Published Paper Details:

This article examines the evolution of historiographical approaches to colonial medicine in India, tracing the shift from descriptive and institutional narratives to analytically grounded interpretations centred on power, knowledge, and social negotiation. Beginning with the emergence of the social history of medicine, it analyses key contributions by Poonam Bala, David Arnold, and Mark Harrison, situating their work within broader theoretical traditions such as Foucauldian biopolitics, Cambridge School administrative history, and Subaltern Studies. The article further engages with nationalist critiques articulated by Deepak Kumar and Chittabrata Palit, while incorporating recent scholarship on gender, environment, military medicine, and medical pluralism, including contributions by Erica Wald, Sanjoy Bhattacharya, and Waltraud Ernst. It argues that colonial medicine must be understood as a contested and negotiated domain rather than a unilinear project of domination. By mapping these historiographical developments, the article highlights the increasing interdisciplinarity of the field and its significance for understanding colonial governance and social transformation in South Asia.