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\"Behind India's high recent growth rates lies a story of societal conflict that is scarcely talked about. Across production sites, state institutions and civil society organisations, the dominant and less well-off sections of society are engaged in a protracted conflict that determines the material conditions of one quarter of the world's 'poor'. Increasingly mobile, and often engaged in multiple occupations in multiple locations, India's 'classes of labour' are highly segmented, but far from passive in the face of ongoing processes of exploitation and domination. Drawing on detailed fieldwork in rural South India over more than a decade, the book uses a 'class-relational' approach that focuses on 'the poor's' iniquitous relations with others, and views class in terms of contested social relations rather than structural locations marked by particular characteristics. The book explores continuity and change amongst forms of accumulation, exploitation and domination in three interrelated arenas of class relations: labour relations, the state and civil society. Marginal gains for labour derived from structural change are contested by capital, local state institutions and state poverty reduction programmes tend to be controlled by the dominant class, and civil society organisations tend to reproduce rather than challenge the status quo. On the other hand, elements of state policy have the capacity to improve the material conditions of 'the poor' where such ends are actively pursued by labouring class organisations. It is argued that social policy currently provides the most fertile terrain for redistributing power and resources to the labouring class, and may clear the way for more fundamental transformations.\"

This book deals with the controversies on developmental aspects of large dams, with a particular focus on the Narmada Valley projects in India. Based on extensive ethnographic fieldwork and research, the author draws on Marxist theory to craft a detailed analysis of how local demands for resettlement and rehabilitation were transformed into a radical anti-dam campaign linked to national and transnational movement networks. The book explains the Narmada conflict and addresses how the building of the anti-dam campaign was animated by processes of collective learning, how activists extended the spatial scope of their struggle by building networks of solidarity with transnational advocacy groups, and how it is embedded in and shaped by a wider field of force of capitalist development at national and transnational scales. The analysis emphasizes how the Narmada dam project is related to national and global processes of capitalist development, and relates the Narmada Valley movement to contemporary popular struggles against dispossession in India and beyond. Conclusions drawn from the resistance to the Narmada dams can be applied to social movements in other parts of the Global South, where people are struggling against dispossession in a context of neoliberal restructuring. As such, this book will have relevance for people with an interest in South Asian studies, Indian politics and Development Studies. 1. The River and the Rage: Introducing the Narmada Valley Conflict 2. Losing Ground: Accumulation by Dispossession in the Narmada Valley 3. Everyday Tyranny and Rightful Resistance: The Emergence of the Khedut Mazdoor Chetna Sangath 4. Discovering the Dam: Militant Particularist Struggles for Resettlement and Rehabilitation 5. Towards Opposition: The Formation of the Anti-Dam Campaign 6. Cycles of Struggle: The Trajectory of the Anti-Dam Campaign 1990-2000 7. Enablements and Constraints: The Making of the Maheshwar Anti-Dam Campaign 8. Development, Not Destruction: Alternative Development as a Social Movement Project 9. Whither the Rage? Learning from the Narmada Valley Movement Process Alf Gunvald Nilsen is a postdoctoral fellow at the Department of Sociology, University of Bergen, Norway. His research interests cover social movement theory and research, critical development research, and Marxist approaches to the political economy of capitalist development – all with special reference to India and South Asia. A Discussion Forum has been set up for this title. To add or read comments visit http://www.theriverandtherage.org/ \"This book is an exemplary analysis of an important social movement against a major dam project in post-colonial India... the book is a theoretically and empirically rich study of one of the most significant movements against neoliberal globalisation, and will surely inform future studies of movements in the developing world.\" - Manali Desai, London School of Economics, UK Capital & Class, 2011 \"The author has written a devastating critique of current economic planning in India. In many ways we need such an authoritative feeling analysis to validate what might otherwise seem the strident opposition of Arundhati Roy to Indian capitalism today. It provides a very disturbing insight into the cost of globalisation.\" - Antony Copley, Honorary Senior Research Fellow, University of Kent; Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society \"Nilsen reminds us that the possibility of radical social change ultimately lies in building alliances between different social movements, in developing a capacity for counter-hegemony and posing systemic challenges to the present socio-historical totality.\" - Budhaditya Das, Department of Social Work, University of Delhi; Economic and Political Weekly

