|
'Seminars/Workshops/Symposia organised |
|
|
|
|
1. |
National Seminar on Indo-Us Relations (3-4 March, 1997) |
|
2. |
Symposium on 'Wild Life
Conservation' (15 March, 1997) |
|
3. |
A Symposium on 'Gandhism' (5 June, 1996) |
|
Workshop
on 'Medicinal Plants'
A workshop on 'Medicinal Plants' was organised on 6th May, 1997.
The workshop was sponsored by Ministry of Environment and Forest
Government of India, New Delhi under Environment Awareness Campaign
1996-97
The workshop was attended by teachers, panchayat raj
representatives and students. Subject
experts delivered their lectures on the various aspects of medicinal
plants, its utility and conservation.
The experts were Dr. R. C. Saxena, Professor P.S. Dubey, Shri R.N.
Bharadwaj and Dr. M.M. Bokadia. At this occasion an exhibition of plants
and posters was also organised. |
|
|
Training
Workshop on Panchayat Raj
CAPART Regional Centre, Western Zone, Ahmedabad, Ministry of Rural
and Employment, Government of India has sanctioned 4 training workshop for
the panchayat raj representatives of Ujjain district.
The first workshop was organised between 25 and 27 September, 1997.
The workshop was participated by Sarpanchas, Up-Sarpanchas and
Panchas of selected gram panchayats of Ujjain district.
The trainers were senior panchayat representatives, bureaucrats and
academicians. There were 9
sessions in all. In all sessions the issues were related to panchayat raj
act of the state; women representation in panchayats; women leadership;
grampanchayats and social development; financial states of panchayat and
local planning; gram sabha; working of gram panchayats; administration and
panchayat reservation and panchayats. Every lecture was followed by group
discussion. |
|
|
IDPAD
Meetings
The MPISSR organised the first national meeting of the Indian
Project Directors under the 4th Phase of 'Indo-Dutch Programme on
Alternatives in Development' between 3rd and 5th September 1997 at Ujjain.
The following meetings were also organised during this period: (i) Second
meeting of National Advisory Committee, and (ii) 37th meeting of Joint
Committee. The meetings were attended by leading social scientists of
India and the Netherlands.
The above meetings were organised at Ujjain as there has always
been a conscious effort on the part of IDPAD to organise its activities
beyond the limits of metropolitan cities. As a part of this effort the
Joint Committee on IDPAD at its meeting held in the Hague desired to
arrange these meetings at MPISSR, Ujjain. |
|
|
Problems
of Scavangers and Their Solutions
Scavangers, the most downtrodders of our society, numbering around
50, from Ujjain city and its neighbourhood, attended the three-day
workshop (28 - 29 September and 2 October, 1997) and placed before the
participants the social, psychological, educational and financial
difficulties which they faced in their every day life in society. They
ventilatd their heart-rendering feelings and experiences they came across
day after day before teh participants. It has beartening to note that they
themselves formulated/recommended reasonable and viable solutions for
their problems. The recommendations were sent by MPISSR to the Ministry of
Welfare, Govt. of India and other agencies that deal with the services of
the scavangers. The most exhilerating experience of the workshop was their
thanks giving remarks wherein they admitted that they as scavangers never
received such spontaneous, human and respectful treatment in their life
time as they received in this workshop. |
|
|
International
Congress on sustainable development of environment and wild life
With a view to engage the attention of international community
towards the sustainable development of environment to achieve wild life
conservation and human welfare an International Congress on
"Sustainable Development of Environment and Wild life was organised
by the MPISSR, Ujjain from 18the to 21st December, 1997. The Congress was
inaugurated by Dr. Karan Singh, Chairman, People's Commission on
Environment and Development, New Delhi. It was attended by the Ambassador
of Royal Nepalese Embassy, New Delhi; and representatives from the
Embassies of Islamic Republic of Iran; British High Commission; and High
Commission of South Africa, New Delhi.
In all total 19 Scientists sessions were held which were presided
over by eminent scientists, each one whom was an expert in his field.
About 170 abstracts of the papers from all over the country and abroad
were received which were published in first volume of the Journal entitled
"Environment Management Internationa".
The organizing Committee of the Congress constituted two
international awards Maharaj Martand Singh Award for Wild Life
Conservation; and Professor Amreshwar Awasthi Memorial Award for the Best
young Environmentalist below 30 years of age. These awards were presented
to renowned scientists by Dr. Karan Singh.
After serious deliberations for three days the Plenary Session was
held on 21st December 1997, which was chaired by Dr. S.M. Dwivedi,
Director General, Madhya Pradesh Council of Science and Technology, Govt.
of Madhya Pradesh, Bhopal and the Key-note address has delivered by Dr.
