Contemporary India: Economy, Society, Politics

Cover
Contents
Introduction: Democracy in Contemporary India
Part I: Economy
	Chapter 1: Basic Features of the Indian Economy in 1947
		India Before Independence
			Economic Growth During British Raj
			National Income: Movement and Composition
			Agriculture
			Industry
			Foreign Trade
		The Development Debate
		Conclusion
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
	Chapter 2: The Evolution of Development Strategy Since Independence
		Development Planning
			Nature and Objectives of Planning
			The Nehru-Mahalanobis Development Strategy
			Agrarian Reconstruction
		Role of the State
			Assessment
			The Green Revolution
			Shifts from Early Development Strategy
			Crisis of the State
			Assessment
			Economic Reforms
			Redefining the Role of the State
			Shifts from Early Development Strategy
			Crisis of the State
			Assessment
			Economic Reforms
			Redefining the Role of the State
		Relevance of Planning
			Assessment
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
	Chapter 3: Some Important Constituents of Economic Policy
		Macroeconomic Crisis
			External-Sector Reforms
			Fiscal Policy
			Fiscal Scenario in the 1980s
			The Financial Sector
			Infrastructure Reforms
		Conclusion
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
	Chapter 4: Regional Disparities, Poverty and Food Insecurity
		The Notion of 'Absolute Poverty' and Making of the 'Poverty Line'
			Officially Speaking, Who is Poor?
			The Puzzle of the 'Head Count'
			Poverty Beyond the 'Poverty Line'
			Poverty as Capability Deprivation and Lack of Social Opportunity
			Poverty, Hunger and Food Insecurity
			Poverty and Unemployment
			State Planning and the Fight Against Poverty
			Public Distribution System
			Employment Guarantee Schemes
			Economic Growth, Inequality of Opportunity and Regional Disparity
			Exclusion and Social Conflict
			Suggested Readings
			Questions
	Chapter 5: Human Development: Health and Education
		Introduction
			Health
			Education
		Conclusion
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
	Chapter 6: Science and Technology Policy: IT and Social Change
		A Historical Background
		Science and Technology: The Post-Independence Period
			Agricultural Research
			Meteorological Services
			Atomic Energy
			The Indian Space Programme10
		Information Technology and its implications
			Background
			Information Technology: The Growth Story
		Telephone Sector
		The Internet
			E-Commerce: Applying IT to Trade and Commerce
			E-Governance: Applying IT to Governance
			Information Technology and the Law
			Information Technology, Development and Democracy
		Conclusion
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
Part II: Society
	Chapter 7: The Changing Social Structure in Contemporary India
		Caste in the Colonial Period
		What is an Indian Social Structure?
			Defining the Nature and Function of Caste
			Caste and Class
		Caste and Violence
			Caste in the Present Context
			Caste and Gender
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
	Chapter 8: The Explosion of the 'Middle Class'
		The 'Middle' in The Middle Class
		The 'Class' of The 'Middle Class'8
			The Emergence of the Indian Middle Class
			Implications of an Upper Caste Becoming Middle Class
			Political Dominance of the Middle Class
			Changes in Urban Life with the Formation of the Middle Class
			Expansion of the Middle Class
			Emergence of the Rural Middle Class
			Emergence of the Dalit Middle Class
			The Middle Class and Democracy
			The New Industrial class
			Implications of a Culture of Consumption: Middle-Class Apathy and Activism
		Conclusion
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
	Chapter 9: Catalysts of Social Change: Adult Franchise and Education
		Introduction
			Racial Relations of Gendered Families: Women's Suffrage in 20th Century Europe and Americla
			Theories of Education in the Context of Democratic Social Changes
			India: Citizenship and Education
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
	Chapter 10: Social Movements and the Mass Media
		The Media in India
			The Chipko Movement
		The Mass Media and Social Movements
			Women's Movements
			The Narmada Bachao Andolan
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
	Chapter 11: Social Mobility and Changes in Occupational Structure
		Understanding Social Mobility and Occupational Structures
		Social Stratification, Caste, and India
		Construction of Class as a Means for The distribution of Power
		Deciphering the Interlinkage between Caste and Class
			Caste and Class: 19th-21st Century
			De-ritualization of Caste, the Pull of Middle Classes, and the Weakening Link
			Changing Class Fluidity in Contemporary India
		Globalization, Social Mobility and the 'India-In-Transition'
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
