Past Events

Surname: Vanaik

Other Names: Achin

Date of Birth: 14 January 1947

Nationality: Indian

Address: S-314, Panchshila Park, New Delhi 110017. Tel. nos. 91-11-26017331/26012133.

Marital Status: Married to Pamela Philipose (Director, Women's Feature Service); 2 sons, Anish and Samar.

Education: B.Sc. Honours in Economics and Statistics from the University of Bristol, Bristol, England. 1970.

Work Experience: Assistant Editor with The Times of India, Bombay, from Nov. 1978 to December 1990.

Research Fellow in the Centre of Contemporary Studies, Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, Teen Murti, New Delhi 110001, from Dec. 1991 to Dec. 1996.

I am currently Professor of International Relations and Global Politics at the Political Science Department of Delhi University since October 2004 and rotational Head of the Dept. since Oct. 2007 for a period of three years till October 2010. Was Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences in Delhi University from Oct. 2007 to Jan. 2010. Was Visiting Professor at the Department of Political Science, Delhi University for approx. 2 years from Dec. 2002 to October 2004. Was appointed Visiting Professor for two years at the Academy of Third World Studies, Jamia Millia Islamia University, Jamia Nagar, New Delhi from February 16, 2001 to Feb 15, 2003. Resigned to join Delhi University. Was also appointed Visiting Professor to the Dept. of Political Science and to the Academy of Third World Studies, of Jamia Millia Islamia University, Jamia Nagar, New Delhi between Dec. 7, 1996 and Dec. 6, 1997.

Other Positions: I was a member of the six-person Expert Group (the Ghosh Committee) set up by the Govt. of India (Ministry of Human Resources and Development) to independently evaluate the country's National Literacy Mission or NLM set up to bring about full adult literacy. This Expert Group under the Chairmanship of the late Dr. Arun Ghosh (one-time member of the Planning Commission) submitted its final Report to the Government of India in Sept. 1994, fifteen months after its institution.

Since 1987 I have been a Fellow of the Transnational Institute or TNI, 20 Paulus Potterstraat, Amsterdam, Netherlands. The TNI is an international body of intellectuals-scholars concerned about problems of global inequality and development. Other fellows include Susan George and Professor Fred Halliday (London School of Economics). I am currently on the Planning Board of TNI.

I am on the Editorial Board of the journal, Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East, or as it was formerly known, South Asia Bulletin, brought out from Duke University, South Carolina, USA.

I am on the International Advisory Board of an international inter-disciplinary social science website devoted to preparing, selecting and presenting various (often pre-publication) scholarly articles in the social sciences. The website is http://www.theglobalsite.ac.uk

I was on the Executive Board of Greenpeace (India) for four years from its initiation in 1999 to 2003 end. This Board is a rotational body. I was re-invited to be on the board in June 2008 and am currently on it.

In late 2008 I was invited to be on the Advisory Board of the journal "Adhikar" brought out by the Indian branch of the Nobel Prize winning organization, Amnesty International, and have accepted.

Publications:

Books

1. The Painful Transition: Bourgeois Democracy in India by Achin Vanaik, Verso Publications, London, 1990. Also published in India under the same title by then Verso agents in India, T.R. Publications, Madras, 1990.

2. India in a Changing World: Problems, Limits and Successes of its Foreign Policy by Achin Vanaik, Orient Longman, Tracts For the Times Series, No. 9, New Delhi, 1995.

3. The Furies of Indian Communalism: Religion, Modernity and Secularization by Achin Vanaik, Verso Publications, London, 1997. Also published in India by Sage Publications, New Delhi, 1997 under the title, Communalism Contested: Religion, Modernity and Secularization.

4. Co-author of Testing Times: The Global Stake in a Nuclear Test Ban by Praful Bidwai and Achin Vanaik, Dag Hammarskjold Foundation, Uppsala, Sweden, 1996.

5. Co-author of South Asia On A Short Fuse: Nuclear Politics And The Future Of Global Disarmament by Praful Bidwai and Achin Vanaik. The Indian edition was brought out by Oxford University Press, Delhi and came out in November 1999 and the Pakistani OUP edition in Autumn 2000. It has also been published separately in the West by Interlinks Publishers under the imprimatur of Olive Branch Press in the USA, and Signal Press in UK. Abroad the title is New Nukes: India, Pakistan and Global Nuclear Disarmament and came out in US and UK editions in February 2000. This book was selected by a review writer in The Independent newspaper of London, UK as one of the ten best books for the year 2000. A second paperback edition with a new and lengthy Foreword was brought out by OUP (India) in January 2002.

6. Religion, Religiosity and Communalism edited by Praful Bidwai, Harbans Mukhia and Achin Vanaik, Manohar Publications, New Delhi, 1996.

