Special economic zones in India continue to be seen as vehicles for social and economic development. The article describes how resident communities of an SEZ in Sri City, Andhra Pradesh, experienced a series of livelihood transformations that were mediated strongly by capabilities and aspirations. Divergent social and economic outcomes were created for respondents living in and navigating through a transition–transformation–aspiration continuum. The SEZ creation legitimised precarity by engendering casual, insecure, and unprotected labour relationships. The article suggests that SEZ performance be evaluated by metrics that incorporate an explicit focus on the enhancement of capabilities.
