16 Jul 2020 LSE India Observatory Seminar
POSTPONED Evidence-based Policy for Palliative/End-of-life Care
Hosts: India Observatory and LSE Care Policy and Evaluation Centre
Organisers: Linda Hantrais, Visiting Professor, LSE India Observatory, Chair, Academy of Social Sciences’ International Advisory Group, in conjunction with the Royal Trinity Hospice
Venue: London School of Economics
This half-day seminar on evidence-based policy will serve as a forum at which participants from different national and disciplinary backgrounds can exchange ideas and experience about community and hospice palliative/end-of-life care with a view to informing and advancing policy. The seminar will take the form of conversations between researchers, professionals, practitioners, policy advisers and policymakers, followed by guided group discussions.
In the context of accelerated population ageing, more people have been living longer, and much progress has been made in encouraging active and healthy ageing, and in improving long-term social care. Less attention has been paid to end-of-life care, and consensus has been more difficult to achieve regarding the provision of palliative care, and preparation for achieving a good death. The global coronavirus pandemic created a unprecedented challenges. The hospice movement and other providers of specialist palliative care were called upon to play a prominent role in bringing together public, private and voluntary sectors to support end-of-life care. The seminar participants will adopt multi-disciplinary, cross-sectoral and international perspectives to consider longer-term issues for societies and governments as providers of quality end-of-life care, and to explore opportunities for policy learning.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
19 Feb 2020 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Political Economy of Crime and Vulnerability in India
Malvika Tyagi (Sir Ratan Tata Fellow 2019-20)
Wednesday 19th February 2020, 11.30am to 1pm, Room 32L.G.15, 32 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, LSE
Chair: Dr Ruth Kattumuri, Co-Director, LSE India Observatory.
Discussants: Dr Johann Koehler, Department of Social Policy, LSE and Professor Tirthankar Roy, Department of Economic History, LSE.
Motivated by earlier research on state-level crime rate in India, its determining factors and household vulnerability, this research explores possible differences in conviction rates based on social group and attempts to identify factors that might determine these differences. This is done through an analysis of state-level panel data compiled mainly from National Crime Records Bureau, the Census of India and the National Sample Survey Office. A further dimension of this research is to get a preliminary sense of the extent of underreporting in India, for which district-level National Crime Records Bureau Data is compared with the India Human Development Survey, which captures household vulnerability, which is then examined through the lens of population composition.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
8 Oct 2019 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Hydro Power and The Power of People in India
Subrat Kumar Sahu
Tuesday 8th October 2019, 5pm to 6pm, Room CBG.2.03, Centre Building, LSE
Introduction: Ahaan Gupta (LSE India Society)
Panellists: Ruth Kattumuri (Co-Director, LSE India Observatory) & Architesh Panda (Grantham Research Institute)
Chair: Joana Setzer (Grantham Research Institute)
Subrat Kumar Sahu will introduce his new documentary "A Mountains Agonised" on the impacts of hydroelectric dams on people's livelihoods in Himachal Pradesh, India.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
21 Aug 2019 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Diversities of Innovation
Ulrich Hilpert (Friedrich Schiller University Jena)
Wednesday 21st August 2019, 6pm to 7.30pm, Room 32L.G.03, 32 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, LSE
Innovation is often understood exclusively in terms of the economy, but it is definitely a result of human labour and ingenuity, and of the relationships among individuals and social groups. Some societies and governmental structures are clearly more successful than others: they act in divergent ways, fostering innovation and employment, and they utilize varied opportunities from different fields of research, from new products and from their educational systems.
At this book launch the editor and several of the contributors will present the key themes of the book, followed by a panel discussion on the major issues that it addresses.
This event is free but registration is required to attend. Please email india.observatory@lse.ac.uk to register.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
21 Aug 2019 LSE India Observatory Seminar
The Making of Innovation (by invitation only)
21st - 22nd August 2019, London School of Economics
Organised by Dr Ulrich Hilpert, FAcSS
Hosted by Dr Ruth Kattumuri, Co-Director, LSE India Observatory
An interdisciplinary workshop on understanding the processes that make innovation and studying the policies that drive creative forces in the techno-industrial opportunities in diverse social and economic conditions, changing contexts and windows of opportunity with the aim of analysing the drivers of diversities in innovation.
