Legitimation in a World at Risk

This book provides a sociological analysis of the controversy surrounding GM crops in Telangana, India. There is much debate as to whether GM technology holds the key to improving the welfare of poor farmers globally or serves primarily to increase the profits of multinational corporations while enhancing cultivator risk. Desmond's study is located in the economically vulnerable and politically volatile district of Warangal in Telangana, a context associated with high numbers of farmer suicides. Uniquely foregrounding the perspectives of cultivators and the landless, Desmond explores how GM crops are variously legitimated and delegitimated in three Warangal villages by those whose livelihoods are at stake in the debate, but whose voices are rarely heard within it. This book will be significant for those with an interest in GM crops, power and knowledge and their relation to understandings of development, democracy and risk management worldwide.

Uniquely presents the perspectives of crop cultivators, offering a distinctive approach to a divisive issue of global relevance Provides a balanced analysis of a highly controversial and topical area Highlights the broad social and economic issues involved in assessments of new technologies in poor countries Essential reading for students, academics and practitioners across a number of subject areas, as well as those with a more general interest in agrarian issues, including NGOs, and policy makers in India and worldwide

Autorentext

E.L. Desmond is a sociologist affiliated with the Centre for South Asian Studies at Cambridge University, UK and the Ireland-India Institute at Dublin City University, Ireland.

Klappentext
This book provides a sociological analysis of the controversy surrounding genetically modified (GM) crops in the newly-formed state of Telangana, India. The issue of GM crops continues to be topical worldwide. There is much debate as to whether GM technology holds the key to improving the welfare of poor farmers globally or, instead, serves primarily to increase the profits of multinational corporations while enhancing cultivator risk. This is a particular concern for the impoverished agricultural contexts of the Global South whose plight continues to be used as a justification for extending the scope of the technology to more crops, locations and uses.
Desmond's study is located in the economically vulnerable and politically volatile context of the Warangal district of Telangana. Warangal has been described as the most controversial district in India, not least given the strongly polarised views regarding the impact of GM crops on the high numbers of farmer suicides with which the district is associated. Uniquely foregrounding the perspectives of cultivators and the landless, Desmond explores how GM crops are variously legitimated and delegitimated in three Warangal villages by those whose livelihoods are at stake in the debate, but whose voices are rarely heard within it. This book will be significant for those with an interest in GM crops, power and knowledge and their relation to understandings of development, democracy and the global governance of risk.

Inhalt
Chapter One: Introduction - Legitimation and Genetically Modified Crops in a World at Risk.- Chapter Two: The Legitimation of Risk in the Villages.- Chapter Three: Bt Cotton and the Legitimation of Democracy.- Chapter Four: The Legitimation of Risk and Democracy in Telangana.- Chapter Five: Methodology: Legitimation and Ethics in Risk Research.- Chapter Six: Analysis I: Risk, Power and Bt Cotton in the Villages.- Chapter Seven:Analysis II: Democracy and State Legitimacy in the Villages.- Chapter Eight: Legitimation in a World at Risk: Lessons from the Villages.- Chapter Nine: Conclusion: Science, Power and the Struggle for Legitimation.