ISSN (Print) - 0012-9976 | ISSN (Online) - 2349-8846

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Himachal Pradesh: Appropriating Images from Village Life

Social and economic relations are often structured around long prevailing traditions or the 'culture' of a region. In a rapidly globalising world, such traditions are under threat as the momentum for greater homogenisation of culture builds up. This essay looks at three villages, diversely populated, whose lives are essentially built around traditions surrounding the local deity. It is such little traditions that reinforce subsistence among the population that are now increasingly under threat.

Scheduled Castes in Sikh Community

An understanding of the distinctive caste hierarchy in Sikhism and the new pattern of competing hierarchies, parallel to that of the Hindus, calls for insights into the dynamics of political power and economic relations both at the local and regional levels. This paper aims at exploring the trade-off between the doctrinal principles of Sikh religion and the ruling social and political interests in the context of changes in the society and economy of Punjab.

A Dalit's Caste

If the law does not just mean fixity of rules but also capacity to dispense justice, can patrilineality be a fair and sufficient ground for pronouncing judgment on a caste identity?

Education Guarantee Scheme and Primary Schooling in Madhya Pradesh

This paper presents the results of a field study of public schools in Betul and Dewas districts of Madhya Pradesh. The study aims to document the functioning of public schools, whether created by the Education Guarantee Scheme or not and to understand the consequences of the reforms on the links between education and rural society and on the development of private schools. While the results may not be representative of all of rural Madhya Pradesh, they provide an accurate picture of the situation in two areas atypical of the settings targeted by EGS, viz, adivasi villages and dalit hamlets.

Re-imagination of the State and Gujarat�s Electoral Verdict

The BJP's electoral victory in Gujarat last year has further cemented the grasp of the Hindu right in all aspects of the state's social and political domain. The rise of reactionary politics was itself an outgrowth of different socio-political movements that Gujarat was witness to since the 1970s. It is the absence of any progressive class/caste movement or a new social movement, this paper argues, that has made Gujarat susceptible to experiments with and sustenance of right wing ideologies, especially the politics of the Hindu right.

Sensitising Officials on Dalits and Reservations

Due to a lack of political will and sensitivity, implementation of the provisions for employment reservation for dalits has been far from satisfactory. In Tamil Nadu too, dalits have suffered from the lax approach of the state towards extending reservation benefits. If this situation has to be corrected several issues need to be urgently considered, including dalits' awareness of their rights, sensitising concerned groups, and above all investing in education so that dalits can reduce their dependence on the state in the quest for social equality.

Seventeen Blind (Wo)Men and an Elusive Elephant

Contemporary India – Transitions,
Peter Ronald deSouza (ed);
Sage Publications, New Delhi, 2000;
pp 388, Rs 475.

Short Story in Gujarati Dalit Literature

This essay outlines the historical circumstances that produced Gujarati dalit literature and locates the short story within that tradition. A 'content analysis' of select dalit short stories is provided to acquaint the reader with some of the dominant and not-so-dominant themes recurring in them. Drawing on dalit sociology, the author highlights inequalities and anomalies of representation as they criss-cross with literary narratives and also demonstrates how dealing with them will require a readjustment of the dalit aesthetic.

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