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As India adopted economic planning as an instrument of growth from the very beginning, the conventional model of development is that the present set of agrarian structure in the country potentially suitable for the dynamic land owners and asset rich peasants to carry-out much needed Economic progress. In the process the lower rung of the vast portions of rural India and its vital traditional resource base systems like Common Property Environmental Resources (CPRs) have found hardly any priority in India´s development strategy and its thrust. In this empirical research endeavor an effort is made to understand the processes contributing to the present status and availability of CPRs for local communities. The focus of this work is to examine the role of CPRs in local livelihoods such as animal husbandry, household consumption& sustenance, asset formation, income and employment generation, across both agrarian plains and also hilly ethnic areas. The first edition of this book intends to examine this vital link in the development process but neglected by the very development policy and make a compelling case for CPR-orientation in India´s development and environmental policies.

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Gajavelli, Venkateshwara Swamy
Dr. Gajavelli V S is a Professor& Chairman, Center for Sustainability at Institute of Management Technology Nagpur, India.He has more than 26 years of academic experience and holds a Ph.D. from University of Hyderabad and trained by Harvard, Richard Ivey and Stockholm Schools.

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