Participants: Connie L. McNeely (George Mason University), Helen Lawton Smith (Birkeck & Oxford University), Desmond Hickie (University of Chester), Michaela Trippl (University of Vienna), Walter Scherrer (Universität Salzburg), Francesco Domenico Sandulli (Complutense University, Madrid), Roel Rutten (Tilburg University).
Attendance is by Invitation Only
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
24 Jun 2019 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Lived experience of Land Reforms in Karnataka
Soundarya Iyer (Sir Ratan Tata Fellow (2018-19))
Monday 24th June 2019, 1pm to 2pm
Room 32L.3.05, 32 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, LSE
Chair: Dr Ruth Kattumuri, Co-Director, LSE India Observatory.
Discussant: Dr Jens Lerche, Department of Development Studies, SOAS.
Tenancy reform has recently re-appeared on the policy agenda with the NITI Aayog Vice Chairman arguing in favour of transparent land leasing laws in 2015 and the release of the report of the expert committee on land leasing in 2016. In this context, it is relevant to ask how post-Independence land reforms in India have impacted rural land, lives and livelihoods. What does it mean to live in relationship to land in rural India one generation after land reform? Looking beyond success and failure which have been measured in terms of overall economic productivity and inequality, this paper focuses on the political economy of the agrarian economy and its restructuring after land reforms. This paper is based on a household survey of 800 households in three villages in Karnataka in 2013-15 that were earlier surveyed by the Census of India 1961 in the Village Survey Monographs. Apart from the survey, interviews with next generation kin of households that lost or gained land in land reforms were carried out. This research finds that a uniform ‘land to the tenant’ based land reform in Karnataka’s regionally diverse agrarian systems resulted in unintended effects; tenant priests of village mathas (monastery) acquired temple land from ‘landlord’ Gods, poor Dalit land owners lost land to better-off dominant caste tenants, and Konkani Christian tenants acquired land while erstwhile landlords continue to maintain the shrines of bhutas (spirits) associated with land.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
8 May 2019 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Emerging Nature of Labour Market in India
KS Hari (Subir Chowdhury Fellow (2018-19) from Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics)
Wednesday 8th May 2019, 12.30pm - 2pm, Room 32.LG.11, 32 Lincoln's Inn Fields, LSE
Chair: Dr Ruth Kattumuri, Co-Director, India Observatory.
Discussant: Professor Tirthankar Roy, Department of Economic History, LSE.
India has been evolving as a knowledge economy in recent years through an increasing use of technology in manufacturing and service industries. Consequently the nature of the labour market has been undergoing some changes. Simultaneously, the government of India has been trying to improve employability of youth through scaling up education and skilling programmes since 2007. These policy initiatives have enabled higher enrolment of youth in diplomas, graduate and other higher education programmes. The present study attempts to examine whether this has resulted in any improvement in the employability of youth. For this we use the unit level data from National Sample Survey Organisation 2004-05, 2011-12 and Labour Bureau on Employment and Unemployment in India 2015-16. We examine the emerging nature of demand and supply of labour markets in India over the period 2004 to 2015-16. We explore whether there might be any mismatch between educational levels and type of occupation. We also try to understand whether there are adequate opportunities for people with higher education in the job market as well as whether there are people with adequate qualifications according to the requirements of the labour market.
An analysis of any mismatches and adequacy between skills and occupation could provide insights regarding the current relation between education level and labour market in India, which would help to explore possible ways to address this issue.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
30 May 2018 LSE India Observatory Seminar
India Observatory Fellows Seminar
Wednesday 30th May 2018, 1pm to 5pm, Room 32L.3.05, 32 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, LSE
Speaker: Dr Abodh Kumar is the Sir Ratan Tata Fellow from the Central University of South Bihar.
Weak Institutions and Persistence of Slums in Bihar
Speaker: Dr Muhammad Ramzan Sheikh is a Visiting Fellow from Bahauddin Zakariya University.
Determinants of Trade in ECO Region: A Panel Data Analysis Using the Gravity Trade Model
Speaker: Dr Rachita Gulati is the Subir Chowdhury Fellow from the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee.
