The Centre for Policy Research (CPR) and Centre de Sciences Humaines (CSH) invite you to a digital workshop on:
Set Adrift: Informal labour and contestations in Mumbai
About the Talk
The Koli community in Mumbai—which has been practising fishing for centuries—has experienced rapid changes over the last few decades, in the forms of increased mechanization, export of fish to global markets, and the pressure of urbanization on their living and work spaces. The capitalist transformation in fishing has altered what was once a caste-based practice to one that brought to it investors from outside the community, migrant workers, and ecological degradation. The resultant loss of revenue, jobs, and catch for artisanal fishers has led to movements demanding fishing rights to be granted to traditional fisher communities alone and for a return to older fishing practices. This call found resonance with populist politics in the city: Koli women organized themselves to stridently resist the entry of migrant men into the sector and Koli men— particularly the young—became inclined to move out of the practice of fishing. Through an examination of the lives and struggles of fishers in one of India’s wealthiest cities, this book discusses how contestations around livelihoods map out in the shadow of significant encounters between capitalism and ecology.
About the Speaker
Gayatri Nair received her PhD (2016) in Sociology from the Centre for the Study of Social Systems, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. Her research interests lie in urban informal labour and livelihood patterns with an emphasis on the question of technology, caste and gender. With a focus on political economy, she has published work examining the links between caste, gender and cultures of modernity, working caste lives and popular culture.
Find all the available videos of our previous workshops, here
This is the hundred and fortieth in a series of Urban Workshops planned by the Centre de Sciences Humaines (CSH), New Delhi and Centre for Policy Research (CPR). These workshops seek to provoke public discussion on issues relating to the development of the city and try to address all its facets including its administration, culture, economy, society and politics. For further information, please contact: Aprajita Sarcar at aprajita.sarcar@csh-delhi.com of CSH, Mukta Naik at mukta@cprindia.org or Marie-Hélène Zerah at marie-helene.zerah@ird.fr