P.V. Dehadrai, Director General, (Fisheries), India Council for
Agricultural Research, New Delhi
The important recommendations of the Congress, in brief, are as
follows:
|
|
|
Seminar
on Plantation and its Conservation for Environmental Protection
A one day seminar was organised on the importance of plantation and
its role in environmental protection on 26 July, 1998. It was sponsored by
the Ministry of Environment and Forest, Government of India, New Delhi
under 'Environment Awareness Campaign 97-98. In the seminar 52
representatives took part actively. Among the representatives there were
teachers, students, panchayat representatives and representatives of
voluntary organisations. |
|
|
Workshop
on Challenges of AIDS and Tomorrow The workshop on Challenges of AIDS and Tomorrow was organised on 3 of August, 1998. In the workshop senior academicians and students from different backgrounds took part actively. Various aspects and dimensions of AIDS and their effect on social life were discussed in the workshop. A questionnaire was also administered at the end of the workshop to know the awareness of the invitees about various aspects of AIDS. It was found that most of the invitees were not clear about many of the basic concepts of this disease. |
|
|
Regional
Colloquia on Panchayat Raj
The Regional Colloquia on Panchayat Raj was organised from
September 26-28, 1998. It was attended by the representatives from the
states of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Rajasthan. Participants
from each state included four principal actors of PRIs viz., senior civil
servants, elected Panchayat raj representatives and MLAs/MPs along with
some academicians. The participants discussed issues that confronted them
in the operation of PR procedures and came out with reasonable and viable
recommendations necessary for smooth functioning of Panchayats. The
programme was supported by Task Force, on Panchayat Raj of Rajeev Gandhi
Foundation, New Delhi. |
|
|
Training
Workshop for Panchayat Raj Representatives
The Training Workshop for Panchayat Raj Representatives sponsored
by CAPART Regional Committee, Ahmedabad was organised at Gram Panchayat,
Jharda from 12 to 14 February 1999. The invitees in the workshop were
elected Sarpanch, Upsarpanch
and Panch of some of the gram panchayats of Mahidpur block. 49
representatives actively participated in the workshop among which 7 were
female representatives. The trainers were senior panchayat representatives, bureaucrats and academicians. There were 9 sessions in all. The issues taken up during the sessions were related to Panchayat Raj Act of the State; women representation is panchayats, women leadership; gram panchayats and social development; financial status of panchayats, local planning, gram sabha; working of gram panchayats; administration etc. |
|
|
Symposium
on One Year of Government at Centre
A Symposium was organised on One Year of Government at Centre on 19
March, 1999. It was organised in collaboration with Field Publicity
Division of Ministry of I & B. Dr. Mrs. Sudha Murti, Professor and
Head, Deptt. of Economics, Vikram University and Dr. Chain Singh Panwar,
Professor and Head, Deptt. of Political Science delivered lectures on this
occasion. |
|
|
Seminar
on Cleanliness of Water Resources: Importance and Necessity
A one day seminar was organised by the Institute on 31 March 1999.
It was organised under the National Environment Awareness Campaign of
Ministry of Environment and Forest, government of India. In the seminar it was highlighted that the decreasing level of water resources can pose serious threats to human existence. In this condition reuse of water has become mandatory. Cause of various water born diseases and their rectification was also discussed in the seminar. |
|
|
Training
Course on Research Methodology
Training Course on Research Methodology in Social Science was
organised between 14 and 27 June, 1999. The course was sponsored by ICSSR,
New Delhi. It was attended by College Teachers
and Research Scholars pursuing
their doctoral research. Resource persons were distinguished experts in
the area of social science research from various Indian Universities and
Research Institutions. |
|
|
Workshop
on 'Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act 1996' A Workshop on "Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996" was held between 12 and 14 November, 1999. The workshop was sponsored by Rajiv Gandhi Foundation, New Delhi and Ministry of Panchayat Raj and Rural Development, Government of Madhya Pradesh, Bhopal. It was organised at Jhabua (Madhya Pradesh). The workshop was attended by MP/MLAs, Panchayat Raj Representatives, representatives of NGOs, Senior Civil Servants and Academicians associated with the functioning of Panchayat Raj System. The workshop was organised to know the various aspects, including hindrances and bottlenecks, related to the actual functioning of Panchayat Raj System in the Scheduled Areas and to after suitable recommendations, based on the experiences of tribal PR Representatives of Jhabua district, for the betterment of Panchayat Raj System in Scheduled Areas. |
|
|
A National Seminar on Dr.
Ambedkar's Vision on Indian Society and Polity was organised on 3 & 4
April, 2000. The Seminar was sponsored by ICSSR, New Delhi. It was
attended by 50 participants from Universities and Research Institutes.
Sub-themes of the Seminar were- Issues related to Indian Society;
Ambedkar`s ideas about issues related to Indian Polity & Ambedkar as a
Social-Political Theorist. |
|
|
A Training Workshop on Panchayat
Raj System was held between 29 and 31 May, 2000.
The Workshop was sponsored by
CAPART, Western Zone, Ahmedabad, Ministry of Rural Development,
Government of India. The Workshop was attended by selected Panchayat Raj
Representatives of Gram Panchayat of Ujjain district. The trainers were
Senior Civil Servants and Academicians associated with the functioning of
Panchayat Raj System. The workshop was organised to provide information
regarding various aspects of Panchayat Raj including hindrances and
bottlenecks related to functioning of Panchayat Raj System and to provide
viable solutions. |
|
|
A Seminar on Cleanliness and
Conservation of Drinking Water Resources
was organised on 27 July, 2000. The Seminar was sponsored by
Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India, New Delhi under
Environment Awareness Campaign. It was attended by panchayat raj
representatives, teachers, students, members of voluntary organisations.
