The Rentier Economy of Growth Infrastructures: Value Appropriation without Adequate Accumulation in India

Abstract

Infrastructures aimed at stimulating economic growth may be collectively termed “growth infrastructures”. In India, they anticipate accumulation through investments and unleash appropriation through a spiralling “rentier economy”. This paper draws on research around Dholera smart city in Gujarat; the experience with special economic zones nationally and in Goa; and national data on key accumulation processes such as manufacturing and construction. My analyses reveal three distinct but overlapping moments of rent appropriation around growth infrastructures, the inaugural moment of project announcement; the subsequent moment of land allotments to capital; and the third moment of development, lease, and sale. A key contradiction unfolds as growth infrastructures develop: value appropriation from land rent intensifies, but anticipated accumulation from investments remains elusive. National data indicate that the share of manufacturing has not risen in decades, and the so-called construction boom is predominantly rural. India's growth infrastructures engender value relations of “appropriation without adequate accumulation”.