PRG meeting 27 June 2015, SOAS
The Politics of the Social and Beyond:
Hegemonies, Resistances, and Negotiations
B102, Brunei Gallery, SOAS, University of London, WC1H OXG
27 June 2015 at 10:00 AM
https://www.soas.ac.uk/visitors/location/maps/#RussellSquareCampusMap
Full Programme: PRG Programme June 2015
Samina Bashir (Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad)
The Communal Award in Colonial Punjab: Implications and Impacts for Sikhs
Michael Nijhawan (Department of Sociology, York University, Canada)
The Asylum Courts’ Radiating Effect on Religion
Nicola Mooney (University of the Fraser Valley, Canada)
Caste, Dominance, and the Question of Form
Kavita Bhanot (University of Manchester)
Unpacking Multiculturalism and Hybridity: ‘Self’ and ‘Other’ in ‘Third Generation’ British Asian Literature
Yaqoob Khan Bangash (Forman Christian College, Lahore)
Bahawalpur State and Pakistan, 1947-55: Accession and Integration
And book launch of A Princely Affair: The Accession and Integration of the Princely States of Pakistan, 1947-1955 (OUP, 2015)
Radhika Chopra (Department of Sociology, University of Delhi)
Seeing off the dead: Post mortem photographs in the Durbar Sahib
Silas Webb (Doctoral Candidate, Department of History, Syracuse University)
State Surveillance, Neighbourhood Formation and Diaspora Politics: The ‘Pedlar Fraternity’ in Glasgow, 1925-1949
Virinder S. Kalra (School of Social Sciences, University of Manchester)
Book Launch and reception, with musical performance and dialogue with Rajveer Singh, Hardeep Singh Siera and Amrit Kaur Lohia: Sacred and Secular Musics: A Postcolonial Approach (Bloomsbury Press, 2015)
New Paper on Social Democracy in India by Ronki Ram
Jagtar Singh Dhesi Annual Lecture 2014
As part of this annual lecture, a revised 2013 paper, CASTE, NEO-LIBERAL ECONOMIC REFORMS AND THE DECLINE OF SOCIAL DEMOCRACY IN INDIA has been sent in for circulation. The paper reports on the at times inchoate and at other times ancient relationship between wealth generation, distribution and the hierarchical societal dichotomy of India’s democracy. Ram reflects contemporaneously on the asymmetrical relationship between the copycat “buzzword” of “economic liberalisation” in the circles of academic social sciences and the more predictable failure of this corpus to ignite change in not just political sociology but also I would suggest local and national governance ideology. As Ram concludes, “It seems that market and caste have joined hands to pose a most serious challenge to the nascent institution of social democracy in India.” (pp. 25)
Below is an excerpt outlining the paper.
“This paper is divided into four parts. The first critically examines the institution of social democracy in India while distinguishing it from that of social democracy in Europe. In the second, complex but intricate relationships among caste, poverty and neo-liberal market economy are delineated at some length. This part is based on a premise that neo-liberal market economy in India does not only deepens poverty but also strengthen the asymmetrical structures of caste, which in turn entrench the already existing social exclusion in the society. Part third deals with the phenomenon of social democracy as articulated by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar and the ways it facilitated downtrodden to improve their living conditions. How the institution of free market economy scuttles the essence of nascent institution of social democracy in India and the new challenges it throws on the socially excluded sections of the society are also discussed at length. The fourth part draws on heavily on the implications of the neo-liberal economic reforms for the emancipatory project of social democracy in India and the birth of new contradictions that it gave rise to the disadvantage of Dalits.” (pp.4)
The full text can be found here, pol1-13 Ronki Ram.
First publication source, Punjab Journal of Politics, Amritsar Vol. XXXVII, Nos. 1-2, 2013
G.S Jandu
London
cfp: Relocating the Cultural linkages in South Asia: A Historical Perspective, 17-19 October 2014, Punjabi University, Patiala
The Department of History, Punjabi University, Patiala, Punjab (India) will hold its 2nd South Asian History Conference on 17-19 October 2014 at the University campus. This three day conference aims to bring together historians, academicians, research scholars working on the countries of South Asia viz. India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Maldives, Bhutan, Sri Lanka,Afghanistan and Myanmar to cover the gap in South Asian historical studies.