	Chapter 12: Social Movements: Challenges and Opportunities
		Introduction
			Context
		New Social Forces and New Social Movements
			The Rise of New Social Forces
			The OBC Movement
			The Adivasi Movement
			Women's Movements
			Representation and Social Justice
		Conclusion
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
Part III: Politics
	Chapter 13: The Nature and Functioning of Democracy
		Understanding Democracy
			Origins of Democracy in Independent India
			Towards Consolidating Indian Democracy8
			Democratic Deepening in India
			Critiques of Indian Democracy
		Conclusion
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
	Chapter 14: The Parliamentary System: An Evaluation
		Introducing the Parliamentary System: A Theoretical Overview
			Why India Adopted the Parliamentary System
			The Working of Parliamentary System in India
			Legislature-Executive Relations
			Legislature-Judiciary Relations
		The Executive-Judiciary Relations
			Federal Issues in Executive-Judiciary Relationship
			The Appointment of Judges
			The Judiciary as an Actor in Politics
		Governance
			Problems and Prospects
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
	Chapter 15: Democracy: Social and Economic Dimensions
		Historical Background
			Structural Social Change, Class-based Mobilization
			Retreat from Structural Socio-economic Change, Diminished Mobilization
			Poverty as a Slogan for Political Mobilization
			'Structural Adjustments' and Ethnic Mobilization
			Globalization and the Fragmented Nature of Political Mobilization
		Conclusion
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
	Chapter 16: The Changing Nature of the Party System
		Political Party as Vehicle of Political Representation
		Definition and Typology
		Legacy of the Indian Party System
			Indian National Congress: 20 Origin and Growth
		The Changing Nature of Party Politics: Important National Parties and The Rise of New Forces
			Bharatiya Janata Party
			The Communist Party of India
			Regional Political Parties
		Problems and Crises in Parties and Party System in India
		Conclusion
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
	Chapter 17: The Nature of Coalition Politics
		The Decline of the Congress System
			The Process of Regionalization
			Politics of Coalition(Post-1989): A Critical Overview
			National Front/United Front Coalition Experiment
			BJP and National Democratic Alliance
			Coalition Led by Centrist Congress (UPA)
		Conclusion
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
	Chapter 18: Why Is Secularism Important for India? Neera Chandhoke
		Introduction
		The Meaning of Secularism
		The Case of India
		Revisiting History
			Minority Rights
			Secularism in India
			The Crisis of Secularism
			Secularism and Democracy
		Conclusion
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
	Chapter 19: Contemporary Debates on Nationalism
		The Question: Who is an Indian?
		Historical Background: Colonialism and Theemergence of Indian Nationalism
			Nationalism, History, and Culture
			Nation and Religious Communities: Communal and Secular Versions of Nationalism in India
		Hindu Nationalism
			Secular Nationalism
			Indian Nationalism: Critical Perspectives
		Suggested ReadingsI
		Questions
	Chapter 20: Dimensions of Indian Federalism
		Introduction
			Understanding Federalism: What and Why?
			Indian Federalism: Histological Background
			The Constitutional Structure of the Indian Federation
			Political and Fiscal Dimensions (I): Why a Strong Centre?
			Political and Fiscal Dimensions (II): Indian Federalism in the New Contexts of Coalition Politics, Economic Reforms and Globalization
			Political and Fiscal Dimensions (III): An Assessment of Working of Federalismin India
		Conclusion
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
	Chapter 21: Democratic Decentralization and Panchayati Raj
		Theoretical Perspective
		Historical Development
			Basic Features of the 73rd Amendment
			Initiatives Taken and Gapsto Be Addressed: The Post-1993 Period
		Conclusion
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
	Chapter 22: The Changing Nature of Public Administration
		Introduction
		The Evolution of Public Administration as a Discipline
			Chancing Characteristics of Public Administration in India
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
	Chapter 23: India in the Global Strategic Environment
		India: Hard Power Resources and Immediate Security Concerns
			Nuclear India
			India's Missile Programme
			India's Conventional Defence and Border Management
			Defence Modernization and Defence Diplomacy
		Post-Cold War Directional Changes in Indian Foreign Policy
		India and the United States: Moving Towardsa Natural Partnership
		India's Relations with Major Non-Asian Powers
			India in the Asian Security System
		Conclusion
		Suggested Readings
		Questions
Glossary
About the Editors and the Contributors
Index