Agrarian Economy of Ancient India (Hardbound - 2013)

The book aims at presenting a detailed and systematic study of the economic conditions of ancient India dealing with different aspects of agrarian economy such as origin of agriculture and pastoralism, land rights, paradigms of land tenure, measurement of land, economic dimensions of land and the feudal economy. In accordance with this aim, economic condition is presented in this book primarily not as the sum total of the economic history of individual kings, but as an explanation of the economic developments and changes of whole ancient India. The distinctive characteristic of this book lies in the fact that it presents a synthesis of agrarian and feudal economy that prevailed in ancient India.

The book presents a deteriorating and grim scenario of the economic condition of the people of ancient India. It also negates and questions the notion of Ram Rajya in ancient India, i.e. a state where people enjoyed economic and social prosperity and equality, and did not witness any kind of misery and inequality. The scope of the book has however been restricted to agrarian economy of ancient India from the earliest time to 1200 A.D. It is based on the literary and epigraphical traditions of ancient India. It will be useful for the students of economics, particularly those studying the economic history of India and researchers in this field.

Gian Chand Chauhan has specialized in Social and Economic Institutions of Ancient India with special reference to Early Indian Feudalism.

The books published by him include Economic History of Early Medieval Northern India; (Atlantic Publishers, New Delhi, 2003); Origin and Growth of Feudalism in Early India: From the Mauryas to 650 A.D. (Munshiram Manoharlal, New Delhi, 2004); and Some Aspects of Early Indian Society (Red Lead Press, Pittsburgh, USA, 2012). He has published fifty research papers/ articles in national and international journals of repute.