CONTRIBUTORS V ARAVINDAKSHAN teaches English at Sree Kerala Varma College, Trichur. A V BALU is an economist from Madras. SUBHASH C MALIK is fellow at the Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Simla. SHARAD PATIL is secretary of the Dhule District Committee of the Communist Party of India (Marxist)^ Maharashtra. P SIVANANDAN is research scholar at the Centre for Development Studies^ Trivandrum. Dr M J K THAVARAJ is professor of financial administration^ Indian Institute of Public Administration, New Delhi. FROM THE EDITOR MARX'S economic theories have been accepted over large part of the contemporary world as the most authoritative interpretation of capitalist society. The years after the Second World War have provided further support for the Leninist view that the imperialist epoch is the highest and the last stage of capitalism, that is, the epoch of its decline and fall. The Marxian Political Economy series which begins in this issue of the SOCIAL SCIENTIST analyzes the economic theories as Marx envisaged them It is hoped that the series will prove a source of stimulation for further study and investigation of a fascinating subject.