Can a state empower its citizens by classifying them? Or do reservation policies reinforce the very categories they are meant to eradicate? Indian reservation policies on government jobs, legislative seats and university admissions for disadvantaged groups, like affirmative action policies elsewhere, are based on the premise that recognizing group distinctions in society is necessary to subvert these distinctions. Yet the official identification of eligible groups has unintended side-effects on identity politics. Bridging theories which emphasize the fluidity of identities and those which highlight the utility of group-based mobilizations and policies, this book exposes didactic enforcement of categorizations, while recognizing the social and political gains facilitated by group-based strategies.

Decades of conflict and war have forced millions of men, women and children to flee from their homes and seek refuge in other parts of the country or in foreign lands - Afghanistan is one such country. This book is a study of the displaced Afghan migrant population in India, in particular the persecuted Sikhs and Hindus who are religious minorities in Afghanistan and make up a majority of Afghan migrants in India. It explores the relationship between acculturation and identity development. By focusing on the interactions between the Afghan immigrant population and the Indian society, the author analyses how the community negotiates identity and marginality in a country that does not recognize them as refugees. The author explains how the Afghan migrant population manages and negotiates various identities, bestowed upon them by the societies in their home and host countries in their day to day existence in India. An important study of acculturation and adaptation issues of migrant groups in the setting of a developing country, this book will be of interest to academics in the field of refugee and migration studies, ethnography of (ethnic) identity, and Middle East and South Asian Studies.

The increasing diversity of Infonnation Communication Technologies and their equally diverse range of uses in personal, professional and official capacities raise challenging questions of identity in a variety of contexts. Each communication exchange contains an identifier which may, or may not, be intended by the parties involved. What constitutes an identity, how do new technologies affect identity, how do we manage identities in a globally networked infonnation society? th th From the 6 to the 10 August 2007, IFIP (International Federation for Infonnation Processing) working groups 9. 2 (Social Accountability), 9. 6/11. 7 (IT rd Misuse and the Law) and 11. 6 (Identity Management) hold their 3 Intemational Summer School on "The Future of Identity in the Infonnation Society" in cooperation with the EU Network of Excellence FIDIS at Karlstad University. The Summer School addressed the theme of Identity Management in relation to current and future technologies in a variety of contexts. The aim of the IFIP summer schools has been to introduce participants to the social implications of Infonnation Technology through the process of infonned discussion. Following the holistic approach advocated by the involved IFIP working groups, a diverse group of participants ranging from young doctoral students to leading researchers in the field were encouraged to engage in discussion, dialogue and debate in an infonnal and supportive setting. The interdisciplinary, and intemational, emphasis of the Summer School allowed for a broader understanding of the issues in the technical and social spheres.

This book explores contesting identities, international politics, migration and democratic practices in the context of globalizing India. Drawing on extensive ethnographic research, it looks at one of the oldest migratory routes across a volatile region in eastern India which is fraught with violent claims of separate statehood. The book offers an account of how the ‘North Bengal’ region has acted as a gateway to migrant populations over time and points to why it must be understood as a shifting and liminal space through a study of Bodoland, Gorkhaland, Kamatapuri, Siliguri and the Greater Cooch Behar movements. It shows the region’s politics of identity or quest for homeland not as a means of compensating for the lack or absence of identity, but as an everyday practice of living that very absence, across borders and boundaries, without arriving at any definitive and stable identity, along with impacts and manifestations in democratic political processes. A major intervention in modern political theory – shedding new light on concepts such as home and homeland, space and self, sovereignty, nation-state, freedom and democracy – this book will be of interest to scholars and researchers of political science, modern South Asian history, sociology and social anthropology, and migration and diaspora studies.

Lekha, Kumar M., and their team of contributors embark on a transformative exploration of 'Intersectionality' in the Indian context, where gender, culture, and development intersect to shape the destinies of diverse groups. Drawing from extensive research and nuanced analyses by scholars across the country and a few scholars on India from outside the country, the handbook uncovers the intricate connections between gender inequalities, cultural norms and practices, and developmental trajectories that illuminate how these factors intersect and shape the lives of individuals, communities, and societies beyond India's borders. The book encompasses discussions on the category of gender and the practice of gender studies, workspace economy, and technology. It explains the intricate intersections between gender, labour, migration, and informal economies, offering a deeper understanding of the composite factors that shape women as the workforce and their role within the workplace and the economy. It also delves into the multifaceted influences of culture on various aspects of society, including gender roles, language, agriculture, and development. The focus upon the sociocultural dimensions connected to the portrayal of gender in the media elaborated on how diverse media platforms, ranging from digital interfaces to televised serials, play a pivotal role in shaping and mirroring gender identities, roles, and societal norms within their specific environments. Most importantly, it critically engages with issues of education, marginalization, inclusion, and sustainable development. Case studies on marginalized communities such as the urban poor, elderly sweepers, and widows contribute to broader discourses on developmental paradigms vis-à-vis poverty and social exclusion. Academics, researchers, and students interested in gender, culture, and development studies will find this handbook invaluable in understanding and addressing gender inequities, cultural imbalances, and development complexities. Policymakers, NGOs, and activists committed to social progress will appreciate the evidence-based insights enabling them for informed actions and policies that transcend conventional boundaries.

How do text, performance, and rhetoric simultaneously reflect and challenge notions of distinct community and religious identities? This volume examines evidence of shared idioms of sanctity within a larger framework of religious nationalism, literary productions, and communalism in South Asia. Contributors to this volume are particularly interested in how alternative forms of belonging and religious imaginations in South Asia are articulated in the light of normative, authoritative, and exclusive claims upon the representation of identities. Building upon new and extensive historiographical and ethnographical data, the book challenges clear-cut categorizations of group identity and points to the complex historical and contemporary relationships between different groups, organizations, in part by investigating the discursive formations that are often subsumed under binary distinctions of dominant/subaltern, Hindu/Muslim or orthodox/heterodox. In this respect, the book offers a theoretical contribution beyond South Asia Studies by highlighting a need for a new interdisciplinary effort in rethinking notions of identity, ethnicity, and religion.

Much before states had discovered documents as an identification, they used different forms of writing on the body. There has been a long history of methods of Identification. Ancient methods of identification involved 'writing on the body, or branding, scarification and tattooing'. Partly because they had not discovered less invasive of marking, they restored to such writing with documents becoming an accepted way to record identities, various cards, certificates and others and other Identifications were used. However, these forms of writing never died out completely even after identification documents were discovered.

This book is a systematic narrative, tracking the colonial language policies and acts responsible for the creation of a sense of “self-identity” and culminating in the evolution of nationalistic fervor in colonial India. British policy on language for administrative use and as a weapon to rule led to the parallel development of Indian vernaculars: poets, novelists, writers and journalists produced great and fascinating work that conditioned and directed India's path to independence. The book presents a theoretical proposition arguing that language as identity is a colonial construct in India, and demonstrates this by tracing the events, policies and changes that led to the development and churning up of Indian national sentiments and attitudes. It is a testimony of India's linguistic journey from a British colony to a modern state. Demonstrating that language as basis of identity was a colonial construct in modern India, the book asserts that any in-depth understanding of identity and politics in contemporary India remains incomplete without looking at colonial policies on language and education, from which the multiple discourses on “self” and belonging in modern India emanated.

This collection of 17 original essays, provides insights into the many ways in which the interrelated issues of culture, identity and `Indianness' are expressed in contemporary times. The contributors map and evaluate the developments in their respective fields over the past 50 years and cover the topics of art, music, theatre, literature, philosophy, science, history and feminism.