I aim to study the structure of food grain markets in the Pakistani Punjab using a political economy perspective that views the economy and, specifically, agricultural food grain markets not simply thorough the neo-classical lens of static allocative efficiency but, continuing in the tradition of Harriss-White, Ben Crow, Maureen Mackintosh etc, highlights price formation, resource transfers, poverty and enrichment, growth etc through the dynamic lens of class, state, gender and caste.

The ‘great land grab’ occupies centre stage in debates on Indian political economy today. This project explores the politics of the ongoing rapid and highly contested conversion of agricultural, forest, coastal and pastoral land for industrial and commercial purposes, which are geared towards serving the new economy.

Liberalisation, Hindu Nationalism and The State is a re-examination of the post-independence history and politics of Gujarat, one of India’s leading federal units. Today, Gujarat is known for its pioneering role in market liberalisation and as the site of ethno-religious strife.

The Middle East suffers from a fragile private sector that is weakly connected with global markets and thrives largely under state patronage. The weak and dependent private sector is one of the most pressing development challenges. A robust private sector is connected both with the challenge of job creation and the creation of an independent constituency for socio-political change.

Shrines occupy a prominent place in the religious, cultural and political life of South Asia. The shrines and their guardians (commonly described as pirs) have traditionally acted as important nodes of power, serving as intermediaries between the ruler and subject. A large body of literature has studied their impact on religious and political environment (a selected list includes: Aziz (2001), Ansari (1992), and Gilmartin (1984)). There is virtually no systematic research, however, on how shrines shape regional patterns of development. This project offers a first attempt in this regard.

This project focusses on the politics of trade protection in the Middle East. Trade policy is often an important medium for rent creation, and can help to explain the micro-foundations of authoritarian rule in labour-abundant economies of the Middle East. Investigating the variation in average tariff rates across more than 4,500 sectors and over time in Egypt and Tunisia, we ask whether sectors with politically connected actors are systematically predisposed to higher levels of trade protection.