Third Sector in India : An Analytical Study  

Dr. T.N.Sreedhara and Dr. Rajaram Tolpady

Mangalore University

Dr. Sreedhara and Dr. Tolpady have made an attempt to analyse the Indian Third Sector vis-à-vis the dominant theoretical understanding of third sector across the world.  In particular this study tries to examine the conception of third sector/non profit sector as enunciated by different western theories and demonstrates their inapplicability in Indian context.  To substantiate their claim, the authors go in for a detailed examination of the history of evolution of civil society in India .  While recognizing that India has an important though diverse and heterogeneous space resembling civil society, the authors doubt whether this space can in any way be compared to the conception of civil society.  The study emphasizes that there is a need to look at this space in India from different, local and purposive dimensions.  (The study report is published by TSRRC as Occasional Paper)