Abstract
This article examines the development of a south Indian “industrial
city”, modelled on a Chinese counterpart. The privately-operated
city is a key example of India’s new-style Special Economic Zones
(SEZs). These represent a national shift, motivated by China’s SEZ
success, from enclave-style “export processing zones” to integrated
townships. Drawing on fieldwork from 2018, we compare three
issues with the Chinese “model”: the city’s establishment and spa-
tial planning; the gendered hiring practices of its firms; and its
incorporation of local villages. These three aspects represent differ-
ent mechanisms through which the “model” is translated into the
Indian context, by different actors, with different outcomes. In line
with policy mobilities scholarship, we argue that models cannot be
straightforwardly replicated, and we call for more attention to the
outcomes of attempted replication, in particular the urban devel-
opment implications of selective, complex, multi-level adaptation
of a Chinese “model” and its interaction with local Indian contexts.
city”, modelled on a Chinese counterpart. The privately-operated
city is a key example of India’s new-style Special Economic Zones
(SEZs). These represent a national shift, motivated by China’s SEZ
success, from enclave-style “export processing zones” to integrated
townships. Drawing on fieldwork from 2018, we compare three
issues with the Chinese “model”: the city’s establishment and spa-
tial planning; the gendered hiring practices of its firms; and its
incorporation of local villages. These three aspects represent differ-
ent mechanisms through which the “model” is translated into the
Indian context, by different actors, with different outcomes. In line
with policy mobilities scholarship, we argue that models cannot be
straightforwardly replicated, and we call for more attention to the
outcomes of attempted replication, in particular the urban devel-
opment implications of selective, complex, multi-level adaptation
of a Chinese “model” and its interaction with local Indian contexts.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | The Urbanising Dynamics of Global China |
| Subtitle of host publication | Speculation, Articulation, and Translation in Global Capitalism |
| Editors | Hyun Bang Shin, Yimin Zhao, Sin Yee Koh |
| Place of Publication | Oxford |
| Publisher | Routledge |
| Chapter | 2 |
| Pages | 40-62 |
| Number of pages | 23 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9781041029953 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Accepted/In press - 2 May 2025 |