In this dissertation I have explored contemporary modes of displacement and citizenship in India. Rather than large-scale spectacular dislocations which are a focus of ‘refugee’ studies or set... Show moreIn this dissertation I have explored contemporary modes of displacement and citizenship in India. Rather than large-scale spectacular dislocations which are a focus of ‘refugee’ studies or set patterns of ‘voluntary’ population movement which come under the rubric of ‘migration’ studies, I am interested in low-key everyday forms of displacements which fall through these categories of understanding, are invisible, and remain undiscussed. I have explored everyday forms of displacement through Oren Yiftachel’s (2020) concept of displaceability. I draw on two case studies of two different displaced groups in Calcutta and North 24 Parganas in West Bengal: i) East Bengali dalit refugees coming from East Bengal (present day Bangladesh) to West Bengal and ii) a group of peripatetic impoverished rural people coming from the villages of Bangladesh and West Bengal to the urban agglomeration around Calcutta. The time frame of the dissertation is from the beginning of the Second World War in 1939 till the present. I have utilised the concept of displaceability to show how these groups are kept in a condition of permanent temporariness through deliberate state policies and how this erodes their citizenship. Displaceability expands understanding of displacement from an act to a systemic condition of informal urban living. In displaceable conditions actual displacements or the potential threats of it are utilised as an administrative tool to extract services from the urban poor and coerce them into participating in unequal political exchanges. My study shows that while these refugees and migrants become displaceable through state mechanisms, they negotiate this condition through their own brands of politics from below. Show less
Who were the Babylonian priests? How did they identify themselves? And can we track them down in the cuneiform sources? This thesis presents an investigation into Babylonian society, focusing on... Show moreWho were the Babylonian priests? How did they identify themselves? And can we track them down in the cuneiform sources? This thesis presents an investigation into Babylonian society, focusing on the priestly community of the city of Borsippa during Neo-Babylonian (circa 620-539 BCE) and early Persian rule (circa 538-484 BCE). The political changes affecting Babylonia - the area of present-day central and southern Iraq - during that time provide the backdrop for this study. Focusing on the complex network of social interactions that existed between priestly families, this studies draws on sociological theories, studies of anthropology and social network analysis. This research aims to provide a better understanding of the Babylonian priesthood, not so much as servants of the gods, but as a distinct social group within Babylonian society at large. Show less