7. Co-editor with Prof. Paul Brass (University of Washington, Seattle, USA) of a festschrift volume of essays in honour of Asghar Ali Engineer, Competing Nationalisms in South Asia edited by Paul Brass and Achin Vanaik on nationalism, communalism and contemporary politics in India and South Asia. This was brought out by Orient Longman, India, in 2002. A long introductory chapter is written by the editors.

8. Globalization and South Asia: Multidimensional Perspectives, edited by Achin Vanaik, Manohar Publishers, New Delhi; 2004. Apart from the introductory chapter there is also a chapter contribution by me on "Globalization and International Relations" in this volume.

9. Selling US Wars edited by Achin Vanaik, Interlink Publishers, Northampton, USA, 2007. The South Asia edition is Masks of Empire edited by Achin Vanaik, Tulika Publishers, New Delhi, 2007.

10. Understanding Contemporary India: Critical Perspectives edited by Achin Vanaik and Rajeev Bhargava, Orient Blackswan, New Delhi, 2010.

Book Chapters

The following articles by me have appeared in edited books/ volumes or will shortly be doing so.

1. "Nuclear Fallacies in India and Pakistan" in On The Brink: Nuclear Proliferation and the Third World eds. Peter Worsley and Kofi B. Hadjor; Published by Third World Communication, London, 1987

2. "Peculiarities of Indian Democracy: The Role of the Agrarian Bourgeoisie" in Capitalist Development: Critical Essays edited by Ghanshyam Shah, Popular Prakashan, Bombay, 1990.

3. "India and Pakistan" (co-authored with P. Bidwai) in Security with Nuclear Weapons? ed. Regina Cowen Karp, SIPRI (Stockholm International Peace Research Institute) Publications, OUP, 1991.

4. "The Present Interregnum: The Systemic Divide and the Future" in Gorbachev's Reforms and International Change ed. by Sushil Kumar, School of International Studies (JNU), Lancers books, New Delhi, 1993.

5. "Communal Revivalism and the Indian Diaspora" in Communal Revivalism in India ed. by Muchkund Dubey, Har Anand Publications, New Delhi, 1994.

6. "Communalism and the Democratic Process in India" (co-authored with P. Bidwai) in The Democracy of Disempowerment ed. by Jochen Hippler, Pluto Press with TNI, Amsterdam, 1995.

7. "Rethinking India's National Security" in Preparing For the 21st Century: Challenges and Opportunities, brought out by the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi, India, 1998.

8. "Fifty Years of Indian Foreign Policy: Old Problems and New Directions" in Wages of Freedom brought out by Oxford University Press in 1998, and edited by P. Chatterjee.

9. "Promoting 'Peace, Security and Conflict Resolution": Gender Balance in Decision-Making" (co-authored with Prof. Anuradha M. Chenoy) in Gender, Peace and Conflict, (ed.) by I. Skjelsbaek and D. Smith, brought out by PRIO (Peace Research Institute, Oslo) in conjunction with Sage Publications, London, Delhi, California; 2001.

10. "Interface Between Democracy, Diversity and Stability". a chapter contribution in Democracy, Diversity, Stability, edited by D.D. Khanna, L.L. Mehrotra, Gert W. Kueck;Macmillan India Ltd.,New Delhi, 1998.

11. "Indian Foreign Policy and Security Perspectives: Past Practice and Future Possibilities" in The Unfinished Agenda: Nation-Building in South Asia, ed. By Mushirul Hasan and Nariaki Nakazato, Manohar Publications, New Delhi, 2001.

12. "Consumerism and New Classes in India" in Thinking Social Science in India, a festschrift volume of essays in honour of Alice Thorner, eds. Sujata Patel, Jasodhara Bagchi, Krishna Raj, Sage Publications (India), New Delhi, 2002.

13. "India's Post-Cold War Security Challenges" in National Security Management brought out by the Delhi Policy Group, New Delhi, 1998.

14. "The Efficacy and Ethics of the International Political Terrorist Act or Event" in a festschrift volume of essays (in honour of Prof. Ravinder Kumar) entitled Mapping Histories, edited by Neera Chandhoke, Tulika Publishers, New Delhi, 2000.

15. "Religio-Political Tensions in Religiously Plural and Singular Societies: A Brief Conceptual Overview" in Kushal Deb (ed.), Mapping Multiculturalism, Rawat Publications, New Delhi, 2002.

16. "The Ethics and Efficacy of Political Terrorism" in Critical Views of September 11, edited by Eric Hershberg and Kevin W. Moore, Social Science Research Council, New York, 2002.

17. "In the Wake of Globalization: Political Stresses in South Asia" in P.N Abinales, I. Noboru, T. Akio (eds) Dislocating Nation-States, Kyoto University Press, Kyoto, 2005.