South Asia includes some of the most ancient countries that have made a unique contribution to world culture. These countries have strong regional affinities in as much as they share a common cultural heritage which is not totally indigenous but a product of continuous synthesis between elements, both external and internal. Peoples of South Asia belong to different races, practise different religions, speak different languages and yet share a common civilizational heritage which Arnold Toynbee calls as ‘ Indic’, No country of South Asia can comprehend its own culture adequately without taking into congnisance the cultural traditions of the region as a whole.
The aim of the conference is to historically examine the multi-centricity of the South Asian culture and demonstrate the commonness, inner dynamics and nature and extent of interaction amongst the countries of South Asia during different phases of history. It is hoped that the deliberations of scholars at the conference will rediscover the cultural linkages to foster co-operation, harmony, peace and mutuality in contemporary South Asia.
Suggested Themes: Themes might include but need not be limited to the following:
● Language and Literature ● Art and Architecture ● Philosophy, Religious beliefs and Practices ● Socio-Cultural institutions ● Socio- Religious reform movements ● Caste, Race, Gender and cultural traditions ● Science, Technology and culture ● Climate, Ecology, Environment and culture ● Cultural Adaptation and synthesis ● Search for unity in diversity
This being the centenary year of World War I , one section will be devoted to the significance of this event in world history with special reference to South Asia.
Call for Papers
The soft copy of the abstract with a maximum of 500 words, double spaced (in Times New Roman font size 12) written in English should be sent for acceptance at sahcpta@gmail.com on or before 10 August 2014. After scrutiny of the abstracts the authors will be notified regarding the acceptance of papers on 25 August 2014. The deadline for final paper submission is 25 September 2014. The authors should limit their papers within 15-20 pages
Registration
All participations are required to register. The scholars are required to register before or on 1 October 2014. The registration fees (which includes accommodation and food for three days) for Indian scholars is rupees 1000/-, for scholars of other countries is 50 USD. The registration fees for Indian research students is rupees 750/-, for research students of other countries is 30 USD.
Mode of Payment
The details regarding mode of payment will be conveyed shortly.
Accommodation
The organisers will provide accommodation to the paper presenters only.
Publication
The proceedings of the conference will be duly published in the form of a book from a leading publisher.
Other Information
Further details about the programme and sessions of the conference will be duly intimated.
Contact Information Send in your queries at hist.conf2013@gmail.com or contact us at: +91-175-3046192 +91-175-3046193
1. Dr. Jaspal Kaur Dhanju Professor and Head Department of History Mob: +91-9915583843
2. Dr. Kulbir Singh Dhillon Professor and Formerly Head, Dean Students Welfare Department of History Mob: +91-9417385002
Caste in Britain: New Reports from The Equality and Human Rights Commission
Please see a link below to new publications with regards to the April 2013 enactment of the Statutory Prohibition of Caste Discrimination into British Equality Law.
The report has kindly been sent to us by Meena Dhanda who has worked on the report and can be contacted on M.Dhanda@wlv.ac.uk.
For information on postings you can contact:
gorbyjandu@hotmail.com
British Sikh Report 2013 – A Review
In the summer of 2013, the first ever British Sikh Report was published using both the 2011 national census in England and Wales and an organic survey that attracted over 600 respondents – one of the most significant of its kind. Here a PRG website contributor offers their review as the annualised exercise begins for the next version in 2014. Please click on the link below for the review article.
