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Regional Growth Dynamics in India Since Independence
No full textThe Indian economy passed through two distinct regimes in the period after independence. The first regime attempted a heavily regulated mixed-economy model for close to four decades, before shifting to a liberalized, privatized, and globalized second regime following the reforms in the early nineties. These two regimes have manifested in the form of two growth episodes—a pre-reform period of relative stagnation and a post-reform period of rapid economic growth. These higher growth outcomes in recent times has also coincided with increased regional inequalities, with some states prospering while others stagnated. This might suggest that the regional growth dynamics has changed drastically as a result of the reforms. Is there any empirical evidence to support this hypothesis? This paper investigates this question using a long time series of regional data for the pre-reform and post-reform period. The study finds that there was no qualitative difference in the regional growth dynamics during the two periods, with persistent non-convergence and club formation of per capita GSDP in both. The individual regions also largely remained in the same clubs across these two episodes. There was some quantitative difference between the two periods however, mainly in terms of an accelerated divergence between the clubs themselves in the post-reform period. The study concludes with some discussion of the differential policy approaches that are needed for regions in high-income and low-income clubs
RETHINKING AQUAPELAGOS IN THE PHILIPPINES’ SULU SEA: Perception and visibility of the state: The Ramayan of the Maranao
Get PDFThis study contends that the Maranao people’s induction into the Tausug community of the Sulu aquapelago in the Philippines – an induction supervised by the colonial state – exemplifies a case of dialectical insularity or aquapelagicity in the production of a unique islandic identity that evolves through the deconstruction of Ramayan legends within templates of Darangen mythology. While numerous studies explore the role of myths and cultural narratives in reshaping and reinterpreting the identities of Muslim Filipinos, there is a notable scarcity of research specifically addressing how the Maranao community articulates its desired aquapelagic identity, particularly in the context of the ‘piratical’ movements and global commerce from the 16th to 18th centuries. Employing an interdisciplinary critical methodology, the study investigates how these reimagined myths provide affective sustenance for the Maranao’s imagined community, despite their, arguably, limited awareness of the Ramayan’s Indic, Hindu, and Puranic origins. The Maranao’s distinctive focus on Ravan (who is otherwise typically viewed as the Ramayan’s anti-hero in mainstream Indian interpretations) serves as a prominent index of their political praxis characterised by a unique affective dimension in their identity within Filipino cultures, the Malay Archipelago, and the larger Southeast Asian legacy of the Ramayan. This affective – or what I view as an aquapelagic – reinterpretation of the Ramayan within Maranao culture parallels the Tausug’s self-representation, characterised by ‘piratical’ assertions of their ‘Muslimness’ and their political stance on the Sabah dispute. This occurs within a decolonial framework that unveils the identity of the archipelago as an aquapelago, encompassing the marginal voices that shape its emancipatory future. Eventually, this constitutes a resistance to cultural and psychological erasure by colonial legacies – a resistance that influences the ongoing discourse of preserving unique political identities in the Malay archipelago and the wider Southeast Asian region
Neuroimaging in Psychoneuroimmunology Research
No full textThe human immune system hard wired to defend physical health against microorganisms and disease, also offers a response to psychological factors. Stress, anxiety, and other negative emotions can lead to the increase of cytokine production and the prolongation of the inflammation process and the time necessary to recover using antibiotics. This interconnectedness of the immune system, stress, and emotions is the rationale behind the branch of science known as psychoneuroimmunology (PNI). Modern studies neuroimaging technology provided a deeper insight into brain-body link in different affective disorders with the focus on brain. Furthermore, the neuroimaging can help to quantify the mind-body therapies drug treatments effects. This chapter provide a detailed description of the PNI and then analyze the concepts of chronic inflammation in health, neuroimaging methodologies in PNI, and the effects of mind-body therapies and pharmacological approaches to change brain-immune connections
Post-pandemic healthcare choices : SERVQUAL model and the influence of hospital image
No full textPurpose – This article studies the customer’s purchase intention to choose healthcare services in the post-
COVID-19 situation. The authors have used the most prominent SERVQUAL model to assess the service
quality offered to patients and each variable’s influence on customer intent to purchase healthcare services.
