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The article seeks to look at the current organic boom in the state of Kerala as a counter-discourse to the agrarian crisis and the impending issues of food security, food price and health hazards in the state in the wake of the liberalisation policies and World Trade Organization (WTO) agreements. The Polanyan notion of countermovement (1944) is used to unearth Kerala's agrarian crisis of the 1990s that stemmed up from the commoditisation of agriculture, which ultimately paved way for an agrarian countermovement in the form of organic farming in the late 20th century. It is argued that organic agriculture signals the emergence of an agrarian counter-discourse promoting greater engagement of the farmers from the fringes. The primary data for the article were gathered out of two empirical projects carried out in 2015–2016.

Both nationally and internationally, the south Indian state of Kerala has been an object of study for its matrilineal kinship organization among some communities, as well as its achievements in education, literacy, and life expectancy for women against a weak economic base. Nonetheless, scholars have drawn attention to a paradox in Keralas model of development, namely womens deteriorating social position in Kerala and the rise in violence against women. Against this backdrop, this book explores the intersections of gender, sexuality, marriage, family and kinship as related to the matrilineal Nayar community in Kerala. Chapters unravel the interplay between the triple categories of gender, power and social development as they play out at the micro, meso, and macro levels of society, probing the ways in which Nayar women practice agency. Ultimately, the authors explore how the strength of the Nayar community can be used as a case study toward circumventing the prevailing gender paradox and re-imagine a more liberated, empowered and self-reliant woman not only in Kerala, but in India at large. This book will be of interest to scholars in sociology, cultural studies, gender studies, and development studies, particularly those with a focus on South Asia.

Intro -- Making of Distinctions: Towards a Social Science of Inclusive Oppositions -- CONTENTS -- INTRODUCTION IDENTITY AND CULTURE -- SECTION 1 ETHNIC IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION PROCESSES, POLITICS AND PLURALITY -- 1 TRANSFORMING ORAL NARRATIVES INTO WRITTEN DISCOURSE FOR A WIDE AUDIENCE -- 2 CULTURAL IDENTITY CHALLENGES AND GLOBALIZATION -- 3 ETHNIC IDENTITY AND POLITICAL POWER BETWEEN TRIBAL GROUPS IN KERALA, INDIA AND WESTERN BAHR, EL-GHAZAL, SOUTH SUDAN: A Comparative Analysis -- 4 GENDERED RIVER: Adivasi and Dominant Identities in the Mythological Renderings of the Thirunelli River, Wayanad, Kerala -- 5 TRIBAL WOMEN IDENTITY AND ECO-DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS: A Case of Paliyan Tribes in Kerala -- 6 COMMENTARY 1: Voicing, Silencing, Ventriloquizing and Speaking "On Behalf of": Different Ways of Social Sciences -- 7 COMMENTARY 2: Reflections About Cultural and Ethnic Identities From Dynamic and Dialogical Perspectives -- SECTION 2 GENDER IDENTITY AND COMMUNITY DYNAMICS -- 8 WOMEN ACTION FOR ECOLOGY REBUILDING THE IDENTITY THROUGH AGRICULTURE -- 9 GENDER AND IDENTITY ISSUES OF WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS OF KERALA -- 10 PRETTY WOMEN UNDER THE VEIL OF SECRECY: Vulnerability, Violence and Gender Inequality of Female Sex Workers in Kerala -- 11 DEVELOPMENT OF IDENTITY AMONG ADOLESCENT GIRLS IN A GUJARATI COMMUNITY IN DELHI, INDIA -- 12 ABSENCE, AGONY, AND AGENCY: The Experience of Gulf Wives of Low-End Job Migrants in Kerala -- 13 COMMENTARY 3: Psycho-Cultural Explorations of Gender in Everyday Life: Gender Identity and Community Dynamics in India -- SECTION 3 CONTEMPORARY CHALLENGES RELATED TO GENDER AND ETHNIC IDENTITY -- 14 FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS AMONG COLLEGE STUDENTS: A Cultural Change? -- 15 CHANGING IDENTITIES AND HEGEMONIC MASCULINITIES: A Study of Nair Women in Central Kerala.

