Computing in the Age of Decolonization

Name: Computing in the Age of Decolonization
Price: 62.99 AUD
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ISBN: 9780691268217

India’s Lost Technological Revolution

Dwaipayan Banerjee

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Hardback

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English

Princeton University Press
03 June 2026

History of ideas; Impact of science & technology on society; History of science; History of engineering & technology; Computing: general

How Cold War geopolitics and domestic capitalism changed the trajectory of India's computing industry

India today is widely recognized for producing world-class tech talent and Silicon Valley leaders, yet captures only a fraction of the global tech industry's profits, primarily providing skilled but inexpensive labor for Western corporations. Computing in the Age of Decolonization uncovers the overlooked history behind this paradox, tracing India's ambitious but ultimately thwarted drive to build a self-reliant computing industry from the 1950s to the 1980s.

After independence in 1947, Indian scientists and policymakers at institutions such as the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research saw computing as central to national sovereignty, economic growth, and scientific advancement. Through projects such as the groundbreaking TIFRAC computer and the decisive expulsion of IBM, they aimed for technological independence. But almost immediately, these initiatives faced powerful political and economic headwinds. Indian computer scientists grappled with Cold War politics, international trade imbalances, US corporate monopolies, and strategic decisions by India's technocratic elite, who favored profitable technical services over costly investments in research and manufacturing.

In narrating this lost future, Computing in the Age of Decolonization shows that genuine technological independence requires more than technical expertise-it demands addressing enduring political and social structures rooted in colonial legacies. As global struggles over technology intensify, this book reveals how historical pathways continue to shape contemporary battles for technological and economic sovereignty.

By: Dwaipayan Banerjee
Imprint: Princeton University Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 235mm, Width: 156mm,
ISBN: 9780691268217
ISBN 10: 0691268215
Pages: 296
Publication Date: 03 June 2026
Audience: College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , General/trade , Primary , Undergraduate
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming

Dwaipayan Banerjee is associate professor in the Program in Science, Technology, and Society at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is the author of Enduring Cancer: Life, Death, and Diagnosis in Delhi and the coauthor of Hematologies: The Political Life of Blood in India.

Reviews for Computing in the Age of Decolonization: India’s Lost Technological Revolution

""[A] fascinating study.""---Pratap Bhanu Mehta, Foreign Affairs ""Dwaipayan Banerjee’s Computing in the Age of Decolonization: India’s Lost Technological Revolution tells a compelling history of a newly independent India, struggling to define itself as a sovereign nation after casting off Britain’s colonial rule from the late 1940s to the mid-1970s.""---Tracie Farrell, International Journal of Asian Studies