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Kerala: Another Possible World
‘There is no alternative (TINA)’ has been the slogan of the neoliberals ever since the collapse of the Soviet Union. The counter-slogan has been, ‘Another world is possible’. Here is the story of the ongoing struggles to build ‘another world’ in Kerala, India.
The neoliberal imperative is to ‘maximize growth at any cost’. Kerala has embarked upon an alternative – to optimize growth within redistribution, environmental sustainability, gender and social justice, and concerns of progressive culture.
Confronting the challenges of globalization, and within the ever-tightening restrictions imposed by the Union government, Kerala has pursued alternative policies of protecting the public sector, health, and education with highly positive outcomes. These outcomes, in turn, have strengthened the social security and care systems and drastically reduced hunger and poverty. Democratic decentralization has provided the framework for implementing such a program with the participation of the people.
This book, written in an accessible, non-technical, and jargon-free style by an outstanding academic with decades of experience as an administrator and policy maker, shows us how another world is in fact possible.
The neoliberal imperative is to ‘maximize growth at any cost’. Kerala has embarked upon an alternative – to optimize growth within redistribution, environmental sustainability, gender and social justice, and concerns of progressive culture.
Confronting the challenges of globalization, and within the ever-tightening restrictions imposed by the Union government, Kerala has pursued alternative policies of protecting the public sector, health, and education with highly positive outcomes. These outcomes, in turn, have strengthened the social security and care systems and drastically reduced hunger and poverty. Democratic decentralization has provided the framework for implementing such a program with the participation of the people.
This book, written in an accessible, non-technical, and jargon-free style by an outstanding academic with decades of experience as an administrator and policy maker, shows us how another world is in fact possible.
161 pages, Unknown Binding
Published January 1, 2022
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April 18, 2026
people talk about difficulties of building socialism in one state, under siege by a capitalist world order. Kerala faces an even harder reality of building socialism within one province, subordinated by a capitalist central government, part of the larger capitalist world order. On top of all that, it has inconsistent/incomplete state control at the province level. yet, despite this, Kerala has delivered tremendously for it people, showing that another world is indeed possible.
this book was an excellent overview of the communist movement in Kerala, the specific historical context of Kerala, and a progressive developmental process guided by the Left, despite all its constraints. I found the first half the more enjoyable. history is always easier to digest as time makes the narrative clearer to follow. the second half took me awhile to get through as it was a bit direr but probably much more important as it fleshes out the real political considerations CPI(M) is making as it navigates it way forward to building socialism in Kerala.
this book was an excellent overview of the communist movement in Kerala, the specific historical context of Kerala, and a progressive developmental process guided by the Left, despite all its constraints. I found the first half the more enjoyable. history is always easier to digest as time makes the narrative clearer to follow. the second half took me awhile to get through as it was a bit direr but probably much more important as it fleshes out the real political considerations CPI(M) is making as it navigates it way forward to building socialism in Kerala.
Displaying 1 of 1 review