The collection is composed primarily of Granville Austin's research files on India following the republic's independence from British rule. The bulk of the collection comprises research material for Austin's second major work of political history, Working a Democratic Constitution, much of which was compiled between 1988 and 1999. The collection also includes some research material for Austin's first book, The Indian Constitution: Cornerstone of a Nation (1966).

Most of the research files are published articles or book excerpts that Austin collected and often annotated. Some of Austin's notes on his interviews and records of meetings, travel plans, names and addresses of sources, and drafts of his writings are included. Research material on India also includes original booklets and pamphlets from the Indian government and political parties, speech transcripts, news clippings from Indian newspapers, copies of correspondence and memoranda between leaders in India's government, and copies of oral history transcripts housed at the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library.

Topics covered by these sources include the Indian constitution, center-state relations in India, Indian politicians and political parties, U.S. foreign relations with India, cases tried before the Indian Supreme Court, and various other subjects related to India's political and legal systems. The research primarily covers the period in India's political history from 1946 to 1985.

The collection also documents Austin's work in between and following his two major books—his writing on the Middle East, specifically the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and peace process; his work at the State Department and other government agencies; his work in Beirut as press attaché with the U.S. Information Service; his writing on public policy in education; and his involvement with the organization ICWA and with the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.

The collection also contains both professional correspondence (including that related to his work with the U.S. State Department), personal correspondence, and appointment books, documenting some of Austin's job searches as well as his work, travel, and social life. Travel notebooks, datebooks, and account books, as well as published travel guides, maps and ephemera reflect some of Austin's research trips, including those to India. The collection contains some of Austin's early photographs and negatives, mostly from Vietnam, when he worked as a photographer and reporter for the U.S. Information Service.