The main objective of the seminar was to create awareness about the
drinking water resources among the people at large. |
|
|
A National Seminar on Aspects of
Social Justice in India was organised between 15 and 17 September, 2000.
The Seminar was sponsored by ICSSR, New Delhi. It was attended by
distinguished participants from administration, Universities and Research
Institutes of seven states of the country. The seminar was organised with
an objective to have a fresh look on various aspects of social justice in
contemporary Indian situations. |
|
|
A National Seminar on Human Rights in India : Challenges and Prospects was organised on 30 and 31 March, 2001. It was attended by distinguished participants from NGOs, administration, Universities and Research Institutes of the seven states of the country. The seminar was organised with an objective to have a fresh look on various aspects of Human Rights in India. |
|
|
A 4 days Training Workshop on
"Access to Social Science Information in Internet Era" was
organised between 18 and 21 June, 2001. The Workshop was sponsored by
Indian Council of Social Science Research, New Delhi and Netherlands
Foundation for the Advancement of Tropical Research, The Hague. The
Workshop was attended by Social Scientists and Library and Information
Science Personnel from various universities and colleges. The Workshop was
organised to provide information regarding use of computers in the social
science, on-line searching and E-mail services, information about CD-ROM
Database and Internet. Sandeep Joshi coordinated the Workshop. |
|
|
A Symposium on Women Empowerment
was organised on 13 September, 2001, The speakers were Justice N. K. Jain,
Madhya Pradesh High Court, Indore, Shri K. P. Tiwari, Member, Madhya
Pradesh Human Rights Commission, Bhopal, Dr. Deepika Gupta, Vikram
University, Ujjain and Dr. Nalini Langar, Ujjain. |
|
|
A Symposium on Today's Global
Context and Human Rights was organised on Human Rights Day (10 December,
2001). The speakers were Shri Nanhe Singh, Member, Madhya Pradesh Human
Rights Commission, Shri R. Y. Durve, District Judge, Ujjain and Professor
Nalini Revadikar, Principal, Govt. Girls Post Graduate College, Ujjain. |
|
|
A three days Operational Training
Workshop for Gram Panchayat Officials was held between 20 & 22
December, 2001. It was organised under Rajiv Gandhi Foundation's Project -
Strengthening Panchayat Raj System - A Training Intervention. Selected
Gram Panchayat Representatives and Officials from Ratlam, Jhabua, Ujjain
and Dhar Districts attended the Workshop. The training was planned in such
a manner that the culture of silence among representatives at grassroots
level can be broken. Therefore, the Participatory Learning Methods (PLM)
were used to maximum possible extent. Besides this, lecture, group
discussion, OHP presentation et cetera were other methods used for
training. The training was concentrated on - General Orientation,
Politico-Legal Orientation, Role Orientation and Behavioural Aspects,
Development and Planning Orientation, Management Orientation, and Issues
of Governance at Gram Panchayat. Yatindra Singh was the Director of the
Training Programme. |
|
|
A Training Course on Research
Methodology in Social Sciences was held between 22 and 31 January, 2002.
The course was sponsored by ICSSR. The basic aim of this training course
was to create awareness and skills on various research methods with
special emphasis on research processes involved in quantitative and
qualitative methods. This course was designed with a view to integrating
problem identification, conceptualising the issues, deduction process for
moving towards testable hypotheses, operationalising concepts, data
organisation, inferential statistics, and interpretation of results. The
participants comprised of young scholars who have recently registered for
their doctoral research and college teachers. During the initial phase,
introductory lectures were arranged to give an overview of paradigmatic
shift in social science research. In the second phase, the participants
were introduced to survey research, data preparation, and preliminary
steps for quantitative methods. In the third phase of the course, the
participants were given project work in order to utilise the newly
acquired skills in developing research proposals. The Training Programme
was coordinated by Yatindra Singh. |
|
|
MPISSR is organizing a lecture series on Social Justice. Second phase of the series was inaugurated on 2nd February, 2002. Chief Guest of the programme was Dr. Karan Singh, a scholar of international repute. The programme was presided over by Dr. Satyanarayan Jatia, Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India. A large gathering of academician, bureaucrats, activists and teachers were benefited with the thought provoking addresses of the guests. |
|
|
Workshop
on Panchayat Raj System in Scheduled Areas of Madhya Pradesh and Tribal
Development A Workshop on Panchayat Raj System in Scheduled Areas of Madhya Pradesh and Tribal Development was held on 20 and 21 April, 2002. The Workshop was sponsored by ICSSR, New Delhi. The basic aim of this workshop was to know the grassroots reality of the Panchayat Raj system in Scheduled areas of Madhya Pradesh. The Workshop was attended by Panchayat representatives, NGO representatives, Government officials and Academicians. Yatindra Singh Sisodia coordinated the Workshop. |
|
|
Pt.
Dwarka Prasad Mishra Smriti Samaroh Madhya Pradesh Government is celebrating the birth centenary of Pt. Dwarka Prasad Mishra. Pt. Mishra was a great freedom fighter, senior journalist, able administrator and former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh. MPISSR in continuation of this celebration organized a Smriti Samaroh on 28 April, 2002. Chief Guest of the programme was Shri Arjun Singh, Member of Parliament (Rajya Sabha). The programme was presided over by Shri Digvijay Singh, Chief Minister, Madhya Pradesh. Shri Virendra Tiwari was special guest on this occassion. Pt. D.P. Mishra Chair has been established by MPISSR at this occasion. |
|
|
Symposium
on Shri Aurbindo and Vedas
A Symposium on Shri Aurbindo and Vedas was held on 15 June, 2002.
