2012/01/01 by Pnina Motzafi‐Haller, Motzafi-Haller, Pnina
Social Sciences · #South Asian Studies and Conflicts #Southeast Asian Sociopolitical Studies
paper · doi:10.5287/ora-j29dpxxyw
openalex publication_date 2012/01/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/01
Using both ethnographic and survey data, this article explores the complex ways in which camp-dwellers on the margins of settled communities in Rajasthan, India, have interacted with state agents, services and systems of knowledge in a manner that articulates their limited but nonetheless significant agency. I explore three arenas through which the state's presence is felt in the lives of these marginalized people: access to land, to health services and to public schooling. I argue that marginalized people are not merely the victims of centrist powers but exhibit a resourcefulness and flexibility that redefines group boundaries and the impact of state policies on their lives.