Gender and connectivity initiatives intended to promote development assume that the Internet can have a significant impact on the careers and lives of women. It is important to test this assumption, given the prior research that establishes the educational and organisational limitations on women in professional careers, which increase the likelihood of restricted networks. The initial quantitative research available on the impact of the Internet is based on data from 2000. It shows improved access to the Internet for both men and women, but no evidence for Internet effects on productivity or professional networking. This study employs recent qualitative data from scientists in Kerala, which modify these conclusions and provide some grounds for optimism. The domestic context, so important for women in a patrifocal society, has created conditions for change, as the interest in children's education and the presence of home computers has begun a process of 'circumvention' of gender roles that demands further study.

We examine whether the widespread adoption of mobile technology is associated with changes in core social networks over the main decade of mobile diffusion in India. We focus primarily on network size, as well as the type and location of relationships. Grounded in interaction ritual theory, Ling's bounded solidarity thesis suggests that mobile communication may reconfigure social bonds, leading to a focus on family and friends over workmates and acquaintances, as well as more local networks. This study analyses data from three waves of data (2002–2013) from the state of Kerala. Our key findings are generally consistent with bounded solidarity: family ties increased at the expense of work ties, and there was a shift away from regional and international ties towards local relationships.

Objective-This article examines the impact of the Internet on the research careers of female scientists in three developing areas: Ghana, Kenya, and Kerala, India. Most empirical studies of gender and science focus on the developed world, yet theoretical accounts emphasize more extreme differences in developing areas. Limited evidence from Africa and Asia shows gender inequity is restricted to a few key dimensions, broadly related to differences in human and social capital. Specifically, women are less likely to acquire an advanced degree and more likely to experience educational and organizational "localism." Such localism is related to constraints on physical mobility that are widely expected to diminish with the introduction of the Internet. Methods-Using longitudinal data on 1,147 scientists in Ghana, Kenya, and south India, we examine gender differences in human and social capital by conducting a series of t tests and chi-square tests. Results-We show that higher education and Internet access increased dramatically, but localism has not been reduced significantly and may be increasing. Conclusions-This finding casts doubt on the presumption that the removal of communication constraints will soon reduce career differentials resulting from the mobility constraints on women professionals. Tables, Figures, 3, References. Adapted from the source document.

AbstractThis ten year study suggests that the digital divide in connectivity may have largely closed for the scientific community in parts of the world that were previously unconnected. Almost a decade ago Ynalvezet al. (2005) examined the diffusion of information and communication technologies (icts) in the knowledge production sectors of three developing areas, using data collected at the turn of the millennium. We supplement this data set with a similar survey ten years later. Our analysis addresses the extent to which research communities in three low-income areas (Kenya, Ghana, and Kerala) now have access toicts, providing the first longitudinal data on changes in access to computers, email, and the Internet. In contrast to 2000, where the majority of scientists viewed themselves as users of email but with shared and irregular access to computers and the Internet—access to technology has become almost universal, though significant regional differences remain.

Has the Internet changed the pattern of social relations? More specifically, have social relations undergone any systematic change during the recent widespread diffusion of new communications technology? This question is addressed using a unique longitudinal survey that bookends the entire period of Internet diffusion in two African nations and one Indian state. We analyze data on nine professional linkages reported by a population of agricultural and environmental scientists in Kenya, Ghana, and Kerala over a sixteen-year period (1994-2010). Factor analysis reveals two clusters of relationships, one interpretable as traditional scientific exchange, the other indicating mediated forms of collaboration. While collaboration increases in frequency, friendship declines. We interpret this shift as a consequence of communications technology that facilitates formal projects, reducing the affective dimension of professional association.

Abstract
Has the size of personal networks changed since the invention of the Internet? We use a unique longitudinal survey during the primary period of Internet diffusion in Africa and Asia to address three questions. First, has the overall size of professional networks changed? Second, has there been a shift in the kinds of relationships people maintain? Third, are there identifiable patterns in the nature of the shifts over time? We analyze data on nine professional linkages reported by a population of scientists and educators in Kenya, Ghana, and the Indian State of Kerala over a sixteen year period (1994-2010). Results show that extended personal networks experienced a dramatic decline during the initial diffusion of new communication technologies, followed by partial recovery. An increase in collaboration has been accompanied by a decline in friendship.