Life Is A Little Better: Redistribution As A Development Strategy In Nadur Village, Kerala

Business & Money

Franke, Richard W.

Economics

Routledge

In this definitive history, a key figure in the People's Campaign in Kerala provides an insider's account of one of the world's most extensive and successful experiments in decentralization. Launched in 1996, the campaign mobilized over 3 million of Kerala's 30 million people and resulted in bottom-up development planning in all 1,052 of its villages and urban neighborhoods. The authors detail the background of the campaign, trace its stages, assess problems and successes, and evaluate concrete results and reforms. Local Democracy and Development tells a powerful story of mass mobilization and innovation as bureaucratic opposition was overcome, corruption and cynicism were rooted out, and parliamentary democracy prevailed. Considering both the theoretical and applied significance of the campaign both in the context of India's development since independence and of recent international debates about decentralization, civil society, and empowerment, this study provides invaluable lessons for sustainable development worldwide.

Local Democracy and Development: The Kerala People's Campaign for Decentralized Planning (Asia/Pacific/Perspectives)

Politics & Social Sciences

Thomas Isaac, T. M.

Social Sciences

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

In this definitive history, a key figure in the People's Campaign in Kerala provides an insider's account of one of the world's most extensive and successful experiments in decentralization. Launched in 1996, the campaign mobilized over 3 million of Kerala's 30 million people and resulted in bottom-up development planning in all 1,052 of its villages and urban neighborhoods. The authors detail the background of the campaign, trace its stages, assess problems and successes, and evaluate concrete results and reforms. Local Democracy and Development tells a powerful story of mass mobilization and innovation as bureaucratic opposition was overcome, corruption and cynicism were rooted out, and parliamentary democracy prevailed. Considering both the theoretical and applied significance of the campaign both in the context of India's development since independence and of recent international debates about decentralization, civil society, and empowerment, this study provides invaluable lessons for sustainable development worldwide.

Democracy at Work in an Indian Industrial Cooperative: The Story of Kerala Dinesh Beedi (Cornell International Industrial and Labor Relations Reports)

The authors tell the story of a democratic workers' cooperative that makes hand-rolled cigarettes, known as "beedis," in the unorganized sector of a fiercely competitive capitalist economy in India. For decades, beedi workers have been among the most exploited and impoverished of India's work force. In 1969, in the southwestern Indian state of Kerala, several thousand workers banded together to form a worker-owned beedi cooperative. The authors argue that their skill and determination, combined with Kerala's generally leftist political culture, allowed them to beat the odds. The cooperative surprised the private sector beedi barons by creating an enterprise that has lasted and prospered, offering the best wages and benefits in the business, while making a profit and contributing to the local economy.The authors analyze the major features of the cooperative, assessing its overall structure, worker-elected management, shop floor democracy, and progress in providing a better life for its worker-owners. Tensions are also discussed, including the complaints of women workers and the need for diversification from tobacco.

Raghavan, Pyralal

Isaac, T. M. Thomas

ILR PRESS

The authors tell the story of a democratic workers' cooperative that makes hand-rolled cigarettes, known as "beedis," in the unorganized sector of a fiercely competitive capitalist economy in India. For decades, beedi workers have been among the most exploited and impoverished of India's work force. In 1969, in the southwestern Indian state of Kerala, several thousand workers banded together to form a worker-owned beedi cooperative. The authors argue that their skill and determination, combined with Kerala's generally leftist political culture, allowed them to beat the odds. The cooperative surprised the private sector beedi barons by creating an enterprise that has lasted and prospered, offering the best wages and benefits in the business, while making a profit and contributing to the local economy.
The authors analyze the major features of the cooperative, assessing its overall structure, worker-elected management, shop floor democracy, and progress in providing a better life for its worker-owners. Tensions are also discussed, including the complaints of women workers and the need for diversification from tobacco.

This ethnography of Nadur Village explores the ramifications of Kerala State's policy of wealth redistribution to achieve equality. The author shows a decline in income inequality and an improved quality of life for most villagers despite high unemployment, low incomes and the persistence of inequalities that redistribution has not overcome. This experiment in democratic development will be of interest to all those working to alleviate the problems of the Third World.

Life Is A Little Better: Redistribution As A Development Strategy In Nadur Village, Kerala (CONFLICT SERIES)

Westview Press

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Books by Franke, Richard W.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Franke, Richard W.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Life Is A Little Better: Redistribution As A Development Strategy In Nadur Village, Kerala

Local Democracy and Development: The Kerala People's Campaign for Decentralized Planning (Asia/Pacific/Perspectives)

Local Democracy and Development: The Kerala People's Campaign for Decentralized Planning (Asia/Pacific/Perspectives)

Democracy at Work in an Indian Industrial Cooperative: The Story of Kerala Dinesh Beedi (Cornell International Industrial and Labor Relations Reports)

Democracy at Work in an Indian Industrial Cooperative: The Story of Kerala Dinesh Beedi (Cornell International Industrial and Labor Relations Reports)

Life Is A Little Better: Redistribution As A Development Strategy In Nadur Village, Kerala (CONFLICT SERIES)