The Speakers were Professor Ramashray Roy, Madhubani (Bihar); Dr. Om
Prakash Pandey, Member Secretary, Maharshi Sandipani Rashtriya Ved Vidya
Pratishthan, Ujjan; Professor K.K. Chaturvedi, Director, Kalidas Akademi,
Ujjain and Dr. Mohan Gupt, Former Commissioner, Ujjain. The Programme was
presided over by Professor R.G. Gupta, Vice Chancellor, Vikram University,
Ujjain. |
|
|
National
Seminar on Protection and Promotion of Human Rights of Tribal People in
India
National Seminar on Protection and Promotion of Human Rights of
Tribal People in India was held on June 21-22, 2002. The Seminar was
sponsored by ICSSR, New Delhi. The primary objective of the seminar was to
understand the ground realities of the status of the rights enjoyed by the
tribal people and violations thereof. Believing that without a high level
of social-political awareness and adequate machinery for implementing the
rights, the whole schema of rights is illusory.
Special attention was focused in the seminar on the following
issues: Right to life, liberty, security of person; Bonded labour ans
child labour; Torture, inhuman and degrading treatment; Arbitrary arres,
detention and fair trial; Freedom of thought, conscience, religion and
assembly; Political participation; Social opportunities
in the form of access to educational, economic and health care;
Development and displacement; Land alienation and right to livelihood;
and, Poverty alleviation.
Professor Ramashray
Roy in his inaugural address
first suggested to locate the terms Tribal in
cultural rather historical domain for reconstructing the processes
of inequality. Roy was
critical of using tribal by
locating it in historical
domain. By doing so, argued Professor Roy,
we end up giving tribal a derogative connotation. The golden
concept of our terrestial heavens is constructed by technologically driven
economic growth. In this heavens, tribals are considered as backward and
in need of sanskritisation. It is unjustified to measure tribal society by
this yardstick. Taking cultural meaning of the term 'Tribal', asserted
Professor Roy, rights could so defined by key terms like freedom, equality
and efficacy. Rights in cultural domain, however become irrational for, it
is only interest that can be defined rationally. In protecting interest of
marginalised, state becomes a key institution. But excessive reliance on
state in protecting interest results in disequilibrium in state's role as
protester and its role as perpetuator of traditional power.
Given the inequality in life conditions of people, access to
societal resources turns out to be a race between unequal.
The discussions were organised in three plenary sessions that were attended by 25 social scientest.
The theme of first plenary session was land alienation and right to
livelihood; development and displacement; and, poverty alleviation. The
theme of the second plenary session was right to life, liberty, security
of person; torture, inhuman and degrading treatment; arbitrary
arrest/detention/exile and fair trial; and, bonded labour and child
labour. The theme of the third plenary session was social opportunities in
the form of access to educational, economic and health care; freedom of
thought, conscious, religion and assembly; and, political participation.
The Seminar was attended by NGO representatives, Government official and
Academinians. The Seminar was coordinated by Yatindra Singh Sisodia. |
|
|
Workshop
on Access to Social Science Information in Internet Era
A three days Workshop on Access to Social Science Information in
Internet Era was organised by the Institute in collaboration with National
Social Science Documentation Centre (NASSDOC) of ICSSR, New Delhi from
August 7-9, 2002. The Workshop was sponsored by ICSSR, New Delhi and the
Netherlands Foundation for the Advancement of Tropical Research, The Hague
(WOTRO). The objectives of the workshop were to
improve the awareness levels of the participants about Internet and
other developments in the field of information technology; to impart
skills for exploiting the resources on Internet pertaining to social
sciences; to provide exposure to key information sources in different
social science disciplines; and to provide hands-on training for various
Internet based services like sending and receiving e-mails, searching the
web, downloading the information from relevant sites and exposure to the
new alternatives. The
training was imparted through lectures, presentations, discussions and
demonstrations with focus on hands-on-experience to develop necessary
skills.
The training workshop encapsulated the following contents:
Advancement in IT; Introduction to social science information; Impact of
Internet on its users; Information Centres; CD ROM database; Search tools;
Major Websites. 30 Social Scientists, University Teachers, Research
Scholars, and professionals participated
in the workshop. All of them were of the view that they were greatly
benefited with the training in this emerging web of knowledge.
Workshop was coordinated by Sandeep Joshi. |
|
|
National
Seminar on Communal Harmony in India: Challenges and Prospects
National Seminar on Communal Harmony in India: Challenges and
Prospects was organised on September 26-28, 2002. The Seminar was
sponsored by National Commission for Communal Harmony, New Delhi. The
Seminar was organised in four technical sessions wherein seventeen papers
were read. These presentations raised for debate a number of issues whose
contents and constructs vary so much that putting them in a single
narrative is neither possible nor would do justice to individual
contributors. But what emerged clearly was the fact that communalism was a
multidimensional issue with varied meanings. In contemporary India, it has
been narrowed down to relationship between two communities of the Hindus
and Muslims.