Governance compliance and banking stability: Evidence from India
Discussants: Dr Konstantinos Baltas, Department of Finance. Professor Athar Hussain, Former Director, Asia Research Centre. Dr Sunil Kumar, Department of Social Policy. Professor Tirthankar Roy, Department of Economic History.
Chair: Dr Ruth Kattumuri, Co-Director, India Observatory.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
5 Jul 2017 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Skilling for Youth Empowerment: Partnering for Inclusive Development
Wednesday 5th July 2017, 6pm to 7.30pm, Room 32L.LG.04, 32 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, LSE
Speakers: Yogesh Chauhan (Director Corporate Sustainabillity, Tata Consultancy Services), Anant Jani (Asha for Education), Radha Kapoor Khanna (Founder & Executive Director, Indian School of Design & Innovation)
Chair: Ruth Kattumuri (Co-Director, LSE India Observatory)
India’s youth population is estimated to reach 464 million by 2021. With its working age population estimated to be 28% of global working population by 2020, empowering this population and enhancing human capital is a key priority for the development of the country.
The UK has sought to address its challenges of educational and income inequality and low productivity by focusing on skills for its youth.
To facilitate these processes, both India and the UK have invested in major initiatives, such as the Skill India program in India and T-levels and formal apprenticeships in the UK, to empower their citizens with technical and vocational training. Equipping people with the required skills, and enabling for and with relevant opportunities necessitates multi-dimensional and multi-sectoral engagement. It calls for coordination between public, private and non-profit organisations and private corporations.
This panel discussion brings together narratives, field experiences and analyses on initiatives for skilling youth in India and the UK. Participants from diverse sectors will discuss opportunities and partnerships to enhance skills and employability for inclusive and sustainable development in both the countries.
This event is free and open to all but pre-registration through Eventbrite is required to attend. This event will be followed by a reception. View Video | Podcast (MP3)
Link to further information
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
3 Jul 2017 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Should India Be Designing Emissions Trading?
Anwar Sadat (Sir Ratan Tata Post-doctoral Fellow (2016-17) from the Indian Society of International Law)
Monday 3rd July 2017, 3.30pm to 4.30pm, Room 32L.LG.03, 32 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, LSE
Chair: Dr Ruth Kattumuri Co-Director of the LSE India Observatory
Discussants: Professor Athar Hussain Institute of Global Affairs and Professor Tirthankar Roy Department of Economic History
India has been adhering to the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities during climate change negotiations. India has now moved beyond this principle and follows the policies of co-benefits, a policy that meets climate change goals and delivers developmental benefits.
India is the second highest supplier of CDM credits to international markets and has launched energy-efficiency certificate markets in nine of its energy-intensive industries under the programme ‘perform, achieve and trade’, which demonstrates India to be a notable carbon market.
The following developments of the last decade underline that India should start contemplating emissions trading on a pilot basis: (i) trade-related implications of the growing number of countries joining emissions trading (ii) energy-related disputes at WTO weaken India’s policy to rely heavily on renewable energy programme (iii) emergence of 2 degree Celsius setting the cap on India’s emissions, which could become the foundational norm with legal implications. Further, in order to achieve the goal for a stable climate future, India will most likely be required to mitigate its carbon emissions. This paper recommends that India is in a strong position to expand its emissions trading portfolio.
This event is free and open to all with no ticket required. Entry is on a first come first served basis.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
25 May 2017 LSE India Observatory Seminar
An SVAR Approach to Evaluation of Monetary Policy in India: Solution to the Exchange Rate Puzzles in an Open Economy
Soumya Bhadury (National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER))
3pm to 4pm, Room 32L.2.04, 32 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, LSE
Chair: Athar Hussain
This seminar is based on the speaker’s paper with William Barnett and Taniya Ghosh.
