IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bpj/ajlecn/v3y2012i1n4.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Developing Human Capabilities Through Law: Is Indian Law Failing?

Author

Listed:
  • Routh Supriya

    (WB National University of Juridical Sciences, India)

Abstract

The Capability Approach envisages a human-centred idea of development instead of an income-based idea of development. Economic development is only one of the components in human capability development. Economic development by itself cannot ensure capability promotion amongst individuals, specially in developing countries like India where majority of the population suffers from various kinds of capability deprivation. What is required under such circumstances is enabling the population to make use of economic development by enhancing their capabilities. The judicial system is an important institution in this regard. However, judicial interpretation in India is not helping the cause of capability promotion amongst the population. The judiciary is blinded by the rhetoric of economic development. Judicial interpretations show that the judiciary believes economic development by itself is sufficient enough condition in the development of the country and its people. This article, by choosing the example of labour law, shows that the judiciary is acting under a mistaken belief of development in interpreting labour jurisprudence in India. If human development is the goal of the labour laws, the judiciary needs to focus on providing social and institutional conditions for the promotion of capabilities rather than eroding such conditions in the name of economic development.

Suggested Citation

  • Routh Supriya, 2012. "Developing Human Capabilities Through Law: Is Indian Law Failing?," Asian Journal of Law and Economics, De Gruyter, vol. 3(1), pages 1-22, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:bpj:ajlecn:v:3:y:2012:i:1:n:4
    DOI: 10.1515/2154-4611.1064
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1515/2154-4611.1064
    Download Restriction: For access to full text, subscription to the journal or payment for the individual article is required.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1515/2154-4611.1064?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Benedetta Giovanola, 2005. "Personhood and Human Richness: Good and Well-Being in the Capability Approach and Beyond," Review of Social Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 63(2), pages 249-267.
    2. Sabina Alkire, Maria Emma Santos, 2010. "Acute Multidimensional Poverty: A New Index for Developing Countries," OPHI Working Papers 38, Queen Elizabeth House, University of Oxford.
    3. Nussbaum, Martha, 1987. "Nature, Function and Capability," WIDER Working Papers 295560, United Nations University, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    4. Alkire, Sabina, 2005. "Valuing Freedoms: Sen's Capability Approach and Poverty Reduction," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780199283316.
    5. Alkire, Sabina, 2002. "Dimensions of Human Development," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 30(2), pages 181-205, February.
    6. Ingrid Robeyns, 2005. "The Capability Approach: a theoretical survey," Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 6(1), pages 93-117.
    7. Dreze, Jean & Sen, Amartya, 2002. "India: Development and Participation," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, edition 2, number 9780199257492.
    8. Sen, Amartya, 1988. "Freedom of choice : Concept and content," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 32(2-3), pages 269-294, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Espinoza-Delgado, José & López-Laborda, Julio, 2017. "Nicaragua: evolución de la pobreza multidimensional, 2001-2009," Revista CEPAL, Naciones Unidas Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL), April.
    2. Gassmann, Franziska & Siegel, Melissa & Vanore, Michaella & Waidler, Jennifer, 2012. "The impact of migration on elderly left behind in Moldova," MERIT Working Papers 2012-082, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    3. Gasper, D.R., 2006. "What is the capability approach?: its core, rationale, partners and dangers," ISS Working Papers - General Series 19187, International Institute of Social Studies of Erasmus University Rotterdam (ISS), The Hague.
    4. Gaël Giraud & Cécile Renouard & Hélène L'Huillier & Raphaële de La Martinière & Camille Sutter, 2012. "Relational Capability: A Multidimensional Approach," Université Paris1 Panthéon-Sorbonne (Post-Print and Working Papers) halshs-00827690, HAL.
    5. Hamid Hasan, 2019. "Confidence in Subjective Evaluation of Human Well-Being in Sen’s Capabilities Perspective," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 20(1), pages 1-17, January.
    6. Antoinette Baujard, 2007. "Commensurable freedoms in the capability approach," Post-Print halshs-00294563, HAL.
    7. Hyesun Hwang & Su-Jung Nam, 2020. "Differences in Multidimensional Poverty According to Householders’ Gender and Age in South Korea," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 15(1), pages 147-165, March.
    8. Mabsout, Ramzi, 2015. "Mindful capability," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 86-97.
    9. Greco, Giulia & Skordis-Worrall, Jolene & Mkandawire, Bryan & Mills, Anne, 2015. "What is a good life? Selecting capabilities to assess women's quality of life in rural Malawi," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 130(C), pages 69-78.
    10. Gassmann F. & Siegel M. & Vanore M. & Waidler J., 2013. "The impact of migration on children left behind in Moldova," MERIT Working Papers 2013-043, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    11. James Foster, Christopher Handy, 2008. "External Capabilities," OPHI Working Papers 8, Queen Elizabeth House, University of Oxford.
    12. Rauschmayer, Felix & Bauler, Tom & Schäpke, Niko, 2013. "Towards a governance of sustainability transitions: Giving place to individuals," UFZ Discussion Papers 17/2013, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ), Division of Social Sciences (ÖKUS).
    13. Gries, Thomas & Naudé, Wim, 2011. "Entrepreneurship and human development: A capability approach," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(3), pages 216-224.
    14. Sophie Mitra & Kris Jones & Brandon Vick & David Brown & Eileen McGinn & Mary Alexander, 2013. "Implementing a Multidimensional Poverty Measure Using Mixed Methods and a Participatory Framework," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 110(3), pages 1061-1081, February.
    15. Kimmitt, Jonathan & Muñoz, Pablo & Newbery, Robert, 2020. "Poverty and the varieties of entrepreneurship in the pursuit of prosperity," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 35(4).
    16. Christoph Bader & Sabin Bieri & Urs Wiesmann & Andreas Heinimann, 2016. "Differences Between Monetary and Multidimensional Poverty in the Lao PDR: Implications for Targeting of Poverty Reduction Policies and Interventions," Poverty & Public Policy, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 8(2), pages 171-197, June.
    17. Sebastian Silva-Leander, 2011. "On the Possibility of Measuring Freedom: A Kantian Perspective," OPHI Working Papers 49, Queen Elizabeth House, University of Oxford.
    18. Jeni Klugman & Francisco Rodríguez & Hyung-Jin Choi, 2011. "The HDI 2010: new controversies, old critiques," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 9(2), pages 249-288, June.
    19. Pinaki Das & Bibek Paria & Shama Firdaush, 2021. "Juxtaposing Consumption Poverty and Multidimensional Poverty: A Study in Indian Context," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 153(2), pages 469-501, January.
    20. Nisreen Salti & Jad Chaaban & Alexandra Irani & Rima Al Mokdad, 2021. "A Multi-Dimensional Measure of Well-being among Youth: The Case of Palestinian Refugee Youth in Lebanon," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 154(1), pages 1-34, February.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bpj:ajlecn:v:3:y:2012:i:1:n:4. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Peter Golla (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.degruyter.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.