Science, Agriculture and The Politics of Policy: The case of Biotechnology in India

Science, Agricultural and the Politics of Polity examines the intersections of globalisation, intersections of globalisation, technology and politics through a detailed, empirically-based examination of agricultural biotechnology in India. The focus is on Banglore and Karnataka, a part of India which has seen a massive growth in biotech enterprise, experimentation with GM cotton and a contested policy debate about the role biotechnology should play in economic development. The book asks what does this new suite of technologies mean-for society, for politics and for the way agriculture, food and rural livelihoods are thought about? Can biotech deliver a second Green Revolution, and so transform agriculture and rescue the countryside and its people from crisis and poverty? Or is it more complex than this? Through a detailed case study, the aim of the book is to discuss, question and refine these broader debates, locating an understanding of biotechnology firmly within an understanding of society and politics.