The tone of the seminar was set by the keynote address of Professor
Yogesh Atal who had rooted his analysis on the emerging inter-community
relationship in a historical perspective.
Analysing the nation building through political development and
national integration, he argued that in the name of secularism we have
allowed primordial loyalties to get solidify. Consequently, instead of
multiple identities overwhelmingly constructing national identity,
we ended up creating insularity at various levels that chocked and
dysfunctionalised the national system.
The contributions were a mix of theoretical constructs at the one end and the meta-narratives and processes at the other. But in the middle, a thin middle though, were presentations on micro realities of variations and conflicts in the society. At the conceptual level it was argued that identification of religion as political ideology, despite common interests of different groups, led to communalisation of polity and society. India has been facing challenges to its pluralism from different directions: linguistic hegemony, regional imbalances, 'sons of soil' feelings, socio-cultural invasion of markets, caste and class conflicts and religious underpinnings of regionalism in states. The meta-narratives of communal violence and harmony were constructed around socio-political processes in pan-Indian setting. It was argued that communal violence has micro-macro linkages. At the national and regional levels the social relations may be harmonious but at the local level across time and space communal harmony may be disturbed. The micro narratives in the seminar were confined to Hindu-Sikh conflict of 1984 and the changing caste dynamics in Northern India. The demand for the separate state, it was argued, emerges mostly from the grounds of religious differences in the community. Yatindra Singh Sisodia coordinated the Seminar. |
|
|
Training
Workshop on Research Methodology in Social Sciences
Training Workshop on Research Methodology in Social Sciences was
organised on January 6-15, 2003. The Workshop was sponsored by ICSSR, New
Delhi. The aim of this training workshop was to create awareness and
skills among the participants about various research methods with
special emphasis on research processes involved in quantitative and
qualitative methods.
Unlike conventional methodology courses,
this course was designed in such a manner so that
the participants got an overall perspective relating to the problem
identification, conceptualising issues, deduction process for moving
towards testable hypotheses, operationalising concepts, data organisation,
inferential statistics, and interpretation of results.
Following this, the
participants were introduced to survey research, data preparation, and
preliminary steps for quantitative methods.
During the course, the participants were divided in three groups
and given group project work in order to utilise the newly acquired skills
in developing research proposals. 30
candidates participated in the programme.
Resource persons for this programme were drawn from MPISSR's
internal faculty as well as from external institutions. During the initial
phase of the course, introductory lectures were arranged to give an
overview of paradigmatic shift in social science research.
In the second phase, lectures on specific features of quantitative
and qualitative research processes were organised.
This was followed by a series of lectures on data generation, and
reliability and validity were discussed.
Lectures on statistical techniques covered sampling theory and
descriptive and inferential statistics.
Apart from these, a special lecture on Science of Documentation was
also arranged. Arranging two lectures on psephology was also an innovative
approach of the course. The
participants -- after identifying a research topic -- were asked to
develop a research proposal based on the conceptual framework participants
had developed through group discussions.
On the last day, each group presented the proposals prepared by
them. After each presentation, discussions took place on issues such as
scope of the study, objectives, conceptual frame and methods. Sandeep
Joshi coordinated the Workshop. |
|
|
Training
Workshop on Computer Applications in Social Sciences
Training Workshop on Computer Applications in Social Sciences was
organised on March 20-29, 2003. The Workshop was sponsored by ICSSR, New
Delhi. This kind of training workshop was held for the first time at the
MPISSR. The basic aim of the training programme was to impart skills of
using computer with special emphasis on analysing social science data.
The contents of the workshop were designed to integrating
quantitative research process with data organisation, using suitable
methods of data analysis with the aid of computer and interpretation of
results. In all, 28 candidates confirmed their participation of which
26 participants attended the course. The participants were divided into
group of three each and allotted one computer, so that they could spend
more time for practical and for experimenting with software to enhance
their learning.
The workshop was organised in three phases.
In the first phase, the participants were introduced to the role of
computers in Social Sciences, computer as a system, hardware selection and
different operating systems. In
the second phase, the participants were introduced to quantitative
research and data preparation; preliminary steps for SPSS and using windows based SPSS for data processing.
The emphasis in this phase was not on the statistical techniques
per se but on logic of arriving at acceptable conclusions and avoiding
misinterpretation of the results. The workshop emphasised both theoretical
as well as practical training. Building confidence among participants in
data processing on personal computers using Windows based SPSS was
specially taken care of. In
the third phase of the programme, the participants were given project work
in order to utilise the newly acquired skills in analysing and
interpreting a given set of data. In this phase of the workshop, two days were devoted to Project Work on a live data set. The participants analysed the given data based on their conceptual frame. The results were discussed with the resource faculty, and on the last day, participants presented the findings of their analyses. The participants were organised in four groups for prolonged discussions within the groups as well as with resource faculty to arrive at an agreed frame for understanding the variations in intensity of migration (number of family members and their duration of migration taken together) phenomenon across sample tribal households under shock. The discussions resulted in hypotheses with respect to factors affecting the migration and its intensity. After this discussion, data were processed and presentations made. D.C. Sah coordinated the Workshop. |
|
|
National
Seminar on Indian Democracy in the 21st Century: Agenda for Reforms
The National Seminar on Indian Democracy in the 21st Century:
Agenda for Reforms was organised on March 30-31, 2003. The Seminar was
aimed to understand the reform process
in the Indian democracy. The
issues like - social sector development and gender sensitive political
process; natural resources, environmental politics and community
governance; village democracy and political power; justice and equity and
social order in emerging political order in the country.