Accumulation of human capital is indispensable to spur economic growth. If students fail to acquire needed skills, not only will they have a hard time finding high-wage employment in the future but the development of the economies in which they work may also stagnate owing to a shortage of human capital. The overall goal of this study is to try to understand if China is ready in terms of the education of its labour force to progress from middle-income to high-income country status. To achieve this goal, we seek to understand the share of the labour force that has attained at least some upper secondary schooling (upper secondary attainment) and to benchmark these educational attainment rates against the rates of the labour forces in other countries (e.g. high-income/OECD countries; a subset of G20 middle-income/BRICS countries). Using the sixth population census data, we are able to show that China's human capital is shockingly poor. In 2010, only 24 per cent of China's entire labour force (individuals aged 25–64) had ever attended upper secondary school. This rate is less than one-third of the average upper secondary attainment rate in OECD countries. China's overall upper secondary attainment rate and the attainment rate of its youngest workers (aged 25–34) is also the lowest of all the BRICS countries (with the exception of India for which data were not available). Our analysis also demonstrates that the statistics on upper secondary education reported by the Ministry of Education (MoE) are overestimated. In the paper, we document when MoE and census-based statistics diverge, and raise three possible policy-based reasons why officials may have begun to have an incentive to misreport in the mid-2000s. 人力资本积累是促进经济发展至关重要的因素。如果劳动力的人力资本不足, 不仅难以找到高收入的工作, 国家经济发展也会因此停滞。本研究的主要目的是通过衡量和比较中国和其他国家 (经合组织成员国等高收入国家以及二十国集团和金砖四国等中等收入国家) 劳动力的中等教育水平 (包含高中和职高), 来了解中国目前的劳动力教育水平是否能够支持中国经济从中等收入向高等收入迈进。我们利用第六次人口普查数据分析显示中国的人力资本水平极低。 2010 年中国只有24%的劳动力 (25 到 64 岁人口) 上过高中或职高, 不足经合组织成员国的三分之一。中国总体劳动力中上过高中或职高的比例和相对年轻的劳动力 (25 到 34 岁人口) 中上过高中或职高的比例也是在金砖四国当中最低的 (因数据缺失该比较不含印度)。我们的分析也指明中国教育部过高估计了劳动力中等教育的普及程度。本文也探索了人口普查数据和教育部统计数据之间出现差异的时间截点以及出现这种对劳动力教育程度过高估计的原因。

The victim of both geographical, historical and administrative isolation, Darjeeling owed its growth to tea cultivation in the hills by migrants from neighbouring Nepal collectively called Gorkhas. Their contributions notwithstanding, they felt discriminated by West Bengal's residents to whose state they were administratively attached. Poverty and poor working conditions, with no voice in the tea estates, and poorly maintained infrastructure that brought frequent landslides have fuelled demands for \"Gorkhaland\", a homeland separate from West Bengal, where the distinctiveness of their identity and their role as Indian citizens would be fully recognised. It did not help that the Darjeeling district had been administratively detached from the political mainstream. Periodic agitations against the state government have weakened local institutions, disrupted the local economy impacting adversely tea production and tourism on which the local economy and the Gorkhas depend. The West Bengal government had partly recognised Gorkha demands by establishing the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council and the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) each vested with limited autonomy. But disagreements on autonomy have left the Gorkhaland issue unresolved. In the meantime, Darjeeling continues to experience gradual decay, absent adequate support from the West Bengal government and from Darjeeling's local government, including the GTA itself.

According to a recent World Bank study of remittances, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are all among the top 20 receivers of remittances, with estimated receipts of US3.2 billion, US8.4 billion and U.S 1.5 billion respectively. Migrant Labor Remittances in South Asia identifies and discusses the key issues affecting the remittance industry in South Asia. It examines the development and implementation of policies, processes, and infrastructure to foster a development-oriented transfer of financial resources between migrants in developed economies and their families in the region. Rather than duplicate previous remittances work, this title only focuses on the region’s distinguishing characteristics, namely: A large migrant population of semi-skilled and unskilled workers largely concentrated in the Arabian Gulf countries, particularly Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.; The presence of dedicated public institutions and government financial incentives aimed at facilitating and providing incentives for temporary migration and remittance inflows; The existence of large state bank branch networks with immense potential for a more effective and efficient remittance financial market.; The widespread usage of trade related informal remittance channels by both legal and illegal migrants. The book is intended for policymakers who legislate and regulate the financial sector, as well as for researchers and providers of remittance services.

DEVELOPMENT CANNOT BE IMPOSED FROM THE OUTSIDE. IT HAS TO HAPPEN FROM WITHIN. This groundbreaking book from South Asia shows how homegrown experiments can be scaled up to transform the lives of millions of poor women and men in the developing world. Here are stories of development ideas that work?and of the visionary individuals who were determined to see them succeed. These achievements have taken place against all odds, in countries struggling with widespread corruption, weak governance, minimal infrastructure, deep-rooted social divisions, and poorly functioning judicial systems. South Asian economies are booming, yet millions are still excluded from participation in this growth. This book offers valuable lessons in how to make markets and services work to benefit poor people directly, enhancing their dignity and freedom of choice. Written by program insiders, these case studies show how governments, nongovernmental organizations, and the private sector can initiate change, learning, expanding and adapting as they go. Ending Poverty in South Asia is an essential tool for policy makers, social scientists, and development practitioners?indeed for all who are interested in tackling poverty and growth issues from the bottom up.

