National Seminar @ Centre for Culture and Development

CONCEPT NOTE

National Seminar on

Tracking the Growth of India's Middle Class

(November 27-28-29, 2013)

General Introduction

Middle class has been historically linked to the question of development especially in the post-colonial context, where one of the defining features of this category has been its role as the articulator and representative of the interests of the masses. This role was performed by this class in colonial India and continued in the post Independence period under the regime of the Nehruvian model of development (Shaoni  Shabanam 2012). India's growth achievements since the 1990s have put the living standards of many Indians under global scrutiny. While the economic literature has primarily focused on poverty and inequality, the fortunes of the "new Indian middle class" have received substantial attention in the media and in business journals, as their earning potential and spending habits have important implications for the global economy.

Who are the Indian middle class? A broad definition - reflected in most references to the middle class - places these households "between" the poor and the extremely rich. This potentially encompasses a very large and varied group of individuals, but the Indian middle class has been typically perceived to be uneducated section of urban society employed in or seeking white collar jobs.

Is class merely a question of income? Apart from income one needs to take into account the nature of middle class consciousness of itself. What are the concrete indicators and manifestations of middle class: neighbour hoods, clubs, associations, kind of house, gadgets therein, and vehicles?  The middle class and the nature of celebration of life cycle events,  kinship relations, life in neighbourhood, inter caste, interfaith relations, speech and language, and behavior? What about a middle class within a caste?  How can one recognize the middle classes from its external behavior, aspirations and consciousness?

 The size and characteristics of the Indian middle class deserve attention for several reasons. India possesses a sixth of the world's population, and hence its middle class constitutes a significant portion of the global workforce as well as a substantial market for final products. Second, the Indian middle class seems ideally placed to partake of the direct trickle-down benefits of high growth and to respond to economic incentives in a way that would make the growth sustainable. Finally, the growth and consumption habits of the middle class serve as a useful metric of how living standards in India are changing. Hence, it seems essential to develop a rigorous method for defining and identifying the Indian middle class.

However, there have been increasing debates and critical analysis concerning this dimension of middle class over the recent years, largely within the popular discourse that emerged in the post-liberalization phase, centering on the rise of what has been termed as the 'new middle class', and its implications for an altered understanding of the idea of 'middle class' itself in India. It isimportant to point out here that surprisingly enough the relation of middleclass to the question of development remains a relatively less attended area in the Indian scholarly domain. Although some of the recent studies have specifically looked at the relation of middle class to the environment issue,any holistic analysis of middle class and its relation to the broader issues of development, society and culture remain a less explored but a hugely interesting area (Shaoni Shabanam 2012).

The limited objective of the seminar is to look at some of the popular claims of shift concerning the relation of middle class to the question of development, society, culture and public advocacy. This seminar wishes bring together the diverse lines of arguments provided by the scholarly domain concerning this area.

 

Seminar Plan and Topics

The topics identified for the Seminar to be held on 27-28-29November 2013 are just for the reference for the contributors. Within the framework of Indian middle class papers are invited having the following broad themes which would be futuristic in approach. Followings can be the sub-themes to be covered under six main themes and sub themes:

 

Theme 1: The Indian Middle Class: Old and New

Variegated Capitalism and Middle Class as a Social Block

Indian Middle Class – A Historical Moorings: Continuities and Discontinuities

Who are the Indian Middle Class in Contemporary India? An Empirical Investigation

Middle Class and its consciousness of itself

The Great Indian Middle Class: An Analysis of their Power

 

Theme 2: The Indian Middle Class, the State, Globalization and Development

The Economic Reforms and the Middle Class

Governance, Political Democracy and the Middle Class

The Changing Nature of India, State and Indian Middle Class

Middle Class in the Politics of Economic Reforms

Indian Middle Class: World Class Aspirations

The Middle Class and the Rise of Religious Fundamentalism

 

Theme 3: Locating the Indian Middle Class: Urban and Rural Scenario

Cities, Middle Class and the Poor

Indian Middle Class: New Forms of Urban Leisure, Consumption and Prosperity

Urban Politics and the Middle Class

Urban Informal Economy and Middle Class

Is there a Rural Middle Class?

 

Theme 4: Middle Class among Historically Deprived Social Groups andMinorities

Dalit Middle Class

Middle Classes among Minorities

Tribal Middle Class

Middle Class Women

 

Theme 5: Social Activism, Public Advocacy and Middle Class

Resistance and Protest from the Middle Class

Protests, Politics and the Middle Class

Middle Class, Judicial Pronouncements and Discourses

 

Theme 6: Socio-cultural Changes among the Indian Middle Class

Films and Television and the Middle Class

Social Media, Youth and the Middle Class

Changing Family Structure among Middle Class

Interrogating Caste and Religion in India's Middle Class

 

Venue

The seminar will be held during 27-28-29 November 2013, atCentre for Culture and Development, Vadodara, Gujarat.Vadodara is one of the well-developed and cultural capital cities.  It is well connected by rail and air networkto the rest of India.The CCD campus is about 10 km from Vadodara railway station. From any point inthe Vadodara city, come to Gotri and take the road to Sevasi – Sindhrot. TheCCD campus is about one and half kilo meter from Sevasi village on the mainroad next to Baroda Homeopathic Collegeand Xavier Technical Institute.

 

Submission ofPapers

Researchers and other professionals are invited tocontribute papers on the seminar themes. Those who desire to contribute papersmay send a hard copy to the Director, Centre for Culture and Development, XTICampus, Sevasi Post, Vadodara – 391 101 and a soft copy to the following emailaddress:centreforculture@gmail.com.All contributors should submit their paper in both hard copy and soft copy,with short CV and passport sized photo. The paper must not exceed 4,000 words(including tables and appendices) and should be accompanied by a summary in 400to 500 words. Summaries of all the papers accepted will be published anddistributed among the participants. Selected papers will be published as avolume.

 

Important Dates

Last date for receipts of Abstracts                     :   10thSeptember 2013

Last date for receipts of full length paper            :   10th November 2013

 

Travel Supportand Accommodations

Depending on the availability of funds, travel fare will be provided to those whose papers are accepted for presentation. Travel fare by IIAc (Railway) will be reimbursed.  The Seminar will start at 3.00 p.m on November 27, 2013. Accommodation and local hospitality will be provided to the delegates at the institute guesthouse and nearby hotel.

 

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