In fact, these are the issues on which needs a debate. With this
background in view, the MPISSR organised a two-day National Seminar. About 30 participants from various parts of the country consisting of jurists, social scientists, social-political activists and administrators actively participated and presented their papers in the seminar. Threadbare discussions on the following themes took place during the Seminar - Electoral Issues and Political Reforms, Social Sector Development & Politics of Exclusivism, Resources, Environmental Politics and Community, Grassroots Democracy and Political Power, Democracy and Constitutional/Legal Reforms. During the seminar two special lectures were also arranged. The special lectures were delivered by Hon'ble Justice Shri S.L. Kochar, Justice, M.P. High Court, Indore Bench, Indore and Shri Bhupal Singh, Collector, Ujjain. In all, four plenary sessions were held apart from the inaugural and valedictory sessions. One session was devoted to panel discussion. A draft blueprint for further political reforms aimed at achieving good, effective, efficient and more importantly citizen-friendly governance was prepared after great debate among the scholars. Sandeep Joshi coordinated the Seminar. |
|
|
National
Seminar on Decentralised Governance at Grassroots Level in India:
Achievements, Problems and Remedial Measures
Decentralisation is a much-debated issue in India and other
countries with federal system of governance. There are different arguments
for and against decentralisation. However, the arguments in favour of
decentralisation outweigh those against it because of the inherent
potential of democratisation in the decentralised federal system through
proper empowerment of people at the grassroots level. The Panchayat Raj
Institutions in India have been ordained to empower the people at the
three appropriate levels but the aim remained a distant dream till the
73rd Constitutional Amendment Act came into effect in 1993. Through a
system of reservation, participation of the weaker sections has also been
ensured. The three tiers have been empowered significantly to enable them
to discharge their duties properly and fulfil the expectations of the
people. Gram Sabhas have been bestowed with enormous power in the
decision-making process. The relationship between bureaucracy and
panchayat raj representatives is also a matter of concern for the smooth
functioning of panchayats. Financial status of panchayats is of utmost
importance from the point of view of autonomy of grassroots institutions.
Keeping in view the significance of this topical issue, MPISSR,
Ujjain organised a two-day National Seminar on Decentralised Governance at
Grassroots Level in India: Achievements, Problems and Remedial Measures,
to discuss threadbare the multifaceted issues related to panchayats in
India on 29-30 April, 2003. The seminar was sponsored by USEFI, Mumbai. It
was aimed to understand the macro and micro dynamics of decentralized
governance in India.
The primary objective of the seminar was to understand the ground
realities of the decentralised governance at grassroots level in India.
Although there are similarities in administrative decentralisation,
financial centralisation and bureaucratic control in functioning of PRIs
in different states, the pace and pattern of decentralisation varies
significantly across states. Believing that without a high level of
social-political awareness and adequate machinery for implementing the
training and capacity building initiatives, the whole schema of
self-governance will remain illusory. Efforts were made to investigate the
status of panchayats in the States of India.
Special attention was focused in the seminar on the following
issues: structure and functioning of PRIs; institutional mechanism and
grassroots decision-making; power structure, leadership and social
settings; marginalised sections (Women, Dalits and Tribals) and their
participation; decentralised planning and finance; capacity building
initiatives and their problems; NGOs, panchayats and governance.
About 20 participants from different parts of the country
participated and presented their papers in the seminar. The seminar began
with the keynote address by Dr. M. N. Buch, Chairman, NCHSE, Bhopal. He
spoke on the experiences of decentralised governance at grassroots level
and very categorically stressed the fact that unless we do not
decentralise financial and administrative power in its true spirit, the
whole process of decentralisation will remain illusory. The first plenary
session had three papers on the theme of structure and functioning of
PRIs. Second plenary session was devoted to the theme of marginalised
sections and their participation. The last plenary session of the first
day concentrated on decentralised planning and finance.
On the second day, the discussion started on the issue of NGOs,
panchayats and capacity building initiatives. The next session was
designed to address the issue of institutional mechanism and grassroots
decision-making. The last plenary session of the seminar was on power
structure, leadership and social settings. The papers presented were
discussed and debated thoroughly. The report presented in the last of the
seminar gave a brief detail of what is going on at grassroots level and
what needs to be done.
Yatindra Singh Sisodia coordinated the Seminar. |
|
|
Workshop
on Research Methods in Social Works
Workshop on Research Methods in Social Works was organised on June
26-30, 2003. The Workshop was sponsored by ICSSR, New Delhi. Social works
as a discipline has a rich research tradition.
