Smokestacks, cooling towers, reactor domes and gas installations are defining features of our modern landscape. Each is a key component in electricity generation, but perhaps not for much longer. Sprinkled over every continent are the totems of a new era of power: wind turbines and solar energy collectors. So far they are few and far between, but that's about to change.

Independent regulatory agencies have become an important part of the governance landscape in India and elsewhere. Some regulators have achieved useful outcomes. However, the creation of independent sectoral regulators in India has not been accompanied by critical reflection on their role, or attention to the political, legal, and institutional contexts within which they operate. This study explores various theoretical perspectives on the political economy of regulation, and elaborates on the implications these have for electricity and water regulation in India.