This post’s author can be contacted on: gorby.jandu@gmail.com
How caste matters and doesn’t matter by Surinder S. Jodhka
Punjabi Subaltern Summit – 2012
Sunday, January 15, 2012, 11:00 AM to 05:00 PM
ICSSR Seminar Hall, Panjab University, Chandigarh
Agenda
The Punjabi Subaltern Summit is a one-of-its-kind conclave where politicians, thinkers, change agents, writers, artists, academicians and media professionals will try to find a common ground on the pressing problems that plague our state. An attempt to break free from the parochial structures that have suppressed the social narrative on lesser-known issues like caste, religion, representation and federalism. By harnessing the spirit and dialect of new media, it strives to infuse the intellectual mainstream with a sense of purpose and direction, bringing back the long-lost ebullience into its ethos. This non-partisan forum is a bold attempt reclaim the mantle of Punjabiyat.
One of its immediate aims is to influence the pre-poll debate in Punjab. We plan to organize this event every year in a bigger and better format, expecting that it will become a fixture or an annual pilgrimage for the regional intelligentsia.
For detailed information on the agenda and issues to be discussed, please visit: http://www.subaltern.in.
Waiting for Spring by Nirupama Dutt
The emergence of a Dalit identity in East Punjab is a recent development, spurred in part by the failure of Sikhism to abandon caste discrimination as it initially averred to do.
For us trees do not bear fruits
For us flowers do not bloom
For us there is no Spring
For us there is no Revolution …
– Lal Singh Dil –
These are lines from the last poem of Lal Singh Dil, hailed as the foremost revolutionary poet of Punjab. He passed away in 2007. The despondent note of the poem is both surprising and telling, for a poet who had once declared that the song and dance in his heart would not die, no matter how dire the circumstance. It took Dil a lifetime to discover this sad yet provocative truth, against the backdrop of the complexities of caste in Punjab. Yet centuries before Dil’s birth, the same frustration with caste was intricately linked to the emergence of the Sikh religion.
Read full article: Waiting for Spring. Punjabi Dalit Poets. Nirupama Dutt. Apr 10
Dalit Chetna : Sarot te Saruup by Ronki Ram
Ronki Ram’s Dalit Chetna : Sarot te Saruup (Dalit Consciousness: Sources and Form) in Punjabi is out. This book is a detailed account of how Dalit consciousness emerged in Punjab, what turns it has taken over the last nine decades since the beginning of glorious Ad Dharm movement led by Babu Mangu Ram Mugowal and the rise of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar movement in Punjab spearheaded by Seth Kishan Dass of Bootan Mandi. The Book also provides an exhaustive account of some of the pioneer Dalit poets, prose writers and Dalit autobiographies as well as activists. Dalit Deras and the question of emerging Dalit identity figures prominantly in this field study based book in Punjabi.
The book is published by Lokgeet Parkashan, S.C.O. 26-27, Sector 34 A, Chandigarh-160022 (India) Ph. +911725077427, 5077428 e-mail and is very reasonably priced Rs. 200. Total Pages: 264.
Seminar on Religion and Social Identity in Punjab
International Seminar on Religion and Social Identity In Punjab
Organised by Department of Sociology, Panjab University, Chandigarh in collaboration with the University of Manchester, UK
FEBRUARY 18-19, 2010
Venue: ICSSR, Panjab University, Chandigarh, India
See attached programme: Punjab University Programme
PRG Meeting – 31 October 2009
The next Punjab Research Group meeting will take place on 31st October 2009 at De Montfort University, Leicester.
Speakers include:
Kathryn Lum, (European University Institute, Florence) ‘A community at a crossroads: a case study of the Ravidassia Sangat in Barcelona’
Navtej Purewal, (University of Manchester) ‘Articulations of Caste through Religion: Codes of Hegemony and Invisibility in West Punjab’
In the past few months, the issue of caste in Punjab has been making the headlines for a number of reasons. Therefore, it seems that this would be a good opportunity to discuss the issue of caste in contemporary/historical Punjab(s). If you are currently working in this area and would like to share your research findings with the PRG then please contact me. Please could you also circulate this note to anyone else you think might be interested in presenting a paper.
If you would like to attend please email me: pvirdee@dmu.ac.uk
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