Following the exchange-rate paper by Kim and Roubini (J Monet Econ 45(3):561–586, 2000), we revisit the questions on monetary policy, exchange rate delayed overshooting, the inflationary puzzle, and the weak monetary transmission mechanism; but we do so for the open Indian economy. We further incorporate a superior monetary measure, the aggregation-theoretic Divisia monetary aggregate. Our paper confirms the efficacy of the Kim and Roubini (J Monet Econ 45(3):561–586, 2000) contemporaneous restriction, customized for the Indian economy, especially when compared with recursive structure, which is damaged by the price puzzle and the exchange rate puzzle. The importance of incorporating correctly measured money into the exchange rate model is illustrated, when we compare models with no-money, simple-sum monetary measures, and Divisia monetary measures. Our results are confirmed in terms of impulse response, variance decomposition analysis, and out-of-sample forecasting. In addition, we do a flip-flop variance decomposition analysis, finding two important phenomena in the Indian economy: (i) the existence of a weak link between the nominal-policy variable and real-economic activity, and (ii) the use of inflation-targeting as a primary goal of the Indian monetary authority. These two main results are robust, holding across different time period, dissimilar monetary aggregates, and diverse exogenous model designs.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
10 May 2017 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Energy Poverty: Concepts, Measurement and Impacts on Quality of life
Hippu Salk Kristle Nathan (Subir Chowdhury Fellow (2016-17) from National Institute of Advanced Studies)
11.30am to 1pm, Room TW2.9.05, Tower 2, LSE
Chair: Ruth Kattumuri
Discussants: Ehtisham Ahmad, Athar Hussain
This talk highlights the missing priority of energy poverty in energy research and the lack of consensus whether to consider energy as resource or capacity, output or outcome, and quantity or service. Invoking the three approaches in literature to measure energy poverty—economic, engineering, and access-based—the study critiques the economic measure by arguing against the notion of income poverty line, which suffers from arbitrary categorisation of people as poor and non-poor. Under the engineering approach, the study develops a framework with availability, affordability, and acceptability of energy services, devices, and carriers. The study finds the access-based approach for measuring energy poverty as the most suitable to the conventional understanding of poverty.
This research uses the 68th round of national sample survey data and proposes a novel method by introducing a transitional group between energy-poor and non-poor. It considers depth and severity as complements to poverty incidence, rather than substitutes. It defines poverty gap as the proportion of energy consumption in a household from non-efficient energy sources. It evaluates energy poverty among states of urban India and explores the relationship between urban household energy poverty and quality of life expressed in terms of deprivations in nutrition, education, and income.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
14 Jun 2016 LSE India Observatory Seminar
India Observatory Seminar
2pm to 4.30pm
Room TW2.9.05, Tower 2, LSE
Speaker: Shalina Susan Mathew (Sir Ratan Tata Post-doctoral Fellow (2015-16) from the Indian Institute of Technology Madras)
Changing Dynamics of Women’s Employment in Kerala, India: A Study of Labour Market Participation Decisions.
Speaker: Swapnendu Banerjee (Subir Chowdhury Fellow (2015-16) from Jadavpur University, Kolkata)
Trade liberalization and Quality Innovation: A Theory and Some Evidence.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
17 May 2016 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Multi-level Finance and the Euro Crisis: Causes and Effects
Speakers: Ehtisham Ahmad and Giorgio Brosio
Representing a unique contribution to the analysis and discussion of the unfolding Eurozone crisis in terms of the relationship between central and local government, this book addresses a number of important fiscal and political economy questions. To what extent have local and regional governments contributed to the crisis? To what degree have subnational services and investments borne the brunt of the adjustments? How have multi-level fissures affected tensions between different levels of government from the supranational to the local? This volume covers these and many other critical issues that have been largely ignored despite their relevance.Podcast (MP3)
Link to further information
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
4 May 2016 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Other Regarding Principal and Moral Hazard: A Microeconomic Analysis
Swapnendu Banerjee (Subir Chowdhury Fellow (2015-16) from Jadavpur University, Kolkata)
2pm to 3.30pm, Room 32L.LG.02, 32 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, LSE
Chair: Ruth Kattumuri
Using the classic moral hazard problem with limited liability we characterize the optimal incentive contracts when first an other-regarding principal interacts with a self-regarding agent. The optimal contract differs considerably when the principal is ‘inequity averse’ vis-a-vis the self-regarding case. Also the agent is generally (weakly) better-off under an ‘inequity averse’ principal compared to a ‘status seeking’ principal. Then we extend our analysis and characterize the optimal contracts when both other-regarding principal and other-regarding agent interact.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
