Part of the PHISPC series on modern Indian history, this volume provides an overview of the history of social, economic, and political thought prior to the development of disciplinary categories in social sciences.

This book presents a comprehensive account of the socio-political thought of prominent modern Indian thinkers. It offers a clear understanding of the basic concepts and their contributions on contemporary issues. Key features: Explores the nature, scope, relevance, context, and theoretical approaches of modern Indian thought and overviews its development through an in-depth study of the lives and ideas of major thinkers. Examines critical themes such as nationalism, swaraj, democracy and state, liberalism, revolution, socialism, constitutionalism, secularism, satyāgraha, swadeshi, nationbuilding, humanism, ethics in politics, democratic decentralisation, religion and politics, social transformation and emancipation, and social and gender justice under sections on liberal-reformist, moderate-Gandhian, and leftist-socialist thought. Brings together insightful essays on Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, Dayānanda Saraswati, Ramakrishna Paramhansa, Pandita Ramabai, Periyar E. V. Ramasamy, Jyotirao Govindrao Phule, Babasaheb Ambedkar, Dadabhai Naoroji, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Subhas Chandra Bose, Ram Manohar Lohia, Babu Jagjivan Ram, Vinoba Bhave, Acharya Narendra Deva, Manabendra Nath Roy, and Jayaprakash Narayan. Traces different perspectives on the way India’s composite cultures, traditions, and conditions inf luenced the evolution of their thought and legacy. With its accessible style, this book will be useful to teachers, students, and scholars of political science, modern Indian political thought, modern Indian history, and political philosophy. It will also interest those associated with exclusion studies, political sociology, sociology, and South Asian studies.

Reappraising Modern Indian Thought: Themes and Thinkers is a lucid and comprehensive account of the thread of socio-political thought of major Indian thinkers over the decades. In contrast to the existing texts on the subject, it explores the social and political conditions that formed the basis of political thinking of the thinkers in the past two centuries. The book begins with a detailed discussion on the development and articulation of socio-political thought that have evolved in modern India. It then goes to give a comprehensive coverage and makes an analysis of great thinkers of modern India, namely Rabindranath Tagore, Madan Mohan Malaviya, Swami Vivekananda, Aurobindo Ghose, Abul Kalam Azad, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Bipin Chandra Pal, Lala Lajpat Rai, Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, Madhav Sadashiv Golwalkar, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya, Syed Ahmed Khan, and Muhammad Iqbal. Divided into four thematic sections; Ideal-Humanist Thought, Militant-Extremist Thought, Cultural–Revivalist Thought and Radical-Pragmatist Thought — the chapters on such thinkers not only talks about their lives and times but also discusses and examines the contributions of those to contemporary period. This multi-authored compendium has contributions from professionals and experts of the subject from different premier universities of India and it will be an indispensable and immensely helpful basic text to students, researchers, academicians as well as for general readers across India and also abroad who will take interest to develop a critical understanding of the modern Indian thinkers on the issues such as colonialism, India’s freedom struggle, nationalism, nation building, economic reconstruction, education, democracy, secularism, socialism, integral and universal humanism.

Science and Modern India: An Institutional History, c.1784-1947: Project of History of Science, Philosophy and Culture in Indian Civilization, Volume XV, Part 4 comprises chapters contributed by eminent scholars. It discusses the historical background of the establishment of science institutes that were established in pre-Independence India, and still exist, their functions and their present status. This volume discusses Indian science institutes that specialize in a particular field. It also delves into the area of engineering sciences.

This book offers one of the first critical evaluations and in-depth analysis of the intellectual movement in Maharashtra in the 19th century. Arguing against the prevalent view that Indian rationality was imported from Europe through the colonial agency, it traces the rational roots of the movement to indigenous intellectual traditions and history. It also questions the centrality assigned to the ‘Bengal Renaissance’ as being the representative of the contemporary intellectual movement in the country. Strongly grounded in primary research, this volume brings forth many new facts and facets into the scholarly discourse on topics such as the idea of ‘Drain’ and the rise of Indian nationalism, so far seen as a predominantly political process divorced from its cultural dimensions. It re-examines the view that cultural consciousness that preceded political agitation was a separate sphere of activity and suggests that both were integral stages of anti-colonialism in the country. The author maintains that rationalism and nationalism were closely connected as a means-and-end continuum. He also provides a new and substantially different understanding of the 19th-century intellectuals Mahatma Jotirao Phule and Pandita Ramabai among others. Lucid, accessible and thought provoking, this book will interest scholars and researchers of modern Indian history, Indian political thought, sociology, philosophy and Marathi literature.

Dipesh Chakrabarty s eagerly anticipated book examines the politics of history through the careerand in many ways tragic fateof the distinguished historian Sir Jadunath Sarkar (1870-1957). One of the most important scholars in India during the first half of the twentieth century, Sarkar was knighted in 1929 and is still the only Indian historian to have ever been elected an Honorary Fellow of the American Historical Association. He was a universalizing and scientific historian, highly influential during much of his career, but, by the end of his lifetime, he became marginalized by the history establishment in India. History, Chakrabarty writes, sometimes plays truant with historians: by the 1970swhen Chakrabarty himself was a novice historianSarkar was almost completely forgotten. Through Sarkar s story, Chakrabarty explores the role of historical scholarship in India s colonial modernity and throws new light on the ways that postcolonial Indian historians embraced a more partisan idea of truth in the name of democratic and anti-colonial politics."

[Amartya] Sen Has Recently Given Us The Argumentative Indian; And Now, In Your Hands, Is [André] Béteille S Equally Compelling Collection Of Essays On Indian Ideas, Themes And Debates. -Ramachandra Guha One Of The Pioneers Of Sociological Studies In India, Professor André Béteille Has, Over The Past Four Decades, Contributed A Series Of Topical And Stimulating Articles To Various Newspapers. Some Of These Articles Were Collected In The Book Chronicles Of Our Time, Published A Few Years Ago. Ideology And Social Science Is A New And Riveting Collection Of Professor Béteille S Writings On Indian Society, Politics And Culture. The Fifty Articles In This Book Cover A Very Wide Range Of Subjects: From The Practice Of Sociology To The Prospects Of Political Liberalism, From Contemporary Debates About Caste And Caste Quotas To Old And Still Persisting Myths About What Is Said To Constitute The Essence Of Indian Culture. Béteille S Ambit Includes The Relevant And Important Themes Of Secularism, Diversity And Unity In Cultures, The Culture Of Tolerance, Discrimination At Work, Value Systems In The Changing Indian Family, And Caste Practices In Village Communities. Steering Clear Of Passing Intellectual Trends As Well As Partisan Politics, Béteille Reaches His Conclusions Based On A Careful Examination Of The Evidence, Not On A Search For Facts That Fit A Preconceived Theory. Through His Writings, He Makes A Cogent And Passionate Appeal To Separate Sociological Theory From The Frameworks Of Social Activism. For Students Of Sociology As Well As The General Reader, This Is A Book That Will Stimulate Thought And Generate Interest In Social And Political Issues That Are At The Core Of India S Modernity And Tradition.