Inequality and social and political structures – Conference on the Inequalities in Asia https://iiaconference2013.weaconferences.net 27th May to 12th July 2013 Mon, 09 Jun 2025 12:19:01 +0000 en-GB hourly 1 Caste and Production Relations in India’s Informal Economy: A Gramscian Analysis https://iiaconference2013.weaconferences.net/papers/caste-and-production-relations-in-indias-informal-economy-a-gramscian-analysis/ https://iiaconference2013.weaconferences.net/papers/caste-and-production-relations-in-indias-informal-economy-a-gramscian-analysis/#comments Mon, 27 May 2013 09:22:10 +0000 http://iiaconference2013.worldeconomicsassociation.org/?p=75 More ›]]> The paper explores the impact of caste on production relations in contemporary India. Caste is analysed by means of conceptual categories borrowed from Gramsci’s theory of hegemony. Partially overcoming the conventional Marxist view of caste as a ‘false consciousness’, caste is conceptualised as an institution and an ideology, which influences mental processes and social intercourse and, at the same time, defines widely accepted patterns of civil society organisation. The impact of caste on social production relations is empirically explored in the case of Arni, a rural market town in South India, which has experienced a major socio-economic transformation after the Green revolution. The analysis focuses on the forms of civil society’s organisation, which, as Gramsci shows, is an outcome of the interplay of particularistic interests.

After the introduction, Section 2 introduces Gramsci’s conceptualisation of hegemony in civil society. Section 3 relies on the evidence and argument provided by the literature on contemporary India with the aim of pointing out the two-fold role of caste as an institution and as an ideology. Section 4 summarises the results of a survey of Arni’s civil society, which explores the economic impact of social organisation. Section 5 comments on the role of caste in Arni’s civil society.

]]> https://iiaconference2013.weaconferences.net/papers/caste-and-production-relations-in-indias-informal-economy-a-gramscian-analysis/feed/ 1 How Close Does the Apple Fall to the Tree? Some Evidence on Intergenerational Occupational Mobility from India https://iiaconference2013.weaconferences.net/papers/how-close-does-the-apple-fall-to-the-tree-some-evidence-on-intergenerational-occupational-mobility-from-india/ Mon, 27 May 2013 09:22:10 +0000 http://iiaconference2013.worldeconomicsassociation.org/?p=79 More ›]]> Using data from the India Human Development Survey (IHDS) 2005, we examine intergenerational occupational mobility in India, an issue on which very few systematic and rigorous studies exist. We group individuals into classes and document patterns of mobility at the rural, urban and all-India levels, and for different caste groups. We find substantial intergenerational persistence, particularly in the case of low-skilled and low- paying occupations, e.g. almost half the children of agricultural labourers end up becoming agricultural labourers. We also document differences across caste groups. Overall, our results suggest considerable inequality of opportunity in India.

]]> State Capacity and the Sustainability of China’s Economic Growth https://iiaconference2013.weaconferences.net/papers/state-capacity-and-the-sustainability-of-chinas-economic-growth/ Mon, 27 May 2013 09:22:10 +0000 http://iiaconference2013.worldeconomicsassociation.org/?p=83 More ›]]> There has been growing concern over the sustainability of China’ s economic growth. The Chinese economy is excessively dependent on investment and exports, a pattern that has become increasingly unsustainable. The excessive dependence on investment and exports results from insufficient household consumption, which, in turn, reflects rising income inequality and inadequate provision of social welfare. The underlying cause has to do with the weakening of China’ s state capacity. Nevertheless, China’ s state capacity remains relatively strong and a strengthening of the state capacity will contribute to a more sustainable pattern of economic growth.

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