Sentence:  What Tharoor dismisses as mere ‘positive by-products' Lalvani sees as central to the India the British left behind: the botanic gardens, the forest conservancies, the Archaeological Survey of India (brainchild of the otherwise <WSD>obdurate</WSD> Curzon) and the free press. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  Stubbornly persistent, generally in wrongdoing; refusing to reform or repent.