Disability, Gender & State Policy: Exploring Margins

Book Details

• Author: Nilika Mehrotra

• Publisher: Rawat Publications

• Language: English

• Edition: 1st Edition

• ISBN: 9788131605875

• Pages: 304

• Cover: Hardcover

• Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.7 x 0.9 inches

About the Book

This book foregrounds disability from an anthropological perspective, contributing significantly to the studies of marginalization and social inequalities in India. It traces global debates on the definition of disability, rehabilitation, and policies over time, and works towards establishing a South Asian model of disability. By covering both international and national contexts, the book critically examines the role of disability rights movements, state policies, and civil society organizations in shaping disability discourses, policies, and practices.

Using ethnography, the book explores cultural perceptions of disability, the construction of gender and personhood in rural and urban settings, and addresses issues in social support and care work. It also highlights the implications of globalization, particularly psychosocial disabilities among poor urban women. With an intersectional lens, the book analyzes disabled persons' access to essential resources such as education and employment opportunities in diverse sectors of the Indian economy.

This comprehensive account of the disabled community is embedded in the larger context of India's communities, citizenry, and democracy. It will be of particular interest not only to scholars pursuing disability studies but also to those in the broader field of social sciences.

Contents

1. Introduction

2. Disability, State Policy and NGOs in India

3. Disability Rights Movements in India: Politics and Practice

4. Cultural Conceptions of Disability in Haryana

5. Exploring Constructs of Intellectual Disability and Personhood in Haryana and Delhi

6. Negotiating Gender and Disability in Rural Haryana

7. Disability, Sorority and Social Space

8. Women and Psycho-social Disabilities among the Urban Poor

9. Multiple Marginalities: Disability, Gender and Caste in Indian Economy

About the Author

Nilika Mehrotra is a faculty member at the Centre for the Study of Social Systems at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. She has previously taught at the Department of Anthropology and Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi. With extensive research on social movements, gender, disability, and development, she has published widely in these fields. She currently serves as the editor of Indian Anthropologist, the journal of the Indian Anthropological Association.