TheoriginofsociologyandsocialanthropologyinIndiacanbetracedto

thedayswhentheBritishofficialsrealizedtheneedtounderstandthe
nativesocietyanditscultureintheinterestofsmoothadministration.
However,itwasonlyduringthetwentiesofthelastcenturythatsteps
weretakentointroducesociologyandsocialanthropologyasacademic
disciplinesinIndianuniversities.
Thepopularitythatthesesubjectsenjoytodayandtheir
professionalizationis,however,apostindependencephenomenon.
Attemptshavebeenmadebyscholarsfromtimetotimetooutlinethe
historicaldevelopments,tohighlightthesalienttrendsandtoidentifythe
crucialproblemsofthesesubjects.
Sociologyandsocial/culturalanthropologyarecognatedisciplinesandare
infactindissoluble.However,thetwodisciplineshaveexistedand
functionedinacompartmentalizedmannerintheEuropeancontinentas
wellasintheUnitedStates.Thisseparationbearstheindelibleimpressof
westerncolonialismandEurocentrism.
However,Indiansociologistsandanthropologistshavemadeanattempt
tointegratesociologyandanthropologyinresearch,teachingand
recruitment.Theyhavemadeaprominentcontributiontothe
developmentofindigenousstudiesofIndiansocietyandhavesetan
enviableexamplebeforetheAsianandAfricanscholars.
AnothersignificantcontributionofIndiansociologyandsocial/cultural
anthropologyliesintheirendeavortosynthesizethetextandthecontext.
Thissynthesisbetweenthetextandthecontexthasprovidedvaluable
insightsintothedialecticofcontinuityandchangetocontemporary
Indiansociety(Momin,1997).
Itisdifficulttounderstandtheoriginanddevelopmentofsociologyin
Indiawithoutreferencetoitscolonialhistory.Bythesecondhalfofthe

19thcentury,thecolonialstateinIndiawasabouttoundergoseveral
majortransformations.
Land,andtherevenueandauthoritythataccruedfromtherelationship
betweenitandthestate,hadbeenfundamentaltotheformationofthe
earlycolonialstate,eclipsingtheformationofCompanyruleinthat
combinationofformalandprivatetradethatitselfmarkedtheformidable
statelikefunctionsofthecountry.
Theimportanteventthattookplacewastherevoltof1857,whichshowed
thattheBritishdidnothaveanyideaaboutfolkwaysandcustomsofthe
largemassesofpeople.IftheyhadknowledgeaboutIndiansociety,the
rebellionof1857wouldnothavetakenplace.Thismeantthatanew
sciencehadtocometounderstandtherootsofIndiansociety.The
aftermathof1857gaverisetoethnographicstudies.Itwaswiththeriseof
ethnography,anthropologyandsociologywhichbegantoprovide
empiricaldataofthecolonialrule.
HerbertRisleywasthepioneerofethnographicstudiesinIndia.He
enteredtheIndianCivilServicesin1857withapostinginBengal.Itwas
inhisbookCasteandTribesofBengal(1891)thatRisleydiscussed
Brahminicalsociology,talkedaboutethnographyofthecastesalongwith
othersthattheimportanceofcastewasbroughttocolonialrulers.
NicholasDirks{InPostColonialPassages,SourabhDube,Oxford,2004)
observes:
Risleysfinalethnographiccontributiontocolonialknowledgethus
ritualedthedivinenessofcaste,aswellasitsfundamentalcompati
bility
withpoliticsonlyinthetworegistersofancientIndianmonarchyor
modernBritainsbenevolentdespotism.
Thus,theethnographicstudiescameintoprominenceundertheinfluence
ofRisley.HearguedthattoruleIndiacasteshouldbediscouraged.This

