The book, on the basis of empirical and historical investigations, convincingly demonstrates that the process of change in India involved a great degree of ambivalence, but there is no clear-cut indication except that various strategies have tended to strengthen the position of the already privileged sections of the society. The underprivileged are the last to benefit.
“This country's leading hell-raiser" (The Nation) shares his impassioned counsel to young radicals on how to effect constructive social change and know “the difference between being a realistic radical and being a rhetorical one.” First published in 1971 and written in the midst of radical political developments whose direction Alinsky was one of the first to question, this volume exhibits his style at its best. Like Thomas Paine before him, Alinsky was able to combine, both in his person and his writing, the intensity of political engagement with an absolute insistence on rational political discourse and adherence to the American democratic tradition.
Diving into an original and unusually positive case study from India, Patching Development shows how development programs can be designed to work. How can development programs deliver benefits to marginalized citizens in ways that expand their rights and freedoms? Political will and good policy design are critical but often insufficient due to resistance from entrenched local power systems. In Patching Development, Rajesh Veeraraghavan presents an ethnography of one of the largest development programs in the world, the Indian National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA), and examines NREGA's implementation in the South Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. He finds that the local system of power is extremely difficult to transform, not because of inertia, but because of coercive counter strategy from actors at the last mile and their ability to exploit information asymmetries. Upper-level NREGA bureaucrats in Andhra Pradesh do not possess the capacity to change the power axis through direct confrontation with local elites, but instead have relied on a continuous series of responses that react to local implementation and information, a process of patching development. Patching development is a top-down, fine-grained, iterative socio-technical process that makes local information about implementation visible through technology and enlists participation from marginalized citizens through social audits. These processes are neither neat nor orderly and have led to a contentious sphere where the exercise of power over documents, institutions and technology is intricate, fluid and highly situated. A highly original account with global significance, this book casts new light on the challenges and benefits of using information and technology in novel ways to implement development programs.
Life in the digital era offers an array of new and invigorating opportunities, as well as a new set of challenges when facing the dissemination of fresh innovations. While once reserved for personal use, online platforms are now being utilized for more critical purposes, such as ocial revolution, political influence, and governance at both the local and national levels. Promoting Social Changes and Democracy through Information Technology is a definitive reference source for the latest scholarly research on the use of the internet, mobile phones, and other digital platforms for political discourse between citizens and governments. Focusing on empirical case studies and pivotal theoretical applications of technology within political science and social activism, this comprehensive book is an essential reference source for advanced-level students, researchers, practitioners, and academicians interested in the changing landscape of democratic development and social welfare.
Analysis of the sources and factors of social change and of the sociological aspects of the impact of technological change and economic development in the modernisation process in India - covers the traditional social structure as an obstacle to change, the importance of cultural factors, communication systems, etc., and examines the role of public administration in community development and rural development programmes, the extent of social participation (incl. Of tribal peoples) therein. Bibliography pp. 338 to 341 and statistical tables.
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INTRODUCTION In India, feminism has played a pivotal role in bringing about significant shifts in social, cultural, and political norms. Indian feminism has developed to address a wide range of issues that women across the country face. It is based on a long tradition of intellectual debate and grassroots activism. Feminist movements have reshaped Indian society in a variety of ways, including legal reforms, political empowerment, cultural norms, and media representation. The early pioneers of feminism in India, such as Sarojini Naidu and Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay, fought for women's rights as part of the larger struggle against colonialism. Feminism in India originated alongside movements for independence. Feminist activism gained momentum after independence, focusing on issues like dowry deaths, gender-based violence, and unequal access to employment and education. The women's movement of the 1970s and 1980s, which brought issues like dowry harassment and legal reforms to the forefront of national discourse, was one of the pivotal moments in Indian feminism. The All India Women's Conference (AIWC), the National Federation of Indian Women, and the Forum Against Oppression of Women (FAOW) all emerged during this time to advocate for societal change and legislative reform.
This book examines the role of Hindu-inspired faith movements (HIFMs) in contemporary India as actors in social transformation. It further situates these movements in the context of the global political economy where such movements cross national boundaries to locate believers among the Hindu diaspora and others. In contemporary neoliberal India, HIFMs have become important actors, and they realize themselves by making public assertions through service. The four pillars of the contemporary presence of such movements are: gurus, sociality, hegemony and social transformation. Gurus, who spearhead these movements, create a matrix of possible meanings in their public discourses which their followers pick up to create messages of personal and social change. Sociality is a core strategy of proliferation across such movements and implies social service, which is qualified by memories of the guru and what they are believed to embody. Hegemony is reflected in the fact that social service in such movements often ominously imbibes right-wing or far-right Hinduism. They propose a model of Hindu-inspired social transformation, involving faith building into and transforming the civil society. The book discusses in a nuanced way several Hindu-inspired faith movements of various hues which have made national and international impact. This topical book is of interest to students and researchers in the fields of sociology, anthropology, social work, and social psychology, with a special interest in the study of religious movements.