But the methods used by the researchers in this faculty are
primarily qualitative. In order to appreciate the growing application of
quantitative methods, a five day training workshop on Research Methods was
organised by MPISSR at School of Social Works,
Indian Institute of Research and Development of Nomadic Tribes,
Satara. The workshop was designed with a view to integrating problem
identification, conceptualising issues through deductive logic,
operationalising concepts, process
of moving towards testable hypotheses, data organisation,
inferential statistics, data processing and interpretation of
results. In all 15 faculty members and research scholars of the School of
Social Works, Satara attended the workshop.
After introductory lectures -- organised to give an overview of
paradigmatic shift and a recognition of paradigmatic pluralism in social
research -- discussions centred around contemporary philosophical and
theoretical debate in social sciences. In the second phase, the
participants were introduced to quantitative social research, data
preparation and preliminary steps for quantitative methods. The next phase
was entirely devoted to quantitative techniques using computers. The
emphasis in this phase was not on performing statistical analysis per se
but on avoiding misinterpretation of the results. Starting from tabular
analysis and odd-ratio, the participants were introduced to some complex
techniques like ANOVA. In the last phase, the participants were given
project work in order to utilise the
newly acquired skills in quantitative research and analysis of a
given data set. The participants not only analysed the given data based on
their conceptual frame but also the results were discussed within the
group. Findings of the analysis were presented by the participants.
D.C. Sah was the Workshop Director. |
|
|
National
Seminar on A Decade of Panchayat Raj in India: Retrospect, Challenges and
Ways Ahead
Seminar on A Decade of Panchayat Raj in India was organised on
December 12-13, 2003. The Seminar was sponsored by ICSSR, New Delhi. There
are different arguments for and against decentralisation. However, the
arguments in favour of decentralisation outweigh those against it because
of the inherent potential of democratisation in the decentralised federal
system through proper empowerment of people at the grassroots level. The
Panchayat Raj Institutions in India have been ordained to empower the
people at the three appropriate levels but the aim had remained a distant
dream till the 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act came into effect in 1993.
Keeping in view the significance of the topical issue, MPISSR
organised this Seminar to discuss threadbare the multi-faceted issues
related to panchayats in India. It was aimed to understand the macro and
micro dynamics of decentralised governance in India. This was to find out
the achievements and problems of governance at the grassroots level.
Special attention was focused in the Seminar on the following issues:
structure and functioning of PRIs across states; institutional mechanism
and grassroots decision making; power structure, leadership and social
settings; marginalised section (Women, Dalits and Tribals) and their
participation; natural resource management and PRIs; decentralised
planning and finance; capacity building initiatives and their problems;
and NGOs, panchayats and governance. The seminar was coordinated by Yatindra Singh Sisodia. |
|
|
Workshop
on Communal Harmony in Multi-religious Society in India: Retrospect and
Ways Ahead
Workshop on Communal Harmony in Multi-religious Society in India
was organised on January 23 and 24, 2004. The Workshop was sponsored by
National Foundation for Communal Harmony, Ministry of Home Affairs, New
Delhi. In recent times there has been a spate of communal riots with
adverse consequences on harmonious living of different communities which
are divided in various categories viz., ethnic, linguistic, religious,
cultural and so on. The recurrence of communal differences is a telling
indicator of the fact that somehow the sense of community transcending the
separate existence of different peoples and the differences arising out of
differentiated socio-cultural referents of identity formation of these
peoples has come to be utterly lost. As a result, what has now become very
important for the self-identity of these peoples are their differentiated
socio-cultural referents of identity-formation, not their belonging to a
nation with commitment to the values of civic culture, national
integration, freedom, individual dignity, social justice and most
importantly a prosperous nation.
It is against this background that we posed a set of three
important questions impinging on the phenomenon of communal disharmony.
First, what are the factors, both immediate and mediate, that create a
situation in which the loss of the sense of harmony between communities
gradually leads to occasional outbursts of communal riots? Second, what
are the causes - social, economic, political, psychological, etc. that are
primarily responsible for the erosion of the sense of community
transcending all socio-cultural differences that characterise a
multi-ethnic, multi-religious country like India? Lastly, how can the lost
sense of community be restored? Influenced by this perspective on communal
harmony, MPISSR organised this Workshop to discuss issues relating to the
multi-religious society and communal harmony.
On the basis of discussion and various presentations the following
suggestions emerged: The first necessity is to locate the sources of
diversity, and also to find out the factors that continue to foster
separateness rather than unity. In
this context, the concepts of insider and outsider can be helpful.
Managing diversity does not mean erasing diversity. The challenge is to
locate bonds of unity in an ocean of diversity. For constructive and
positive development of secularism and to discourage the growth of
communalism, it is an imperative need that certain national prerequisites
are consciously cultivated within the society.
The need in the present context is to develop voter mobilisation on
the basis of party programmmes and policies and prevent in any form use of
caste and religion based voter mobilisation. It is a tall task indeed in
the face of ‘vote-bank’ politics, but without it there is no
alternative to make secularism work. Formation of religion based political
party is an anathema to secular society. Religion cannot be the basis for
any special privileges meant to alleviate poverty or provide accelerated
development of a section of the society. A secular democracy ought to
depend upon concept of majority, and minority only in a political sense,
as these can be altered by political education.
