Punjab

The Punjabi diaspora has flourished in England since the 1920s. Today, change is being pushed forward by younger generation influenced by secular institutions in the host society, despite resistance from the older generation. Continuity is seen in the persistence of caste segmentation. A study in two cities, Birmingham and Leamington Spa, focusing on the experience of ad-dharmis shows that caste continues to have relevance across the community.

This paper looks at the various issues related to the huge expansion of rice cultivation in Punjab since the 1970s, and its environmental and ecological implications, such as falling yields and water tables and stagnant production. Based on a survey of farmers, the paper analyses the parameters of production, extending it to estimate the affordable area under rice cultivation from the point of view of sustainability.

For most of south Asia gender differentials in instances of famine mortality have generally shown a pattern of relative female survival advantage during crisis. Yet variations in its occurrence and its antecedents have not been inquired into very systematically. This paper attempts to look at gender differentials during two 19th century famines - the Madras famine of 1876-78 and the Punjab famine of 1896-97 - from a public health perspective. It is an attempt to explore links between gender discrimination, status and labour force participation during the colonial period.

Despite having the largest proportion of scheduled caste population in India, Punjab has rarely been seen as a relevant case for conceptualisation of the caste system and the changes taking place therein. Though some aspects of caste in Punjab have been studied, there has virtually been no detailed empirical documentation of the practice of untouchability in rural Punjab. Based on an extensive field-study, this paper provides a broad mapping of the prevailing caste relations and the practice of untouchability in rural Punjab. The study focuses specifically on the process of change, particularly in the context of agrarian transformations that the Punjab countryside has experienced in the wake of the success of green revolution technology. The paper also argues that the processes of change could be meaningfully captured through the categories of 'dissociation', 'distancing' and 'autonomy'.

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