Politics of Growth and Development in India (IAFF-6118)

Transcription

1 Politics of Growth and Development in India (IAFF-6118) Seminar: Bangalore, India Emmanuel J. Teitelbaum Weekdays 10 a.m p.m. Assistant Professor Hall of Government Field visits: Weekday afternoons Room 411 ejt@gwu.edu (202) Increasingly, South Asia is one of the most the world s most economically vibrant and strategically important regions. Whether as a more democratic alternative for investments or a new source of economic competition for the West, the economies of South Asian countries have garnered the attention and imagination of journalists, policymakers and academics alike. This course will explore the political economy of South Asian development by harnessing intra-regional and cross-national comparisons. The course will take place in Bangalore, India, and will use visits to urban and rural field sites to illuminate its main themes. Bangalore is the capital city of Karnataka, one of India s fastest growing states. Bangalore is often referred to as the Silicon Valley of India because of its entrepreneurial and innovative spirit and because it is home to some of the most successful technology companies in the world. Karnataka state as a whole has a large and diverse economy and for many years it has witnessed tremendous growth across a variety of sectors. Because of its strength in the high tech sector, its liberal economic policy, concentration of natural resources, and a productive workforce, the state has become a preferred destination for both domestic and foreign investment. Through comparisons with the rest of India, this course will explore Karnataka has achieved its high growth rates, and will provide students with exposure to employment and investment opportunities in Karnataka s private, non-profit and government sectors. Course Requirements 1) Option of four argumentative essays or one research paper (70%) 2) Weekly memos and class participation (30%) You may want to purchase the following books, of which we will read substantial portions: Academic Texts Bardhan, Pranab The Political Economy of Development in India. Delhi: Oxford University Press. Chibber, Vivek Locked in Place: State Building and Late Industrialization in India. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

2 Drèze, Jean and Amartya Sen The Amartya Sen and Jean Drèze Omnibus. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Frankel, Francine India s Political Economy, Oxford: Oxford University Press. Jenkins, Rob Democratic Politics and Economic Reform in India. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Kohli, Atul State-Directed Development: Political Power and Industrialization in the Global Periphery. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Sinha, Aseema The Regional Roots of Developmental Politics in India: A Divided Leviathan. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press. Varshney, Ashutosh Democracy, Development and the Countryside: Urban- Rural Struggles in India. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Weiner, Myron The Child and the State in India. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Other readings will be uploaded to the course website. Writing assignments Students have the option of writing four argumentative essays or one term paper. The four argumentative essays will correspond to each of the four substantive issue areas covered in the course. The essays should be approximately 10 to 12 double-spaced pages in length and should provide substantial responses to questions formulated by the professor. I will circulate the questions on the last day of each thematic section, and your responses will be due two weeks after the course ends. The term paper will be an original research paper of approximately 25 to 30 pages in length, although the length of the paper is much less important than the quality of your research and argumentation. If you decide to write the research paper, I will work closely with you to define the paper s scope and a research strategy. Your goal should be to write a paper good enough to send to a professional academic journal for peer review and, hopefully, publication. Memos and class participation You are required to submit a 250 to 500-word memo on the readings, which will be based on questions that I to you each week. The primary purpose of the memos is to prepare you to discuss the readings in class. The memos will also help you to recall your central critiques of each week s readings when you sit down to write your argumentative essays. Please circulate your memos via to the class list no later than midnight the day before class. 2

3 Memos will be evaluated on a simple three-point scale ( -,, +) and will form a primary basis for your class participation score. Learning Objectives: In this class, you will: Learn and critically analyze fundamental concepts related to political science, comparative politics and development; Apply these concepts in a variety of regions within India; Learn how historical, societal, and cultural differences influence development politics in the Indian states; Compare the differences between regional governments within Asia and their impact on political, economic, and social outcomes; Demonstrate your knowledge through a series of analytical papers, critical responses to readings or a term paper 3

4 May 26: Arrival and Group Dinner Part I: Agrarian Political Economy May 27: The Politics of Land Reform Ronald Herring, Land to the Tiller Besley and Burgess, Land Reform, Poverty Reduction and Growth Banerjee and Iyer, History Institutions and Economic Performance Guest Speaker Lokesh, LANDESA, NGO devoted to micro-plots (via Skype, confirmed) May 28: The Politics of Hunger and Agricultural Productivity Part A: Democracy and Famines Jean Drèze and Amartya Sen, Hunger and Public Action, selected chapters Jean Drèze and Amartya Sen, Poverty and Famines, selected chapters Jos Mooij, Food Policy and the Indian State, selected chapters Ashutosh Varshney, Poverty and Famines: An Extension Part B: Politics, Technology and Agricultural Productivity Ashutosh Varshney, Democracy, Development and the Countryside, selected chapters Ronald Herring, ed. Transgenics and the Poor, selected chapters T.M. Manjunath, Q&A ON BT-Cotton in India, Guest Speakers (GMO Debate) Representative from Karnataka Rajaya Raitha Sangha (pending) Dr. TN Manjunath, Consultant in Agricultural Biotechnology and Former Director of Monsanto Research Center in Bangalore (confirmed) May 29: Participatory Development Jean Drèze and Amartya Sen, India: Economic Development and Social Opportunity 4

5 World Bank, Microfinance in South Asia May 30: Field Visit I, day 1 MYRADA project site, NGO dedicated to local institution building, microfinance, and participatory development (confirmed) May 31: Field Visit I, day 2 MYRADA project site, NGO dedicated to local institution building, microfinance, and participatory development (confirmed) June 1-2 Cultural visit to Mysore Part II: Urbanization and the Industrial Economy June 3: The Politics of Crisis and Reform Part A: India s Old Economy Atul Kohli, State-Directed Development, selected chapters Pranab Bardhan, The Political Economy of Development in India, selected chapters Part B: The Politics of Economic Reform Atul Kohli, The Politics of Economic Growth in India: Ashutosh Varshney, "Mass Politics or Elite Politics?: India s Economic Reforms in Comparative Perspective, Rob Jenkins, Democratic Politics and Economic Reform in India, Stuart Corbridge and John Harris, Reinventing India, chapter 7 T.N. Srinivasan and S. Tendulkar, Reintigrating India With the World, Nirvikar Singh, Information Technology and India s Economic Development June 4: Reform and Inequality Angus Deaton and Jean Drèze, Poverty and Inequality in India: A Re- Examination Sen and Himanshu, Poverty and Inequality in India 5

6 June 5: Labor and Development Guest Speakers Rina Agarwala, Informal Labor, Formal Politics and Dignified Discontent, Vivek Chibber, Locked in Place, selected chapters Emmanuel Teitelbaum, Mobilizing Restraint, selected chapters Myron Weiner, The Child and the State in India, selected chapters Clifton D Rozario from Alternative Law Forum, expert on labor rights and caste (confirmed) S. Jeevanand from National Centre for Labour (confirmed) June 6: Field Visit II Janaagraha, NGO dedicated to participatory urban development (pending) June 7: Field Visit III Wipro or Infosys (pending) June 8, Group Brunch and Departure 6