Comparing Indian State Political Regimes Again

Event Series: 

Friday, January 23, 2015 - 12:00am-1:30am (ended)

223 Moses Hall 

John Harriss, Professor, Simon Fraser University, School for International Studies

Some years ago, John Harriss proposed a typology distinguishing between the politics of India's major states, and suggesting some of the economic and social implications of the differences he distinguished. The typology attracted interest on the parts of some other scholars. In this talk, Harriss reviews the typology again, but with particular reference to the states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.

John Harriss moved to Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, Canada in 2006 as the first Director of the University's new School for International Studies.  He has a longstanding interest in the politics and the political economy of South Asia, and of India in particular, where has lived and researched for substantial periods on many occasions since first carrying out field research on agrarian change in Tamil Nadu in the early 1970s. He has theoretical interests in economic and political anthropology and in institutions and institutional theory. He is also very interested in the work of Karl Polanyi and his expertise ranges over agriculture and rural development, poverty, labour markets, civil society and politics, and governance in general.

Co-sponsored by the Institute for South Asia Studies.