| ID | 157878 |
| Title Proper | State formation from below |
| Other Title Information | social movements of dam evictees and legal transformation of the local state in india, 1960–76 |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | Arnab Roy Chowdhury Department of Sociology, National University of Singapore, Singapore ; Chowdhury, Arnab Roy |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | This paper demonstrates a case of state formation in South Asia that emerged from below. In India, the state of Maharashtra has had a history of social movements by people evicted by dam construction dating back to the 1920s. The cumulative effect of these movements led Maharashtra to enact a law in 1976 to empower dam evictees, thus establishing the first rehabilitation law in India. These movements democratised the state and transformed its legal arena through a rights-based, claim-making approach. I argue that in post-colonial India, the state and society co-evolved through dialectics that were instrumental in transforming both, and that the making of the Maharashtra Resettlement of Project Displaced Persons Act, 1976, was the precursor to all acts subsequently passed in India in response to a rights-based, claim-making approach. |
| `In' analytical Note | South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies Vol. 41, No.1; Mar 2018: p.194-211 |
| Journal Source | South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies 2018-03 41, 1 |
| Key Words | State formation ; India ; Social Movements ; Claim-Making Approach ; Dam Evictees ; Legal Transformation ; Maharashtra, Rights-Based Approach |