Research output per year
Research output per year
Accepting PhD Students
PhD projects
Agrarian Studies, Caste, Social Policy, Social Movements.
I joined the University of Edinburgh as a British Academy Newton International Fellow in March 2021.
I have worked most recently as Assistant Professor in the School of Development at Azim Premji University, Bengaluru (from July 2020 to March 2021), and Department of Public Policy at St Xavier’s College (Autonomous), Mumbai (from June 2015 to June 2020). I also serve as the Book Reviews Editor at the Economic and Political Weekly, Mumbai, since 2018.
I hold a PhD in Development Studies from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, India. My doctoral research explored the Dalit land question in India, drawing from the writings of Dr B R Ambedkar and a land movement waged by Dalits in Maharashtra (west India).
My training is in the area of political economy of development, with research focus on caste, agrarian studies, social policy, and social movements. The geographical focus of my work is India. I specialise in village studies as a methodology and have conducted intensive fieldwork in the rural areas of Maharashtra, Bihar and Jharkhand.
My current research is located at the intellectual and political intersections of Marxism and Ambedkarism, especially in the fields of agrarian political economy, public health, and social movements. My empirical work is focused on land and agrarian relations in rural Maharashtra, Punjab, and Bihar. Alongside, I am trying to conceptualise the emergent caste and class relations in rural India, while working to better understand the social and economic thought of Dr Ambedkar.
Sustainable Development, Postgraduate Diploma, International Graduate School North South
Award Date: 8 May 2019
Development Studies, Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Land & Dalits in Maharashtra: A Study with Special Reference to the Dalit Land Movement in Marathwada, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, India
Jun 2012 → May 2019
Award Date: 6 May 2019
Development Studies, Master of Philosophy (MPhil), Features of Agrarian Change in a Maharashtra Village: A Study in Karkatta, Latur District., Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, India
Jun 2010 → May 2012
Award Date: 7 May 2012
Development Studies, Master of Arts, Temporal and Spatial Changes in the Incidence of Agricultural Labourers: A Study in Maharashtra, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, India
Jun 2007 → May 2009
Award Date: 8 May 2009
Economics Honours, Bachelor of Arts, Kirori Mal College, University of Delhi
Jun 2004 → May 2007
Award Date: 4 Jun 2007
Visiting Faculty, School of Development, Azim Premji University, Bengaluru
31 Mar 2021 → …
Consulting Editor (Book Reviews), Economic and Political Weekly
21 Nov 2018 → …
Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter
Research output: Contribution to specialist publication › Article
Research output: Other contribution
Research output: Contribution to journal › Comment/debate
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Awanish Kumar (Peer reviewer)
Activity: Publication peer-review and editorial work types › Editorial activity
Awanish Kumar (Peer reviewer)
Activity: Publication peer-review and editorial work types › Editorial activity
Awanish Kumar (Peer reviewer)
Activity: Publication peer-review and editorial work types › Editorial activity
Awanish Kumar (Peer reviewer)
Activity: Publication peer-review and editorial work types › Editorial activity
Awanish Kumar (Editorial board member)
Activity: Publication peer-review and editorial work types › Editorial activity
Kumar, Awanish (Recipient), 2020
Prize: Fellowships awarded competitively
30/10/22
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Expert Comment