Philip Oldenburg

Land consolidation as land reform, in India.

Abstract Land consolidation, as a process that requires the preservation of each farmers wealth in land when fragmented plots are exchanged, is usually not considered land reform. The land consolidation program in Uttar Pradesh, India, from the evidence of observation and the testimony of farmers and officials, as well as before-and-after landholding data, increases the number of “independent” farmers by increasing the economic viability of farms per unit area and helping to loosen the control of some farmers over others. If the “liberation” of farmers from economic and other dependency is what forms the core of the justification of land reform in India, then land consolidation at the very least serves the purposes of land reform.

“A Place Insufficiently Imagined”: Language, Belief, and the Pakistan Crisis of 1971

The breakup of Pakistan in 1971 can be explained in pt by a failure of understanding on the part of the West Pakistani leadership of Pakistan, a seeming inability to recognize what the meaning of Pakistan was for Bengalis, and thus the cause of the demand for Bengali as a state language equal to Urdu. Exploration of the language issue in the period before and afterndependence helps to illuminate the divergence of belief about the form of the new state and the meaning of parity in representation between east and west wings of the country. The final tragedy of the attempted crushing of the movement for an autonomous Bangladesh is also in part an outcome of this pattern of belief, in particular the belief about the role of Hindus in the expression of Bengali identity.

India briefing : quickening the pace of change

In the time between 1998 and the publication of this text, India held two national elections and began the second phase of economic reforms. This work examines these political, economic, social and cultural developments in India from 1998 to the end of 2000.

India briefing : a transformative fifty years

This edition marks the 50th anniversary of Indian independence and the 10th anniversary of the series. It provides analysis of and context for political, economic, social and cultural developments in India, and considers what past trends may indicate for the future.

India briefing : takeoff at last?

Foreword Map of South Asia Map of India Introduction. India Briefing: Takeoff at Last? - Philip K. Oldenburg and Alyssa Ayres Politics: The BJP Falls from Power - Niraja Gopal Jayal Indian Economy: New Pathways to Growth and Development - Isher Judge Ahluwalia Indias International Relations: The Search for Stability, Space, and Strength - Amitabh Mattoo The Cultural Background of Hindutva, Richard H. Davis Work and Wealth - Renana Jhabvala The Business of Bollywood - Manjeet Kripalani Downloading India: A Guide to Online Resources - Mary Rader A Chronology - Irawati Parnerkar Abbreviations and Glossary About the Contributors Index.

Political Elites in South Asia

This chapter highlights the “intimate” character of political elites in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. Relations among political, civil service, business, media, professional, religious, and other powerful groups are examined, and their consequences for the stability or instability of political regimes are analyzed. Reflecting India’s size, diversity, and importance, its national, provincial, and local political elites receive detailed attention.

Loyalty, disloyalty, and semi-loyalty in Pakistan’s hybrid regime

The 2013 election in Pakistan was a significant point in a presumed transition from autocracy towards democracy, since for the first time an elected government completed a full term and was replaced by another freely elected government. Pakistan’s hybrid regime, however, continues to be threatened by a significant ‘disloyal opposition’, in the form of secessionists in Balochistan and jihadi Islamists of the Tehrik-e-Taliban (the so-called Pakistan Taliban). Drawing on the literature on hybrid regimes, and using Juan Linz’s framework that focused on both ‘disloyal’ and ‘semi-loyal’ oppositions to democratic rule, this article examines the threat to a continuing movement towards democracy posed by secessionists, Islamists, and the military.