Green Revolution Model and Agrarian Crisis: Towards a Perspectival Critique
| Author | K. Srinivasulu |
| Published date | 01 June 2018 |
| Date | 01 June 2018 |
| DOI | 10.1177/0019556117750898 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Article
Indian Journal of Public
Administration
64(2) 193–204
© 2018 IIPA
SAGE Publications
sagepub.in/home.nav
DOI: 10.1177/0019556117750898
http://journals.sagepub.com/home/ipa
1 Professor, Department of Political Science, Osmania University, Hyderabad, Telangana, India.
Corresponding author:
K. Srinivasulu, Raghavendra Nagar Colony, Kalyanpuri, Uppal, Hyderabad, Telangana, India.
E-mail: srinivasulukarli@gmail.com
Green Revolution Model
and Agrarian Crisis:
Towards a Perspectival
Critique
K. Srinivasulu1
Abstract
In the dominant interpretation, the agrarian crisis and farmers’ suicides have
been viewed either as outcomes of individual decisions/actions of the farmers
or as caused by vagaries of nature or certain policies. The present study views
them as symptomatic of a deeper systemic crisis in agriculture in the post-Green
Revolution and post-economic reform period.
By examining the transformation of the agrarian question, especially conse-
quent upon the generalisation of the Green Revolution model, this article high-
lights the importance of the changing dynamics between farm and non-farm
sector in terms of accumulation and interaction and the changes in the class–
caste relations internal to the rural society as the causes of the crisis.
Keywords
Agrarian question, Green Revolution, economic reforms, farmers’ suicides,
peasant and backward castes
Introduction
The research problems in social sciences could be identified to be of two types.
The first type is of empirical nature, which can be answered, based on relevant
and adequate facts. The second type of problem is theoretical and interpretative in
nature. There may be a lot of empirical data available, but we do not know how to
make sense of them and to establish the interrelationships (Kaviraj, 1984).
The problem of the agrarian crisis and farmers’ suicides is of the second type.
A lot of data is available in the public domain in the form of journalistic reports,
activists’ field reports, different fact-finding committee reports, government
To continue reading
Request your trial