Foreign policy, international economic and diplomatic relations are of immense value for every nation-state for its very survival and economic prosperity amidst the comity of nations. In fact, many crucial factors are responsible for shaping the foreign policy, which become obsolete with the passage of time and contemporary new factors emerge for the same.

The essays contained herein present the dynamics of Indian Foreign Policy since Independence onwards. All salient features and events are touched and explained.

This book consists of five articles which highlight the major issues mainly responsible for shaping the foreign policy of India, namely: role of National Interest in the Formulation of India's International Relations; Nehru's Foreign Policy; Indira Gandhi's Foreign Policy; Foreign Policy of the Janata Government: A Case of Continuity and Change; India's Foreign Policy in the Post-Cold War era; etc.

The present book unravels the mysteries of relevance and popularity of socio-economic views of Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, the architect of modern India in global perspectives and present system of economic reforms and liberalisation. It thoroughly explores the genesis and development of his popular themes and contributions by presenting various stages of development.

This book is an attempt to acquaint the readers with practical and theoretical background to the subject and possibilities in terms of globalisation in the new millennium. It fully caters the needs of the researchers, academicians, parliamentarians, and all concerned.

The subject-matter has been presented in a logical, systematic, comparative, critical and descriptive order and in a simple and lucid style. It is basically a reader's oriented book which surveys a wide range of socio-economic ideas and their relevance in the new millennium.

Indian urbanization is at crossroads. Structural transformations are leaving behind the agrarian economy. Rise of non-agricultural activities has led to a faster process of urbanization. Urban growth has rather been much faster which has burdened the existing settlement system as urbanization could not commensurate it. Urban settlements in particular have borne the brunt of urban growth. A few numbers of large cities have grown out of proportion whereas a large number of small settlements have stagnated or declined in size. These large cities continue to dominate the urban scene as 23 of them as per 1991 census, are metropolises inhabiting nearly 1/3 of urban population. Metropolisation of urban growth was being feared even during sixties. Since then policies attempted to discourage accretion of population at a few urban centres. Number of Expert Groups went into the problem and during late seventies thoughts were crystallizing on shift of development programmes in favour of medium and small towns and small cities. Sixth Five Year Plan for the first time introduced a scheme of Integrated Development of Small and Medium Towns (IDSMT) in central sector. Under the scheme so far nearly 500 towns with population less than 100,000 have been funded. As a policy issue IDSMT has been widely acclaimed even outside India. It's mechanism and it's overall impact on reducing rate of migration towards large cities have not yet gained acceptance. However, in spite of controversies the IDSMT has been put into, it is being appreciated as first step which aims to combat urban accretion. The present volume reviews our process of urbanization, impact of IDSMT and various implications for urban policy. The study would be useful for policy makers and would greatly enhance the scope of improvements in the policy of development of medium and small towns.

Tropical ecosystems are very rich in biodiversity. But the poor state of economy, fast human growth and widespread habitat losses are the primary threats to this biodiversity. Increasing pollution and global warming are expected to fasten the loss of biodiversity in these regions. For sustainability of the future human populations, it is essential that there must be concerted efforts to stem the fast loss of tropical biodiversity coupled with sustainable development of resources, restoration of habitats and documentation of available biodiversity. The indigenous people and their traditional practices can play a vital role in this respect. However, this knowledge database is highly fragmented and there are increasing incidences of conflicts between the indigenous societies and resource managers about their rights on biodiversity. There is need for a greater harmony and coordination among the various stakeholders such as policy planners, scientists and indigenous people. For facilitating awareness among the stakeholders, the present volume has compiled the recognizable threats to biodiversity and participative methods of sustainable development, being practices in different parts of our country. This compilation should help in bringing together the politicians, planners, scientists and indigenous people for an efficient management of our rapidly depleting precious biological resources for sustainable development of the poor people, better documentation of our biodiversity and sound scientific management of ecosystem structures and functions.