wholeperiodof19thcenturygaverisetoethnographicstudies,i.e.,studies
ofcaste,religion,rituals,customs,whichprovidedafoundationtocolonial
ruleforestablishingdominanceoverIndia.Itisinthiscontextthatthe
developmentofsociologyinIndiahastobeanalysed.
SociologyandsocialanthropologydevelopedinIndiainthecolonial
interestsandintellectualcuriosityofthewesternscholarsontheone
hand,andthereactionsoftheIndianscholarsontheother.British
administratorshadtoacquiretheknowledgeofcustoms,mannersand
institutionsoftheirsubjects.
Christianmissionarieswereinterestedinunderstandinglocallanguages,
folkloreandculturetocarryouttheiractivities.Theseoverlapping
interestsledtoaseriesoftribal,caste,villageandreligiouscommunity
studiesandethnologicalandlinguisticsurveys.Anothersourceofinterest
inIndianstudieswasmoreintellectual.
WhilesomewesternscholarswereattractedbytheSanskritlanguage,
VedicandAryancivilization,otherswereattractedbythenatureofits
ancientpoliticaleconomy,lawandreligion.BeginningfromWilliam
Jones,MaxMullerandothers,therewasagrowthofIndologicalstudies.
KarlMarxandFredericEngelswereattractedbythenatureoforiental
dispositioninIndiatobuildtheirtheoryofevolutionofcapitalism.
Similarly,HenryMainewasinterestedintheHindulegalsystemand
villagecommunitiestoformulatethetheoryofstatustocontract.Again,
MaxWebergotinterestedinHinduismandotherorientalreligionsinthe
contextofdevelopingthetheory,namely,thespiritofcapitalismandthe
principleofrationalitydevelopedonlyintheWest.
Thus,Indiansocietyandculturebecamethetestinggroundofvarious
theories,andafieldtostudysuchproblemsasgrowthoftown,poverty,
religion,landtenure,villagesocialorganizationandothernativesocial

institutions.Allthesediverseinterestsacademic,missionary,
administrativeandpoliticalarereflectedinteachingofsociology.
AccordingtoSrinivasandPanini(1973:181),thegrowthofthe
twodisciplinesinIndiafallsintothreephases:
Thefirst,coveringtheperiodbetween17731900AD,whentheir
foundationswerelaid
Thesecond,19011950AD,whentheybecomeprofession
alized
andfinally,thepostindependenceyears,whenacomplexofforces,
includingtheundertakingofplanneddevelopmentbythegovernment,the
increasedexposureofIndianscholarstotheworkoftheirforeign
colleagues,andtheavailabilityoffunds,resultedinconsiderableresearch
activity.
Here,threemajorphasesintheintrospectioninsociology,whichhave
beendiscussedbyRege(1997)inherthematicpaperonSociologyinPost
IndependentIndia,mayalsobementioned.Phaseoneischaracterizedby
theinterrogationsofthecolonialimpactonthedisciplineandnationalist
responsestothesame,phasesecondismarkedbyexplo
rationsintothe
initiativenatureofthetheoreticalparadigmsofthedisciplineanddebates
onstrategiesofindigenization.
Thisphasealsosawcriticalreflectionsonthedeductivepositivisticbaseof
sociologyandtheneedforMarxistparadigmsandthemorerecentphase
ofpoststructuralism,feministandpostmodernexplorationsofthe
disciplineandthefield.Lakshmannaalso(1974:1)triestotracethe
developmentofsociologyinthreedistinctivephases.Thefirstphase
correspondstotheperiod19171946,whilethesecondandthethirdto
19471966and1967onwardsrespectively.
SociologyinthePreIndependencePeriod:

Asisclearbynowthatsociologyhaditsformalbeginningin1917at
CalcuttaUniversityowingtotheactiveinterestandeffortsofB.N.Seal.
Lateron,thesubjectwashandledbyRadhakamalMukerjeeandB.N.
Sarkar.However,sociologycouldnotmakeanyheadwayinitsbirthplace
atCalcutta.
Ontheotherhand,anthropologyflourishedinCalcuttawiththe
establishmentofadepartmentandlaterontheAnthropologicalSurveyof
India(ASI).Thus,sociologydrewablankintheeasternpartsofthe
country.But,thestoryhadbeendifferentinBombay.BombayUniversity
startedteachingofsociologybyagrantofGovernmentofIndiain1914.
TheDepartmentofSociologywasestablishedin1919withPatrickGeddes
atthehelmofaffair.HewasjoinedbyG.S.GhuryeandN.A.Toothi.This
wasindeedaconcretestepinthegrowthofsociologyinIndia.Another
centreofinfluenceinsociologicaltheoryandresearchwasatLucknow
thatitintroducedsociologyintheDepartmentofEconomicsand
Sociologyin1921withRadhakamalMukerjeeasitshead.
Later,hewasablyassistedbyD.P.MukerjiandD.N.Majumdar.InSouth
India,sociologymadeitsappearanceatMysoreUniversitybytheefforts
ofB.N.SealandA.F.Wadiain1928.Inthesameyearsociologywas
introducedinOsmaniaUniversityattheundergraduatelevel.JafarHasan
joinedthedepartmentafterhecompletedhistraininginGermany.
Anotheruniversitythatstartedteachingofsociologyandsocial
anthropologybefore1947wasPoonainthelate1930swithIrawatiKarve
asthehead.Between1917and1946,thedevelopmentofthedisciplinewas
unevenandinanycasenotveryencouraging.Duringthisperiod,Bombay
alonewasthemaincentreofactivityinsociology.Bombayattempteda
synthesisbetweentheIndologicalandethnologicaltrendsandthus
initiatedadistinctivelineofdepartments.