18. "US dominance and diplomatic choices in developing nations" in M. East and J. Robertson (edited) Diplomacy and Developing Nations, Routledge, London and New York; 2005.

19. "Paradoxes of Indian Democracy", a chapter in an Anthology to be brought out by the Department of Political Science, Delhi University. Publication forthcoming.

20. "US Perspectives in a Global and South Asian Context: Before and After 11 September" in S. Haider (ed.) The Afghan War and its Geopolitical Implications for India, Published by the Academy of third World Studies and Manohar books, New Delhi, 2004.

21. "Communalization of the Indian Polity" in P.R. deSouza and E. Sridharan (eds.) India's Political Parties, Sage Publications, New Delhi, 2006.

22. "Making India Strong: The BJP-Led government's Foreign Policy Perspectives" in John McGuire and Ian Copland (eds.) Hindu Nationalism and Governance, OUP, New Delhi, 2007.

23. " Aaj Ki Duniya Mein Jantantra" in Ramesh Upadhyay (ed.) Beheter Duniya Ki Talaash Mein, Shabdsandhan Prakashan, New Delhi, 2007.

24. "Too Little, Too Bad" in Dipankar Dey (ed.) Sustainable Development: Perspectives and Initiatives, Icfai University Press, Hyderabad, 2007.

25. "The Enemy Within" and "How Good is Globalization" in Nirmala Lakshman (ed.) Writing a Nation: An Anthology of Indian Journalism, Rupa & Co., New Delhi, 2007.

26. "National Interest – A Flawed Notion: Explaining the Shift in Indian Foreign Policy in the Age of globalization and its Implications for the WANA Region" in Anwar Alam (ed.) India and West Asia in the Era of Globalisation, New Century Publications, New Delhi, 2008.

27. "India's paradigmatic communal violence" in Socialist Register 2009, Merlin Press, UK, 2008.

28. "India the Superpower" in South Asia 2009, brought out by Europa World Year Book, Routledge Publishers, London, 2009.

29. "Reflexiones sobre los temas de poder, desigualdad e intervencion" in Crisis Del Estado E Intervencion Internacional ed. By Monica Hirst, Cordoba, Argentina, 2009.

30. "India the Emerging Power" in South Asia 2010, brought out by Europa World Year Book, Routledge Publishers, London, 2010.

31. Building a Nuclear Disarmament Movement: Learning Lessons Since 1998" in Bridging Partition: People's Initiative for Peace Between India and Pakistan edited by Smitu Kothari and Zia Mian, Orient Blackswan, New Delhi, 2010.

32. "India the Emerging Power" in South Asia 2011, brought out by Europa World Year Book, Routledge Publishers, London, 2011.

Monographs

"A Marxist Concept of Social Justice", contribution to the Occasional Paper Series of the Department of Political Science, Delhi University.

Articles Published in Journals

My articles have been published in numerous journals and newspapers both in India and abroad (e.g. The Guardian, UK) and the total number is extremely large. I will confine myself here only to citing those articles which have appeared in the more widely known scholarly or academic journals of India and abroad.

New Left Review, London

1. "The Rajiv Congress in Search of Stability" in NLR 154, Nov./Dec. 1985.

2. "Left Strategies In India" in NLR 159, Sept./Oct. 1986.

3. "Reflections on Nationalism and Communalism in India" in NLR 196, Nov./Dec. 1992.

4. "The New Indian Right", NLR 9 (new numbers), May/June 2001.

5. "Monsoon Risings" (Interview with Chittaroopa Palit of the Narmada Bachao Andolan), NLR 21, May/June 2003.

6. "Red Green Saffron" in New Left Review 26, March/April 2004.

7. "Myths of the Permit Raj" in New Left Review 29, Sept-Oct. 2004.

8. "Strategy After Bush" in New Left Review 42, Nov-Dec.2006.

9. "The Himalayan Republic" in New Left Review 49, Jan-Feb.2008.

10. "Miconceiving Asia" in New Left Review 59, Sept.-Oct. 2009.

Bulletin of Peace Proposals, Journal of the Peace Research Institute, Oslo (PRIO).

1. "Nuclear Insecurity in the Indian Subcontinent: An Uneasy Truce" in Bulletin of Peace Proposals, Vol. 20, No. 4, Dec. 1989.

Seminar, New Delhi, India
1. "Communalism and Our Foreign Policy" in Seminar 374, October 1990.

2. "Indian Exceptionalism and the Left" in Seminar 407, July 1993.

3. "Indian Security and the Nuclear Question" in Seminar 444, August 1996.

4. "Since the Pokharan Tests" in Seminar 485, January 2000.

Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East

1. "The Indian Nuclear Tests", Vol. XVIII No.1 1998

2. A reply to David Pizzo's critique of my chapter on fascism in The Furies of Indian Communalism. "Reply to Pizzo" in Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East, Vol. XX, Nos. 1 & 2, 2000.

