced and unprecedented economic turn-around. The country has witnessed a structural shift in GDP growth, propelled largely by new investments and the growth of the value enhancing services sector. Globally, these efforts are not only source of appreciation but also of assumption for many that India increasingly being seen as part of new axis of influence in the world. Long established three-headed social problem—poverty–illiteracy–unemployment—remains the biggest stumbling block for a post-colonial country like India. New sets of problems have taken shape in the last quarter of twentieth century when policy makers and market participants have prioritized economic activities for short-term gains. In context of the above, Center of Associates for Sociological Studies and Action undertook to bring out to the fore oft-neglected inter-disciplinary discussions and analysis in fifteen articles to examine the process of globalization in India taking insights from economics, political science and international relations, sociology, cultural anthropology, social ecology, management and cultural studies. It discusses the impact of the process of globalization on social institutions like marriage, family, economy, politics, education and religion. The book is intended for postgraduate students and research scholars. It provides readers with a clear perspective about creating economics, environmental and social capital that can produce multiplier effect for making national progress more inclusive and sustainable.

This book presents the changing contours of India s position in the global economy. The first section deals with India s defensive posture in the nineties vis-à-vis the Multinational Companies. The resistance to speedy opening up of the economy has enabled Indian businesses to become globally competitive. The second section deals with the challenges before Indian in the begging of the 21st millennium as she is increasingly recognized as a world power. The earlier defensive posture has to be change into an offensive posture now with India aiming to break the economies of the rich countries. This can be done, for example, withdrawing forex reserves from US T-Bills. The third section deals with the challenges before India in establishing a just world order. The question in how to break the inherent injustice in the world economy where 20 percent of the people of rich countries are consuming 80 percent of the resources. India should not tie its wagon to the engine of rich countries and try to gain form injustice of the present world order. Instead, India must take the lead in confronting the injustice perpetrated by the rich countries, organize the developing countries and establish a world economy based on justice.

This text provides a comprehensive introduction to the concept of globalization and its challenge to the contemporary study of development. Part 1 introduces the theoretical issues and debates surrounding globalization, illustrates the often contested nature of the concept, and considers the implications for the future of development studies. Part 2 reviews more specific theory and policy implications by assessing the impact of globalization to a number of key areas of study in development studies. These include the environment, gender, human rights, multinationals, and urban development.

Contributed articles presented earlier in an international workshop initiated at Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, New Delhi, India, 26-28 March, 2002.

This book brings together Indian and European perspectives on India’s polity, economy and international strategy. It explores internal, regional and global determinants shaping India’s status, position and goals in the early 21st century. Through an array of methodological and theoretical approaches, it presents debates on democracy, economic development, foreign and security policy, and the course of India–European Union relations. The volume will prove invaluable to scholars and students of international relations, politics, economics, history, and development studies, as well as policy makers and economists.

This book examines the impact of globalization on some vital aspects of Indian politics, its structures and processes, and identifies the challenges to globalization itself, in order to highlight India’s complex and fascinating story. In 1991, India officially embraced the policy of neo-liberal reforms by signing the GATT agreement, which exposed the country, its society, culture and institutions to the various forces of globalization. Globalization as such may not be new to India, for the country has been embracing the influence of external cultures and civilisations for millennia, but the post-1991 reforms policy marked a significant shift, from a predominantly social welfare state and a command economy to a predominantly market driven one. Through a range of disciplinary perspectives, the authors analyse how India’s version of secularism, communal harmony, nationhood, the public sphere, social justice, and the rights of aboriginal communities came under attack from the forces of the new dispensation. The book goes on to show how globalisation in India has posed fresh challenges to political economy, democracy, federalism, decentralization, parliamentary system, judiciary, and the parliamentary Left. Critically reflecting on themes in the context of India’s globalisation that are local, regional, national and global, this book will be of interest to those in the fields of South Asian Politics, Globalisation, and International Relations.