Events

CHAIRPERSON

Assoc Prof Ranjana Sheel , Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore and Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India 

ABSTRACT

The focus of this presentation is a comparative study of civil society-state interaction that has influenced child labor rates in the hybrid cottonseed industry in India. Based on qualitative field research in the two states of Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan, this study presents two comparative case studies that identify key actors in the issue of child labor in the cottonseed industry, documents community mobilization initiatives, examines the processes of interaction of government and CSOs, and analyses the impact of grassroots initiatives on policy change. Theoretically, I test a model of civil society-state interaction that affects parental motivation in sending children to work based on the interaction of three actors- civil society organizations, state bureaucracy, and village-community. Examined through the lens of the child labor issue, the theoretical postulates derived from this model contribute to the nuances of state-civil society interaction within the broader literature on decentralization and participatory governance. The findings challenge traditional assumptions of the linkage between poverty and child labor. Further, the comparative study across two states facilitates the identification of key processes and best practices which have the potential for replication across other spatial locations or policy-domains.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER

Priyam Saharia is a Doctoral Candidate in the Department of Political Science, University of Kentucky, Lexington, USA, and is currently a Visiting Affiliate at Asia Research Institute, NUS. She is writing her dissertation on the ‘State-wise Variation of Child Labor Rates in India’ using quantitative analysis on individual and state-level data, and qualitative field research in two Indian states. Her published research report ‘An Exploratory Study of Children Engaged in Rathole Mining in the Coal Mines of Jaintia Hills District, Meghalaya’ has formed the basis of action by the National Council for Protection of Children’s Rights (NCPCR), India against the illegal employment of children in coalmines in the state of Meghalaya. Her research agenda includes research related to education and work of children in South Asia.

REGISTRATION

Admission is free. We would greatly appreciate if you RSVP Mr Jonathan Lee via email: jonathan.lee@nus.edu.sg