Journal of South Asian Studies

1. "Making India Strong: The BJP-Led Government's Foreign Policy Perspectives", Special Issue, New Series, Vol. XXV No.3, December 2002. Published by the South Asian Studies Association of Australia; Victoria, Australia.

Disarmament Diplomacy

1. "Deterrence or a Deadly Game? Nuclear Propaganda and Reality in South Asia", September 2002, The Acronym Institute, London, England.

Contemporary India

1. "Religion, Secularism and Communalism", July-September 2002, Nehru Memorial Museum & Library, New Delhi.

South Asian Journal

1. "Combating Communalism in India", Oct-Dec. 2003 issue, No.2, Lahore, Pakistan.

Economic and Political Weekly, Bombay

The total number of pieces I have written for the EPW over the years exceeds a hundred. There have been numerous review articles, book reviews, perspective pieces, discussion papers, reports, etc. I have also run a regular column between 1985 and 1987 called the Nuclear Notebook (shared with Mr. Praful Bidwai) which has again been revived since late 1996 and continued till 2007. For convenience sake I am listing here only those articles that were above 8000 words in length and which appeared under the EPW Special Articles section.

1. "Is There a Nationality Question in India? in EPW, October 29, 1988.

2. "End of an Era: Turmoil in USSR and Eastern Europe" in EPW, February 10, 1990.

3. "US-USSR Relationship: The Long View" in EPW, December 14, 1991.

4. "Situating the Threat of Hindu Nationalism: Problems with the Fascist Paradigm" in EPW, July 9, 1994.

5. "Leninism, Socialist Democracy, Contemporary Problems" in EPW, December 2, 1995.

6. "Why India Should Sign the CTBT: Returning to Our Own Agenda" in EPW, Sept. 19, 1998. This was co-authored with P. Bidwai

7. "Unravelling the Self-Image of the Indian Bomb Lobby" in EPW, November 20-26, 2004.

8. "Regional and Global Nuclear Disarmament: Going Beyond the NPT" in EPW, April 19-24, 2009.

Other Writings

As a journalist with the Times of India Group, and afterwards as a regular contributor to the English language print media (both in India and abroad) I have written innumerable articles on an immense range of subjects for various national and regional newspapers and magazines. It is not possible, nor I hope necessary, to give even a partial listing of them here.

I continue to write for national newspapers such as The Hindu and The Telegraph and Mail Today as well as for numerous other publications both journalistic and academic.

I include here references to three long review articles by me of major published books by eminent scholars and university professors in the West. Two of the works are in the field of International Relations/Modernisation theory by award winning authors (of the Isaac Deutscher Memorial Prize for 1994 by J. Rosenberg of an earlier book on IR theory called The Empire of Civil Society: A Critique of the Realist Theory of International Relations and 2003 by B. Teschke) and extracts from my reviews have appeared in subsequent publicity blurbs for the said authors.

1. "Defence of Multiculturalist Politics" in the Economic and Political Weekly, March 21, 1998. This is a review article of Literary Theory and the Claims of History: Postmodernism, Objectivity, Multiculturalist Politics by Satya P. Mohanty, Oxford University Press, New Delhi, 1998 and Cornell University Press, Ithaca, USA, 1997.

2. "Failure of Globalisation Theory" in the Economic and Political Weekly, November 3, 2001. This is a review article of The Follies of Globalisation Theory by Justin Rosenberg, Verso Publications, London, 2000.

3. "Has Academe Got it Wrong" in The Book Review, February 2004, Volume XXVIII. This is a review article of The Myth of 1648: Class, Geopolitics and the Making of Modern International Relations by Benno Teschke, Verso Publications, London, 2003.

Other Activities

Have been and continue to be active in a variety of civil liberties, anti-communal, and anti-nuclear work and campaigns. Was active in England in anti-racist activity (1971-78). Am currently actively involved with the Movement in India for Nuclear Disarmament (MIND) and the Coalition for Nuclear Disarmament and Peace (CNDP) in India which is also concerned with solidarity work in support of Palestine and in opposing the US invasion of Iraq. It is also active in regarding to promoting Indo-Pakistan people-to-people peace and friendship. I am on the National Coordinating Committee (NCC) of the CNDP.

Award
Co-recipient with Praful Bidwai of "The Sean MacBride International Peace Prize" for the Year 2000 for published work and activities in relation to nuclear disarmament. This annual peace prize has been awarded by the International Peace Bureau (IPB) since its centenary year of 1992. The IPB is the oldest international peace organization founded in 1892 in the UK. Sean MacBride, late president of the IPB, was the only recipient of both the Lenin Peace Prize of the former Soviet Union and of the Nobel Peace Prize.