Hunger, Deprivation and Social Exclusion: A Political Economy Perspective

Book Details

• Author: R.K. Kumbhar

• Publisher: Rawat Publications

• Binding: Hardcover

• Release Date: 01-11-2017

• Pages: 310

• Languages: English

• ISBN: 9788131608166

About the Book

This book presents a critical examination of regional development in India, focusing specifically on Odisha. Despite its abundance of natural resources, Odisha paradoxically faces staggering levels of poverty, underemployment, landlessness, malnutrition, low life expectancy, and deprivation. These contradictions raise critical questions about why a state rich in resources has remained so underdeveloped.

The book explores several factors contributing to this state of affairs: the exploitation of resources and the poor, ineffective public provisioning, unequal development, and the failure of the trickle-down effect. Additionally, repeated natural disasters such as floods, droughts, and cyclones, along with forced displacement, have worsened the situation. The book argues that the most marginalized and socially excluded communities are the worst affected, particularly the landless.

Kumbhar proposes land redistribution along with agrarian reforms as key steps toward addressing these disparities and improving the living conditions of socially disadvantaged groups. Combining a multidisciplinary approach with extensive data and analysis, Hunger, Deprivation and Social Exclusion offers valuable insights for students, researchers, policy makers, NGOs, and social activists.

Contents

1. Introduction

2. Structure of Hunger and Deprivation in Odisha

3. Slow and Lopsided Structural Transformation and its Impacts

4. Absence of Distributive Justice: Access to Land and Related Resources in a Comparative Perspective

5. Social Exclusion: A Source of Hunger and Deprivation

6. Public Provisioning to Reduce Hunger and Deprivation

7. External Sources of Hunger and Deprivation

8. Coping with External Shocks: Displacement in the Name of Development

9. Summary and Conclusion

About the Author
R.K. Kumbhar holds an M.Phil. and Ph.D. from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. He is currently an Assistant Professor at the P.G. Department of Economics, Sambalpur University, Odisha. Kumbhar has worked on various international projects related to poverty, employment, and social security and has published numerous articles in reputed journals and edited books.