22 Jan 2016 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Developments in Relations Between Pakistan and India
Zahid Hussain (The Times of London and The Wall Street Journal)
6.30pm to 8pm, Room TW1.G.01, Ground Floor, Tower One, LSE
Chair: Athar Hussain
Following the election of a new government in India and recent increased high-level contact between the two countries, Zahid Hussain will discuss challenges and current prospects for change in Pakistan and India’s bilateral relations.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
27 Oct 2015 LSE India Observatory Seminar
ADB Report - A Smarter Future: Skills, Education and Growth in Asia and the Pacific
Juzhong Zhuang (Asian Development Bank)
1.30pm to 2.30pm, Room TW2.9.04, Tower 2, LSE
Chair: Athar Hussain
The ADB report shows that developing Asia has done well in expanding access to education. But continued economic transformation requires the region to focus more on the quality of education, and to ensure that its workforce has the full complement of skills - cognitive, non-cognitive, and technical - needed for sustained growth. To achieve this goal, developing Asia must base public financing on measurable educational outcomes; design curricula that are well matched to student capabilities and labour-market needs; make sure that curricula are delivered well; and ensure that the disadvantaged receive high-quality education. Above all, decisions in these areas must be guided by robust data metrics for better monitoring, performance evaluation, and accountability.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
7 May 2015 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Bagri Fellows Seminar
12pm to 2pm, Room TW2.10.01B, Tower 2, LSE
Speaker: Jason Garred (Bagri Fellow)
Access to Raw Materials and Local Comparative Advantage: The effects of India's freight equalization policy
Speaker: Jonathan Colmer (Bagri Fellow)
The Productivity Effects of Labour Demand Shocks: Evidence from India
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
20 Apr 2015 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Formal and Informal Seed Sector in India and Bangladesh: An examination of mechanism and institutions
Saurabh Kumar (Subir Chowdhury Fellow (2014-15) from CUTS International, India)
1pm to 2pm Room TW2.10.01B, Tower 2, LSE
This paper examines policies, mechanisms and institutions related to the formal and informal seed sector in India and Bangladesh. Informal seed trade is defined as the sum of farmers’ seed production and exchange. Seeds produced and traded by farmers at the informal level is still a major part of the seed sector in India and Bangladesh. Although governments in both the countries have tried to replace it with formal seed production and trade, the legislative framework, institutional weakness and constraints in mechanism impose limits to these efforts. In this context, a re-evaluation of the existing scenario is needed to improve seed production and supply in both countries.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
4 Mar 2015 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Second Demographic Transition or Competing Aspirations: An exploratory analysis of fertility transition in Kolkata, India
Saswata Ghosh (Sir Ratan Tata Post-doctoral Fellow (2014-15) from the Institute of Development Studies Kolkata)
1.45pm to 3pm, Room TW2.10.01B, Tower 2, LSE
Fertility transition occurred during 1970s in Kolkata (erstwhile Calcutta), capital of the state of West Bengal, India, and remained persistently at the lowest-low fertility level. It currently has the lowest fertility rates (TFR 1.2) in India. This could be a case of second demographic transition (SDT) or pertaining to constrains in childbearing and childrearing, and/or aspirations for children. Using primary data of 600 couples (1,200 individuals), and employing quantitative and qualitative methods the present study found that constraints in childbearing and childrearing; and aspirations for children; have strong negative and significant effect on second and higher order childbearing among couples, particularly among women. In our study there was no strong evidence of decline in the importance of marriage, family and children as posited by SDT. Thus we argue that SDT might have to be redefined in a developing country context. Further research is required to validate this argument.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
25 Feb 2015 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Political Commitment to Public Services in India
S. Vivek (Stanford University)
Most people in Tamil Nadu have access to schools, basic healthcare, water, transport and other basic public services – with remarkable impact on people’s well-being. In this seminar, Dr S.Vivek will examine how Tamil Nadu developed its commitment to services, and how it relates to the politics of public services elsewhere in India.
Link to further information
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
13 Feb 2015 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Strengthening Relations Between Europe and India: Which partnership for the Twenty First Century?