Microfinance has been evolving as an indispensable tool of poverty eradication and rural improvement. At present, almost all the commercial banks have delved into the microfinance foray and offer various lucrative schemes designed for the rural poor, specifically, to carry out their own small economic activities. This paper attempts to study the extent to which the commercial banks are participating in the microfinance business. An empirical study has been carried out in the state of Punjab. The objective is to analyse the nature and extent of microfinance services provided by the banks in the rural areas of Punjab. The study also highlights the bankers' perceptions of microfinance. L'intervention du secteur des banques dans le monde de la microfinance : une étude de la perception et du travail de proximité des banquiers dans le domaine de la microfinance en Inde, concernant plus particulièrement l'État du Punjab La microfinance a connu une évolution comme outil indispensable de l'éradication de la pauvreté et de l'amélioration de la situation en milieu rural. À l'heure actuelle, presque toutes les banques commerciales se sont lancées dans la microfinance et proposent divers programmes lucratifs conçus spécifiquement pour les pauvres ruraux afin de les aider à mener leurs propres activités économiques à petite échelle. Cet article cherche à étudier la mesure dans laquelle les banques commerciales participent au secteur de la microfinance. Une étude empirique a été effectuée dans l'État du Punjab. Son objectif est d'analyser la nature et la mesure des services de microfinance fournis par les banques dans les zones rurales du Punjab. Cette étude mettrait aussi en relief les perceptions de la microfinance parmi les banquiers. A intervenção do setor bancário nas microfinanças mundiais: um estudo da percepção dos banqueiros e o acesso a microfinanças rurais na Índia, com referência especial ao estado de Punjab As microfinanças têm evoluído como uma ferramenta indispensável na erradicação da pobreza e melhorias na área rural. No momento, quase todos os bancos comerciais têm investido na área de microfinanças e oferecem vários esquemas lucrativos destinados aos pobres da zona rural, especificamente para realizarem suas próprias atividades econômicas de pequeno porte. Este artigo visa analisar até que ponto os bancos comerciais estão participando dos negócios de microfinanças. Um estudo empírico foi realizado no estado de Punjab. O objetivo é analisar a natureza e extensão dos serviços de microfinanças oferecidos pelos bancos nas áreas rurais de Punjab. O estudo visa também destacar as percepções dos banqueiros a respeito das microfinanças. La intervención de la banca en las microfinanzas: un estudio de cómo los banqueros perciben y participan en las microfinanzas en el sector rural de India con especial referencia al estado de Punjab Las microfinanzas se han convertido en una herramienta imprescindible para la erradicación de la pobreza y la mejora de los niveles de vida en el sector rural. Actualmente, casi todos los bancos comerciales han incursionado en el mundo de las microfinanzas y ofrecen a personas de escasos recursos del sector rural varios tipos de ventajosos programas, especialmente para que inicien pequeñas actividades económicas. Este ensayo analiza el grado de participación de la banca comercial en las microfinanzas. Se realizó un estudio empírico en el estado de Punjab con el objetivo de analizar el tipo de servicios microfinancieros que ofrece la banca y su alcance en el área rural de Punjab. El estudio también destaca las opiniones de los banqueros respecto a las microfinanzas.

Poverty and governance are both issues high on the agenda of international agencies and governments in the South. With urban areas accounting for a steadily growing share of the world's poor people, an international team of researchers focused their attention on the hitherto little-studied relationship between urban governance and urban poverty. In their timely and in-depth examination of ten cities in Africa, Asia and Latin America, they demonstrate that in many countries the global trends towards decentralization and democratization offer new opportunities for the poor to have an influence on the decisions that affect them. They also show how that influence depends on the nature of those democratic arrangements and decision-making processes at the local level, as well as on the ability of the poor to organize. The study involved interviews with key actors within and outside city governments, discussions with poverty groups, community organizations and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), as well as analyses of data on poverty, services and finance. This book presents insights, conclusions and practical examples that are of relevance for other cities. It outlines policy implications for national and local governments, NGOs and donor agencies, and highlights ways in which poor people can use their voice to influence the various institutions of city governance.

This Practical Note examines the nascent micro-insurance sector in West Bengal, paying particular attention to the corporate–NGO partnership model for micro-insurance distribution, which has been enabled by India's unique regulatory framework. We challenge the popular construction of this model as a ‘win–win’ for all parties by analysing conflicting understandings of micro-insurance schemes and their purposes by insurance companies, NGOs, and poor villagers. The article also considers the role of the specific political context of West Bengal in constricting corporate–NGO micro-insurance.

This volume features essays that focus on livelihood issues faced by forest communities of the southern Western Ghats region of India. It illustrates the application of a variety of assessment tools, from qualitative narratives to quantitative evaluations.