CAPITAL ACCUMULATION, THE STATE AND THE STRUCTURE OF BANGLADESHI AGRICULTURE: A SOCIOLOGICAL STUDY OF THE FIRST DECADE, 1972-1982 (POLITICAL ECONOMY)

This is a theoretical and macro-structural study of the process and problems of capital accumulation and its relationship to underdevelopment in Bangladesh. It is argued that capital accumulation is a critical factor in the growth and expansion of an economy irrespective of its position in the stages of socio-economic development and its choice of economic systems.;The second pattern of accumulation, private and public centered, is associated with the military regime that ended the civilian regime. Since the late seventies, successive military governments have been reversing the state-centered accumulation and development policy of the previous regime. The present economy is producing more surplus and recording a higher rate of accumulation, but foreign debts are soaring and labor's share in the increased surplus is diminishing.;This study also examines the macro and structural issues governing accumulation in the agricultural sector and concludes that the previous and current economic policies, along with the existing agrarian structure, inhibit rapid capital accumulation in agriculture.;Finally, it is observed that an appropriate mode of regulation to permit rapid capital accumulation, be it state-centered or privately-centered, is always missing in Bangladesh. For successful and rapid capital accumulation, each regime of accumulation must create structural forms appropriate for regulating the economy in support of the process.;Examination is made of the conceptual issues in the accumulation process, particularly in the context of a peripheral economy like that of Bangladesh. The pace and pattern of accumulation in Bangladesh during the first decade, 1972-1982, are analyzed. Two distinct patterns of capital accumulation are observed. The first one, a state-centered accumulation pattern, emerged during the civilian regime of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman from 1972 to 1975. Economic mismanagement at this time undermined the socialist objectives of the regime and surplus mobilization by the state remained negligible.