This event, jointly organised by the LSE European Institute, LSE India Observatory and King’s College London India Institute, aims to discuss some aspects of India-EU relations involving academics and policy makers.
The discussions will explore the following themes:
◾ General issues of involvement and engagement, including perceptions and worldviews
◾ Trade and economic cooperation
◾ Security cooperation and strategic issues
◾ India and Europe’s involvement in international forums and global governance.
Analysing European and Indian areas of common interest, complementarities, convergence, priorities and concerns, along with changed geopolitical realities, will be key to imagine the basis of a stronger partnership in the twenty-first century.
Link to further information
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
27 Nov 2014 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Climate Change and Indus River System Floods, 2010 - 2014: Faulty institutions and governance deficit
Uzma Hanif (Sir Ratan Tata Post-Doctoral Fellow (2013-2014) from Forman Christian College, Lahore)
12.30pm to 2pm, Room TW2.10.01B, Tower 2, LSE
Chair: Professor Athar Hussain
Across the world extreme climatic events have become more common due to the on-going process of climate change which affects all regions of the world in various ways with none immune. The impact is also felt in Pakistan where, according to forecasts, worse is yet to come.
The Inter-government Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), in its fifth assessment report, identifies floods as key climatic events which pose a threat to infrastructure, the built environment and livelihood. This threat is particularly grave in South Asia, which depends heavily on seasonal rains for farming. Within South Asia, Pakistan, the land of five rivers, is especially prone to droughts and floods, both occurring in the same year.
The Indus system is the main source of food, water and energy for Pakistan. The recurrent floods over the past five years have inflicted a heavy toll in human and animal lives and physical damage. This study explains that deficits in constitutional, legislative and administrative structures, an unstable macro-economic environment, and faulty institutions have compounded the damage and loss caused by floods.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
17 Jun 2014 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Bagri Fellows Seminar
1.30pm to 3.30pm, Room TW2.9.05, Tower 2, LSE
Speaker: Johannes Boehm (Bagri Fellow)
Inputs and Productivity in India: The role of institutions and foreign markets.
Speaker: Anokhi Parikh (Bagri Fellow)
Land Assembly in Maharashtra: The myth and muscle of the market.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
8 May 2014 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Dalit Discrimination in Contemporary India and in the UK
Co-hosted with LSE Inequality and Poverty Programme and The Federation of Ambedkarite and Buddhist Organisations UK
Speakers: Santosh Dass, Arun Kumar, Jayaseelan Raj and Clarinda Still. Chair: Alpa Shah.
Link to further information
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
20 Mar 2014 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Visiting Fellows Seminar
2.30pm to 5pm, Room TW2.9.05, Tower 2, LSE
Speaker: Michitaro Oka (Visiting Fellow at the LSE Asia Research Centre from Meiji University, Japan)
Interlinked Credit and Labour Markets in Gujarat: The trustability of the institution of ‘Kayami’.
Speaker: Srijit Mishra (Subir Chowdhury Fellow (2013-14) from Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, Mumbai)
Technology, Development and Farmers' Suicides in India: A misplaced debate.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
13 Feb 2014 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Social Protection, Economic Growth and Social Change: Goals, issues and trajectories in China, India, Brazil and South Africa
5.30pm to 7pm, Thai Theatre, Room NAB.LG.03, New Academic Building, LSE
Speakers: Francesca Bastagli, Tony Hall, Ruth Kattumuri
Chair: David Piachaud
This highly original and thought-provoking book examines the recent expansion of social protection in China, India, Brazil and South Africa – four countries experiencing rapid economic growth and social change. It documents developments in each country, analyses the impact of government cash transfers and discusses future trends. It shows that social protection has complemented economic growth and supported development efforts. Social protection has been fundamental to promoting equitable and sustainable societies.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
11 Feb 2014 LSE India Observatory Seminar
India Observatory Seminar
12.30pm to 4.30pm, Room TW2.10.01B, Tower 2, LSE
Speaker: Laura Aumeer (Thailand Government Scholar 2013)
Local Movements in a Globalised World: A study of the impacts and influences of the relationship between the grassroots and the international within Thailand’s civil society.
