Q.E.D. (Hardback)  | Released: 21 Aug 2018

Sociology in India has remained dominated by its unique epistemological location - which has acted as both a boon and a bane. Entanglement with the exotic has prevented Indian sociologists and the so-called 'India' experts, from contributing constructively to theory building at a universal level. Buttressing the importance of theory-building as a critical requirement for social sciences to grow - in terms of the capacity to explain the particular via the general and vice versa - this book emphasizes the criticality of engaging with Indian data and generalizations at a theoretical level, and makes a plea for intersubjectivity and comparative sociology. Taking up unresolved theoretical issues in the field of health, agricultural unrest, caste, and the understanding of modernity, the author's introduction and essays compiled in this volume show how the failure of Indianists to forego the isolating position of uniqueness of Indian reality, has led to, on one hand, further strengthening of the dominance of western models, and rise of untenable and incomplete conceptualization of modernity and modern knowledge, on the other.About the Author: Dipankar Gupta, Retired Professor, Centre for the Study of Social Systems, School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Dipankar Gupta has taught for nearly three decades in the Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. He was also Professor in the Delhi School of Economics, Delhi University, between 1992-1994. He has worked on Social Stratification, Ethnicity, Modernity and Peasant Mobilization. In recent years, he has written extensively on social policy and has been a Member in a number of boards such as the Reserve Bank of India, National Security Advisory Board, and National Broadcasting Standards Association. He also led the Division on Business Ethics in KPMG, India between 1998-2006. He has held visiting assignments in several universities in India, Europe, USA, and UK. He has authored and edited more than 19 books.