Design/methodology/approach – Tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, assurance, empathy, hospital image
and customer purchase intention are the variables considered for this study. Data have been collected from
customers who have recently experienced services in different hospitals. Standardized statements of the
SERVQUAL model and purchase intention were adapted and modified as per the requirements of the constructs.
Out of 271 filled questionnaires, the authors have undertaken the data cleaning process to circumvent any kind of
biasness; finally the authors have considered 225 questionnaires to conduct this research work.
Findings – This study’s findings indicate significant and positive relationships between service quality, hospital
image and customer purchase intention to choose hospital services. Additionally, the mediating role of hospital
image was confirmed in all four hypotheses.
Practical implications – The results of this study provide practitioners with valuable insights and guidance for
developing effective strategies for providing better services to patients.
Originality/value – Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to check the validity and reliability of all the
constructs. Due to the high correlation between tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy,
authors have created a second-order construct, i.e. service quality. Authors have also used structural equation
modeling (SEM) to inspect the associations between different constructs. Authors have measured the mediating
role of hospital image between the relationship of all the service quality dimensions and customer purchase
intention
Economic policy uncertainty and inflation expectations of the households – insights from survey data
No full textPurpose – This paper aims to analyze how economic policy uncertainty (EPU) affects inflation expectations. The study uses unit-level observations of 3 months ahead and 1-year ahead inflation expectations from the Reserve Bank of India’s Inflation Expectations Household Survey (IESH) to explore the variations in consumer confidence across several cities in India.
Design/methodology/approach – This paper uses unit-level observations of 3months ahead and 1 year-ahead inflation expectations of the households from the Reserve Bank of India’s IEHS between September 2008 to July 2024. It uses a fixed effects regression exercise to examine the impact of EPUon the households’ inflation expectations.
Findings – The study results show that EPU negatively and significantly impacts consumers’ shortterm inflation expectations. Heterogenous analysis concerning gender reveals that impact of EPU on inflation expectations is higher for women than men. Further, respondents in the working-age population and greater income uncertainty are more sensitive to changes in EPU on inflation expectations. A disaggregated analysis is also conducted to analyze the impact of EPU on several disaggregated indicators of inflation expectations, showing that EPU has a larger impact on durables and house prices compared to nondurables and services. Robustness tests with alternative policy uncertainty measures and placebo tests corroborate our findings.
Practical implications – These findings indicate that EPU can potentially depress the household’s own price expectations related to several components of their consumption basket due to precautionary saving behavior, consequently leading to a pessimistic view of overall prices.
Originality/value – To the best of our knowledge, no study has explored the impact of inflation policy uncertainty on inflation expectations using unit-level survey data for an emerging economy like India. Furthermore, survey-level data allows us to examine the heterogenous impact of EPU based on household characteristics. Moreover, it also establishes the household’s own consumption basket channel through which EPU impacts the overall inflation expectations
Towards a gendered and green job guarantee programme in India
No full textThe social organisation of productive and reproductive labour leaves women disproportionately vulnerable to climatic changes and extreme weather events. In the Indian context, this could further reduce women’s labour force participation rates from levels that are already relatively low. Employment opportunities for women in the clean energy sector have been noted to create transformative changes in their lives only with policies such as government intervention to provide accessible public services. Towards this end, I propose a gendered and green job guarantee programme directed towards education, health, public transport (or universal basic services), climate mitigation, and climate adaptation activities.