Speaker: Thiemo Fetzer (Bagri Fellow)
Can Workfare Programs Moderate Violence? Evidence from India.
Speaker: Silvia Masiero (Bagri Fellow)
Imagining the State through Digital Technologies: A case of State-Level computerisation in the Indian Public Distribution System.
Speaker: Francesco Obino (Bagri Fellow)
‘Voice’ and Legitimacy in Post-aid World Politics: International development NGOs and their decentralisation in India.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
5 Dec 2013 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Crop Insurance for Adaptation to Climate Change in India
Mamata Swain (Visiting Commonwealth Fellow and Ravenshaw University, India)
3pm to 4pm, Room TW2.10.01B, Tower 2, LSE
Chair: Ruth Kattumuri
In India, agriculture is inherently a risky venture due to uncertainty in production and volatility in price, and more so in the context of increased climatic aberrations and globalisation. Therefore, there is a great need for crop insurance to provide economic support to farmers, stabilise farm income, induce farmers to invest in agriculture, reduce indebtedness and decrease the need for relief measures in the event of crop failure. Dr Swain critically analyses the two important crop insurance schemes currently under implementation in India namely the National Agricultural Insurance Scheme (an area based crop yield insurance scheme) and the pilot Weather Based Crop Insurance Scheme (WBCIS) (an area based rainfall insurance scheme). Dr Swain contends that in the context of climate change with increasing agricultural risk, there is a need to redesign insurance products not merely as a risk transfer mechanism but as a potent device to reduce risk and crop loss by inducing desirable proactive and reactive responses in insurance users.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
4 Jun 2013 LSE India Observatory Seminar
India Observatory Seminar
3pm to 5pm, Room TW2.10.01B, Tower 2, LSE
Speaker: Taneesha Mohan (Tata PhD Fellow)
Labour Tying Arrangements: An Enduring Aspect of Agrarian Capitalism? A Case Study of Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.
Speaker: Mrutuyanjaya Sahu (Subir Chowdhury Fellow (2012-13) from Jawaharlal Nehru University, India)
Neoliberal Urban Development and Involuntary Resettlement in India.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
29 May 2013 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Development in Caste Society
Avatthi Ramaiah (Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai)
12.45pm to 1.45pm, Room 32L.3.05, 32 Lincoln's Inn Fields, LSE
Chair: Polly Vizard
Development has been defined in more than one perspective. While usually it is understood as economic growth, the UN has defined it as a condition that enables people to lead long and healthy lives, to be knowledgeable, to have access to the resources needed for a decent standard of living and to be able to participate in the life of the community. Thus the core objectives of development are to free people from obstacles that affect their ability to develop their own lives and communities; empower people to take control of their own lives; to express their own demands and to find their own solutions to their problems. In short, freedom becomes central to the debate on development. This seminar will focus on whether the caste system allows such a freedom to individuals and groups within its structure, and what challenges it poses to accomplishing the objectives of development.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
24 May 2013 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Pakistani Election: Outcome & Implications for the Future
12pm to 1.30pm, Thai Theatre, Room NAB.LG.03, Lower Ground Floor, New Academic Building, LSE
Panellists: Ehtisham Ahmad and Athar Hussain
The Pakistani election held on May 11th 2013 is the first time a democratically elected government has been succeeded by another without a military coup. The election comes against the backdrop of substantial decentralisation of powers from central to provincial governments. The election results show a marked regionalisation of politics in Pakistan. Bar some minor exceptions, seats in the National Assembly won by each party are from one province only. As warned by the Taliban, the run-up to the election and the polling day have been marked by targeted killing of candidates and terrorist attacks. However, the election campaign has been lively. The population has shown its fervour for democracy by travelling long distances to polling stations and queuing for hours to cast their votes. Notwithstanding the condemnation of the election as “unIslamic”, women turned out in force to cast their vote. Nawaz Sharif’s PML-N emerged as the single largest party. He is poised to become Prime Minster after 14 years. The furore over vote-rigging will be the least of his troubles. In his campaign, he promised to turn around the ailing economy and end the crippling power shortages. The purposes of the meeting is to discuss the outcome of the election and analyse its implications for dealing with the ills of the economy and the threat of terrorism that hangs over the country.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
15 May 2013 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Regional Economic Integration in South Asia: Trapped in conflict?
