Research article
How power and politics shape niche-regime interactions: A view from the Global South

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eist.2022.04.008Get rights and content

Highlights

  • There are fewer studies in the politics of sustainability transitions area, especially from the global south.

  • Proliferation of E-rickshaws in Delhi in the last decade provides a good case study to explore power and politics in niche-regime interactions.

  • Niche-regime interactions are complex and heterogeneous exhibiting diversity with respect to actors, resources and linkages.

Abstract

The significant role of politics in shaping sustainability transitions (ST) is well-recognized but still under-researched, especially in the Global South, where institutional context can differ widely from the Global North. For instance, informal transport is a unique and common feature of many Global South countries and constitutes complexity that is not captured adequately by transition studies’ conceptual frameworks. This study explores how power and politics surrounding informal occupations shape niche-regime interactions in a Global South country by examining the emergence, development and subsequent legitimization of the informal electric rickshaw (ER) transport in Delhi (India). The study shows the limitation of dichotomous conceptualizations like niche/new entrants vs. regime/incumbents and fit-and-conform vs. stretch-and-transform in understanding niche-regime interactions and argues that studying how politics of transition unfolds in the Global South's informal spaces can broaden the conceptual horizons.

Introduction

Transition studies have not paid sufficient attention to the role of politics and power in shaping transitions (Meadowcroft, 2009; Scoones, 2015; Avelino, 2017) and though some interesting works have been produced recently, on the whole, this area still lacks a coherent and consolidated corpus of work (Avelino et al., 2016; Markard et al., 2016). The mechanisms of interaction between innovative niches and established regimes are not yet properly understood (Smith and Raven, 2012) and a systematic conceptualization of institutionalization of niche practices is yet to be developed (Smith and Stirling, 2010). An emphasis on agency is sine qua non for a better understanding of the dynamics of niche-regime interactions (Garud et al., 2010) and such an undertaking can only be politically informed because actors differ in the nature of power they possess, their access to resources, their networks and in the way they frame, interpret and deal with the challenges.

So far, most of the studies exploring the politics of transition have focused on the Global North (Wieczorek, 2018) but in the Global South, where institutions are generally less robust and developmental concerns are more acute (Lawhon, 2012; Campbell and Sallis, 2013), the politics of transition may unfold quite differently (Tyfield and Zuev, 2018). The politics of informal transport can be an interesting space to understand and explore this difference. Mobility transition studies, like transition studies in general, have focused on the Global North where transport is usually state recognized (Kemp et al., 1998; Hoogma et al., 2002) and thus have ignored the informal mode of transport which is prevalent in the Global South (Sengers and Raven, 2014).

The E-rickshaw or electric rickshaw (ER) is an important component of Delhi's electric mobility transition plan. Since 2010, when they were first introduced, their numbers have grown considerably in Delhi and most of this increase happened during 2012-2014 due to non-enforcement of regulations. This increase created a constituency of actors with interests tied up with the ER business but also created a backlash from those who ostensibly saw this informal mode of transportation as a safety threat and a law and order issue. Subsequently, ER niche development became intertwined with electoral and regulatory politics. The dramatic rise of ERs in Delhi and the battle that ensued for their legitimacy, involving diverse actors like social activists, judiciary, law enforcement agencies, political parties, professional unions, technology experts and media, makes up for an interesting case to understand how mobility transitions centred around informal transport unfold in a developing country. The article argues that the complexity of transition politics involving informal transport (which is prevalent in the Global South countries) cannot be adequately captured by the binaries of niche/new entrants vs. regime/incumbents and fit-and-conform vs. stretch-and-transform employed frequently in the literature.

Following this introduction, Section 2 provides the conceptual framework and the method used in the study. The next four sections, i.e. Sections 3 to 6, explain the emergence and proliferation of the ER niche and the consequent politics and clash of interests of various actors. Within these sections, Sections 4 and 5 focus on niche level activities while Section 6 focuses on the regime level actors. Section 7 discusses the implications of the study vis-à-vis current conceptual frameworks for understanding niche-regime interactions. This is followed by the conclusion.

Section snippets

Conceptual framework and method

The multi-level perspective (MLP) has become a prominent analytical framework for transition scholars. The framework distinguishes three functional-analytical levels - niche (micro level), regime (meso level) and landscape (macro level) (Geels, 2002; Geels, 2005b). A niche is defined as the site of emergence of novel technologies, markets etc. (Kemp et al., 1998). A regime constitutes the stable milieu which embeds the technology and comprises of dimensions such as regulations, policies, user

ER niche emergence and development: expanding outside the formal governance

ERs have been recognized as an important component of Delhi government's sustainable mobility transition plan called ‘Switch Delhi’, which aims to make Delhi the EV capital of India (PTI, 2021). An ER is a low floored, 4-5 seater (including the driver) vehicle powered mostly by rechargeable lead-acid batteries and having speed ranging from 15 to 30 km/hr. A single battery recharge takes about 6-8 hours and is sufficient for 40-60 kms of driving (Singh, 2014).

The ER niche in Delhi has expanded

Growing voices against ERs

The non-enforcement of regulations to ERs prompted several actors to perceive them as a safety threat and a regulatory fiasco. The print media, especially in the English language, mostly perceived the proliferation of ERs as a failure of the law enforcement (Harding, 2014) and held ER drivers responsible for openly flouting traffic rules and adding significantly to the congestion, safety and traffic woes of Delhi (Bansal, 2013; Bhattacharya, 2013; Banerjee, 2013; Haider, 2013). A fatal accident

Political mobilization in support for the ERs

The appeals to regulate or ban ERs were countered by niche actors like ER fleet owners, manufacturers and driver unions whose interests aligned with the ER business. These actors took legal recourse and highlighted the humanitarian impact of banning or subjecting ERs to stringent regulations. For instance, Battery Rickshaw Welfare Association (BRWA) pointed out to the HC that subjecting ERs to strict regulations would make thousands of families that depend on ERs for their livelihood,

Amending the MVA to preserve the vote bank: the politics of regulation in action

At the regime level, the important actors were the judiciary, the government (at both central and state level) and the law enforcement agencies. The judiciary primarily saw the issue of ER as an issue of law and order and of citizens’ safety and consequently applied the yardstick of legality to examine ER's legitimacy. While hearing the PIL by Shahnawaz Khan, the HC issued a notice to the responsible authorities and expressed its dismay on the chaos at the governance of ERs (Ahmed, 2014). It

Discussion

Socio-technical transitions are hardly ever simple and orderly and unfold through complex niche-regime interactions. Transitions are often coordinated by the actors in the process of transitioning itself and are not designed or planned from the start (Geels and Schot, 2007). They entail co-evolution of institutions and regulations along with the technology development and diffusion (Grin, 2012; Stirling, 2008), often defy rational choice processes, are built upon contingencies and tensions that

Conclusion

The study attempted to elucidate the role of power and politics in shaping niche-regime interactions in a Global South country through an electric mobility case study. The politics of informal transport is conspicuous in the Global South and exercises a strong influence in shaping the mobility transitions. Unfortunately, however, very few studies in the transition literature have explored these aspects. Zuev et al., (2019) focused on the subtle and hidden nature of everyday politics around

Declaration of Competing Interest

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Acknowledgements

The author gratefully acknowledges the Indian Department of Science and Technology for its financial support through the IIT Delhi DST Center for Policy Research. The author is also grateful to Professor Ambuj D. Sagar and the two anonymous reviewers for their valuable guidance.

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