The Journey of Caste in India

This book provides a comprehensive overview of caste in contemporary India. With contributions from scholars like Valerian Rodrigues, B.B. Mohanty, Surinder Jodhka, and Anand Teltumbde, it discusses wide-ranging themes like the trajectory of caste in post-independence India; Dalits and cultural identity; the paradox of being a Dalit woman; caste violence and social mobility; Ambedkar’s quest for the right of social equality; social security for the inclusive development of Dalits; discrimination and exclusion of Dalits in education; and Dalit merit and institutional injustice, and presents an overview of the struggles for distributive justice in India.

This volume will be of importance to scholars and researchers of Dalit studies, social justice, exclusion studies, caste studies, affirmative action, political studies, sociology, social anthropology, and South Asian politics.

N. Sukumar teaches Political Science at Delhi University, India. His area of interest includes Indian Political Thought, Ambedkar and Dalit Bahujan Studies, Human Rights, and Social Exclusion. Currently, he is engaged in the study of caste discrimination in Indian universities and Dalit Citizenship. He is also a member/advisor for many professional bodies in many Central Universities and other institutions. For his research credit he owns one international project on “Dalits and Well Being” (Indo-Swiss ICSSR Research Project), two major research projects – one on “Student Politics in Central Universities” (funded by UGC), and the second one is on “Exclusion and Discrimination in Higher Education” (funded by the ICSSR) – one sponsored project on “University as a Sight of Exclusion” (funded by the ICSSR). He also conducted two research projects – one on “Panchayati Raj” and another on “Atrocities on Dalits” – in association with the Indian Institute of Dalit Studies, Delhi. He has published widely in research journals, blogs, etc., and has been involved in both national and international research studies on poverty and public institutions, migration, and caste-based atrocities. Apart from the classroom, he is also actively involved in grassroots people’s struggles.

Paul D’Souza, after completing his PhD from Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi, India, served at various institutes in Gujarat engaged in social action and research at the grassroots. Since 2013 he has been with the Indian Social Institute, New Delhi, India, first as Research Director and then working as Head of the Department of Dalit Studies. Indian Social Institute, established in 1951 is a premier Centre for Research, Training and Action for Socio-Economic Development and Human Rights in India.

His areas of interest and engagement have been marginalisation and development and city and caste. He has engaged with a number of research projects: “Negotiating Citizenship in Urban Space: A Study of Delhi Resettlement Project” (funded by the ICSSR); “Discrimination and Exclusion in Education: A Study of the Children of Communities Engaged in ‘Unclean Occupations’” (funded by the ICSSR); half-widows of Kashmir, the refugees of Afghanistan, etc. His current research engagement focuses on “Single Women and the Emerging Social Change among Tribals of Gujarat”. He has a number of years of experience working at the grassroots with marginalised communities. He has published articles in various journals and has contributed chapters to several edited volumes.