Amita Batra (University of Edinburgh)
3pm to 4pm, Room TW2 10.01B, 10th Floor, Tower 2, LSE
Chair: Ruth Kattumuri
The talk will be based on the speaker’s recent book Regional Economic Integration in South Asia: Trapped in Conflict? (London: Routledge, 2012). The talk will examine how South Asia, with historically and geographically proximate countries and exceptional economic dynamism of its largest economy when caught in persistent conflict, demonstrates underperformance of its potential for economic integration.
Giving a background analysis of the economic and trade profile of the South Asian region and the nature and chronology of conflict therein, the talk will present the quantitative estimates of the cost of conflict in terms of loss of trade for South Asia. In particular the multi-dimensional representation of conflict in an augmented gravity model and its econometric estimation with a dataset extending over the time period 1965-2000 will be discussed. The talk will highlight how disputed borders and persistent conflict can debilitate trade relationships and prevent a region from exploiting its trade potential.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
6 Feb 2013 LSE India Observatory Seminar
India Observatory Seminar
12.30pm to 2pm, Room TW2.10.01B, Tower 2, LSE
Speaker: Luke Swainson (PhD student, Australian National University)
Greening the Economy: Putting theory into practice in Aceh Province, Indonesia.
Speaker: Satyapriya Rout (Sir Ratan Tata Post-doctoral Fellow (2012-13) from University of Hyderabad)
Sustaining Southeast Asia's Forests: Community, Institutions and Forest Governance in Thailand.
Speaker: Scott MacDonald (Thailand Government Scholar 2012)
Solar Photovoltaic Energy in Thailand: An assessment of government support mechanisms.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
17 May 2011 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Colonialism and Welfare - Social Policy and the British Imperial Legacy
1.30pm - 2.30pm, Room CON.H103, Connaught House, LSE
Speakers: Lord Frank Judd (member of the Joint Committee on Human Rights), Thandika Mkandawire (Professor of African Development, LSE), James Midgley (Harry and Riva Specht Professor, University of California, Berkeley)
Chair: David Piachaud (Professor of Social Policy, LSE)
The British Empire covered three centuries, five continents and one-quarter of the world’s population. Its legacy continues, shaping the societies and welfare policies of much of the modern world. In this book, for the first time, this legacy is explored and analyzed. Colonialism and Welfare reveals that social welfare policies, often discriminatory and challenging to those colonized, were introduced and imposed by the ‘mother country.’ It highlights that there was great diversity in rationales and impacts across the empire, but past developments had a major impact on the development of much of the world’s population. Contributions from every continent explore both the diversity and the common themes in the imperial experience. They examine the legacy of colonial welfare – a subject largely neglected by both historians of empire and social policy analysts.
LSE Contributors include Dr Ruth Kattumuri (India Observatory) and Dr Joanna Lewis (Department of International History).
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.
12 Oct 2010 LSE India Observatory Seminar
Democracy, Development and Decentralisation in India: Continuing Debates
6.30pm to 8.30pm, Hong Kong Theatre, Clement House, LSE
Panellists: Professor Chandan Sengupta (TISS), Professor Anthony Giddens (Department of Sociology, LSE) and Professor S Parasuraman (TISS)
Chair: Lord Meghnad Desai
Economic reforms in India have largely taken place at a time of assertive cultural nationalism and growing pressures for advancement and assertion from within India's subaltern communities.
This book, edited by Chandan Sengupta and Stuart Corbridge, explores the mainsprings, contours and consequences of democratisation, decentralisation and development in India and offers new insights into its contemporary political economy. It considers how and why unequal patterns of economic growth have taken shape within the context of a democratic and decentralising political system, and how and why that system has impacted upon processes of economic development.
The different articles address how competing claims have been negotiated; in what measure has a bias in favour of political decentralisation helped the government push ahead with an economic reform agenda; and who is being left behind in the race for income growth. The book makes some important theoretical contributions to the continuing debate on democracy and development in the Indian context and balances the arguments with good variety of empirical material.
For further information please contact india.observatory@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.