Peculiar secularists need to re-examine their role in damaging the
concept of secularism. In their enthusiasm to appease the religious
consciousness of minorities they see religion where it is irrelevant and
revoke it where it is unnecessary and even dangerous. Role of media is
theoretically vital in curbing communal violence but in the practical
sense it has yet to show its visibility in this context. It should cover
the people, ideas, bodies, cases, which significantly work to promote
communal harmony and curb communal tension in a repetitive manner. In the
name of objective coverage it should not cover events, views etc. which
may further contribute to communalism. Role of local influential
leadership is significant in combating communal tension. There are many
success stories on their part. In each district there should be at least
one “Communal Violence Combating Committee”.
The Workshop was coordinated by Yatindra Singh Sisodia. |
|
|
Workshop
on Computer Applications in Social Sciences
Workshop on Computer Applications in Social Sciences was organised
on February 17-26, 2004. The Workshop was sponsored by ICSSR, New Delhi.
This workshop was structured to impart skills of using computer for
analysing social science data. Emphasis was to unfold the logic of
quantitative research process. Consequently, its contents were designed
with a view to integrating quantitative research process,
conceptualisation, operationalising concepts and their measurements, with
data organisation, using methods of data analysis with the aid of
computers, and interpretation of results. The workshop was organised in
three phases. In the first phase, the course introduced the participants
to limits of computer usages, computer as a system and Windows based data
processing. The second phase introduced the participants to quantitative
research process and data preparation; preliminary steps for data
manipulations; and basic quantitative Methods using windows based
software. The emphasis in this phase was not on the statistical techniques
per se but on logic of arriving on acceptable conclusions by avoiding
misinterpretation of the results. The workshop emphasised both theoretical
as well as practical training. In the third phase of the programme, the
participants were given project work in order to utilise the newly
acquired skills in analysing and interpreting a given set of data.
Faculty for this programme was drawn from MPISSR’s internal
resources as well as from external institutions. In all, 28 candidates
confirmed their participation and all of them attended the course.
During the initial phase of the course, introductory lectures were
arranged to give an overview of computers and their usefulness in social
science research. These lectures were also aimed at explaining certain
basic hardware and software features of computer. Lectures were followed
by question-answers sessions and group discussions. In the next phase,
lectures on specific features of different operating systems including
WINDOWS were organised. The lectures on quantitative research,
codification of data were arranged next. Exercises were given for data
preparation to the participants. The exercises were prepared on the basis
of MPISSR’s own database and field experiences. Lectures on data
transfer, and data validation and verification techniques were also
arranged.
The next phase was entirely devoted to statistical techniques and
operation of SPSS. Lectures on statistical techniques covered statistical
inferences, and descriptive and inferential statistics.
The participants were divided into groups of three each and
allotted one computer, so that they could spend more time in their
practical(s), spend more in experimenting with software and enhance their
learning. The practicals were
supported by computer centre of MPISSR.
In the last phase of the workshop, two days were devoted to Project
Work on live data. The participants analysed the given set of data based
on yet to be determined conceptual framework. The results were discussed
with the resource faculty, and eventually the participants presented the
findings of their analysis. In this phase, the participants were organised
in four groups and prolonged discussions within the groups as well as with
resource faculty took place in order to arrive at an agreed frame for
understanding the variations in intensity of migration (number of family
members and their duration of migration taken together) phenomenon across
a sample of tribal households under shock. The discussions resulted in
formulation of hypotheses with respect to factors affecting the migration
and its intensity. After this discussion, data was processed, results
interpreted and a presentation design was agreed in each group. On the
last day, each group presented the findings of their analysis.
The Workshop was
coordinated by D.C. Sah. |
|
|
Training
Course on Research Methodology in Social Sciences
Training Course on Research Methodology in Social Sciences was
organised on March 16-25, 2004. The Course was sponsored by ICSSR, New
Delhi. The basic aim of this training course was to create awareness and
skills on various research methods with special emphasis on research
processes involved in quantitative and qualitative methods.
Unlike conventional methodology courses — which generally
emphasise statistical techniques — this course was designed with a view
to integrating problem identification, conceptualising the issues,
deduction process for moving towards testable hypotheses, operationalising
concepts, data organisation, inferential statistics, and interpretation of
results. The course also introduced the participants about the role of
computer in social sciences. Following this, the participants were
introduced to survey research, data preparation, and preliminary steps for
quantitative methods. The emphasis in this phase was not on the
statistical techniques per se but on avoiding misinterpretation of the
results.
The course emphasised both theoretical as well as practical
training. During the end of
the course, the participants were given project work in order to utilise
the newly acquired skills in developing research proposals.
During the initial phase of the course, introductory lectures were
arranged to give an overview of paradigmatic shift in social science
research. As recognition of paradigm pluralism has made the philosophical
and theoretical issues debatable, these lectures were also aimed at
introducing basic philosophical underpinning of the social science
research methods. Question-answers sessions and group discussions followed
the Lectures. In the second phase, lectures on specific features of
quantitative and qualitative research processes were organised. This was
followed by a series of lectures on data generation, and reliability and
validity were discussed.
The next phase was entirely devoted to statistical techniques.
Lectures on statistical techniques covered sampling theory, and
descriptive and inferential statistics. Methods like measures of central
tendency, dispersion, association, chi-square and t-test; Tabular
analysis; and correlation were introduced in the course. The Training Course was coordinated by Yatindra Singh Sisodia. |
|