The new institutional economics has been one of the most influential schools of thought to emerge in the past quarter century. Taking its roots in the transaction cost theory of the firm as an economic organization rather than purely a production function, it has been developed further by scholars such as Oliver Williamson, Douglas North and their followers, leading to the rich and growing field of the new institutional economics. This branch of economics stresses the importance of institutions in the functioning of free markets, which include elaborately defined and effectively enforced property rights in the presence of transaction costs, large corporate organizations with agency and hierarchical controls, formal contracts, bankruptcy laws, and regulatory institutions. In this timely volume, Murali Patibandla applies some of the precepts of the new institutional economics to India - one of the world's most promising economies.

The Supreme Court is frequently portrayed as an isolated entity void of politics that reaches judgments by some unseen and unknowable logic. At the same time, Congress is cast as a singularly political enterprise with little regard for nuanced lawmaking. This volume of original essays by leading scholars shows both branches in a new light. It explores the impact of sustained partisan politics, the recent reassertion of legislative power at the expense of judicial review, and the sometimes stormy relationship between Congress and the Court.

The Indian Economy Since 1991: Economic Reforms and Performance is an edited volume, based on the UGC’s model curriculum for ‘Indian Economic Policy’, meant for all universities in India. Each chapter is contributed by an expert in the specific area being addressed, and this book presents the policies formulated in each sector or sub-sector, and the resultant changes, during the post-reform period (1991-2008). This volume examines the impact of economic reforms on fronts as varied as the fiscal situation of government of India, state finances, money, capital market, external sector, agriculture, industry, power, health, education, employment, unemployment and poverty.

Following independence, the Nehruvian approach to socialism in India rested on three pillars: secularism and democracy in the political domain, state intervention in the economy, and diplomatic non-alignment mitigated by pro-Soviet leanings after the 1960s. These features defined a distinct "Indian model," if not the country's political identity. From this starting point, Christophe Jaffrelot traces the transformation of India throughout the latter half of the twentieth century, particularly the 1980s and 90s. The world's largest democracy has sustained itself by embracing not only the vernacular politicians of linguistic states, but also Dalits and "Other Backward Classes," or OBCs. The simultaneous--and related--rise of Hindu nationalism has put minorities--and secularism--on the defensive. In many ways the rule of law has been placed on trial as well. The liberalization of the economy has resulted in growth, yet not necessarily development, and India has acquired a new global status, becoming an emerging power intent on political and economic partnerships with Asia and the West. The traditional Nehruvian system is giving way to a less cohesive though more active India, a country that has become what it is against all odds. Jaffrelot maps this tumultuous journey, exploring the role of religion, caste, and politics in determining the fabric of a modern democratic state.

Inspired by Antonio Gramsci's writings on the history of subaltern classes, the authors in Mapping Subaltern Studies and the Postcolonial sought to contest the elite histories of Indian nationalists by adopting the paradigm of 'history from below'. Later on, the project shifted from its social history origins by drawing upon an eclectic group of thinkers that included Edward Said, Roland Barthes, Michel Foucault, and Jacques Derrida. This book provides a comprehensive balance sheet of the project and its developments, including Ranajit Guha's original subaltern studies manifesto, Partha Chatterjee, Dipesh Chakrabarty and Gayatri Spivak.