The intersections between gendered livelihoods and the climate crisis, as well as the gendered and environmental implications of the existing rural employment guarantee in India, are reviewed. Gender-disaggregated employment creation through the proposed job guarantee programme and the budgetary implications are estimated, along with suggestions for potential sources of financing. The programme is estimated to result in the creation of 36 million guaranteed jobs, which accounts for 6% of the workforce as of 2023. Of these jobs, women’s employment opportunities constitute 11.6 million. The number of guaranteed jobs created for women accounts for 4% of the rural female workforce and 11.6% of the urban female workforce. Thus, a gendered and green job guarantee programme in India could be an effective form of government intervention to address the interlinked issues of women’s work and climate action in India
Auditioning for humanity: the geopolitics of social media and the question of Palestine
No full textThis article grapples with the epistemological, geopolitical, and affective conditions through which Palestinian resistance is mediated and consumed on social media. We ask: How do narratives surrounding Palestine emerge and circulate in the digital age? What does it mean for Palestinians to be seen as “human,” and what are the costs and possibilities of such recognition? How does the nexus of settler colonialism, racial capitalism, and American
exceptionalism influence the dehumanization of Palestinians? We answer these questions by engaging with the paradoxical dynamics of social media as a space where Palestinians document the ongoing genocide and seek solidarity while being forced to perform humanity within frameworks that devalue their lives. We explore how Palestinians are exceptionalized in ways that risk abstracting them from the systemic violence they resist. These processes are not unique to Palestine, but emerge within a transnational digital economy where geopolitical struggles are mediated through similar logics of visibility, affect, and consumption. Further, using examples such as the circulation of a BTS photo-card found in Gaza’s rubble, we critique how Palestinian suffering is transformed into consumable narratives while considering how social media can be reimagined as a site of solidarity and resistance. Rather than offering definitive conclusions, we emphasize the tension between lamenting these commodified engagements and recognizing their potential for fostering material acts of organizing against abandonment. We encourage critical reflections on the interplay of social media and the politics of (de)humanization, while holding space for the complexities of relational accountability and collective struggle
Gay spas in Delhi are a sanctuary for many men, offering rare spaces for them to find desire and kinship
Get PDFChanging landscapes in recruitment: a critical analysis of past, present and future
No full textPurpose – Recruitment practices have significantly evolved from the pre-internet era to the artificial intelligence (AI) era. Considering the significant shifts happening, we firmly believe that a thorough review of the literature is necessary to comprehend the changes and anticipate the way forward. The purpose of this paper is threefold: to review the literature on recruitment across different timeframes; identify the major recruitment practices and techniques, as well asthe challengesfaced at different times; and suggest areasfor future research.
Design/methodology/approach – The authors have used the integrative literature review method. The selected articles were studied and categorized into three timeframes to identify major trends and outline critical challenges.
Findings – Findings revealed that the recruitment domain has witnessed numerous benefits due to ongoing technological changes. However, findings also highlight the multitude of challenges brought on by the different socio-technological shifts. The findings underscore the need for an adaptable theoretical framework that can accommodate these changes. Further, we delineate several issues,such as diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), affective AI, sustainability and dehumanization of the recruitment process as potential future research areas.
Research limitations/implications – The study offersinteresting theoretical and policy implications to benefit future researchers and practitioners in understanding the journey ahead.
Originality/value – The study undertakes a unique endeavor to outline recruitment developments over different time periods and suggests avenues for future researchers to explore the path ahead
Why We Need To Teach More About ADR Competitions In Legal Education
Get PDFIn the rapidly changing landscape of legal practice, Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) has emerged as an invaluable arena for law students and professionals to develop essential skills. While legal education traditionally focuses on litigation and courtroom proceedings, ADR competitions offer a unique opportunity for students to hone their abilities in areas that are becoming increasingly important in modern legal work. Through these competitions, participants engage in simulated scenarios that reflect real-world disputes, enhancing their skills in negotiation, communication, ethics, and legal strategy. These challenges enable students to experience first-hand how to resolve disputes outside of traditional legal proceedings, preparing them for the multifaceted nature of today’s legal practice.
ADR competitions are typically structured around four primary pillars: Negotiation, Client Counselling, Mediation, and Mediation-Arbitration (Med-Arb). Each of these pillars serves as a distinct learning platform, providing students with the opportunity to tackle different types of disputes and legal dynamics