Duringthisperiod,Bombayproducedmanyscholarswhorichly
contributedtothepromotionofsociologicalstudiesandresearchinthe
country.K.M.Kapadia,IrawatiKarve,S.V.Karandikar,M.N.Srinivas,
A.R.Desai,I.P.Desai,M.S.GoreandY.B.Damlearesomeofthe
outstandingscholarswhoshapedthedestinyofthediscipline.The
productsofthisuniversityslowlydiffusedduringthisperiodinthe
hinterlanduniversitiesandhelpedintheestablishmentofthe
departmentsofsociology.
Certaintrendsofdevelopmentofsociologymaybeidentifiedinthepre
independenceperiod.Sociologywastaughtalongwitheconomics,bothin
BombayandLucknow.However,inCalcutta,itwastaughtalongwith
anthropology,andinMysoreitwaspartofsocialphilosophy.
Teachershadfreedomtodesignthecourseaccordingtotheirinterests.No
rigiddistinctionwasmadebetweensociologyontheonehandandsocial
psychology,socialphilosophy,socialanthropology,socialwork,andother
socialsciencessuchaseconomicsandhistory,ontheother.Thecourses
includedsuchtopicsassocialbiology,socialproblems(suchascrime,
prostitutionandbeggary),socialpsychology,civilizationandprehistory.
Theycoveredtribal,ruralandurbansituations.
Atthegeneraltheoreticallevel,onecoulddiscerntheinfluenceofthe
Britishsocialanthropologicaltraditionswithemphasisondiffusionism
andfunctionalism.InthecaseofteachingofIndiansocialinstitutionsthe
orientationshowedmoreIndologicalemphasisontheonehandanda
concernforthesocialpathologicalproblemsandethnologicaldescription
ontheother.Strongscien
tificempiricaltraditionshadnotemergedbefore
independence.Sociologywasconsideredamixedbagwithoutaproper
identityofitsown.
SociologyinthePostIndependencePeriod:
Thenextphase,asmentionedbyLakshmanna(1974:45),inthegrowthof

thesubject,correspondstotheperiodbetweentheattainmentof
independenceandtheacceptanceoftheregionallanguageasthemedium
ofinstructioninmoststatesofthecountry.Towardstheendofthis
period,wealsowitnessedtheinterestonthepartoftheCentral
Governmenttopromotesocialscienceresearchthroughaformal
organizationestablishedforthepurpose.
Thisphasealoneexperiencedtremendousamountofinteractionwithin
theprofessionastwoparallelorganizationsstartedfunctioningforthe
promotionoftheprofession.InBombay,IndianSociologicalSocietywas
establishedandSociologicalBulletinwasissuedastheofficialorganofthe
society.Thishelpedtoalargeextentincreatingaforumforpublicationof
sociologicalliterature.
Lucknowschool,ontheotherhand,startedtheAllIndiaAnnual
SociologicalConferenceforprofessionalinteraction.Lakshmanna
identifiesthattheresearcheffortsmainlyprogressonthreelines.First,
therewaslargescaledoctoralresearchintheuniversity.Second,the
growingneedsoftheplannersandadminis
tratorsontheonehandand
therealizationofincreasingimportanceofsociologicalthinkingand
researchintheplanningprocessontheother,openedupopportunitiesfor
researchprojects.
Third,duringthisperiod,thegrowingimportanceofsocialscience
researchalsoresultedintheestablishmentofresearchinstitutes.The
developmentofresearchactivityalsomeanttheenlargementofthe
employmentopportunitiesatalllevels.
Correspondingly,therewasalsoanincreaseinthenumberofuniversities
andcollegedepartments.Thisperiodalsonoticedconsiderablevertical
andhorizontalmobilityintheprofession.Teachingofsociologygotwell
establishedinthefifties.Thisperiodreflectedthreethingsasmarkedby
Rao(1982).

First,sociologyachievedgreateracademicstatus.Notonlymanymore
universitiesandcollegesbegantoteachatthepostgraduateandgraduate
levelsbutthedisciplineitselfbecamemorefocusedintheoreticalorien

tationandhighlydiversifiedinitsspecialization.Secondly,sociology
establisheditsidentityasdisciplinebyseparatingitselffrompsychology,
anthropology,socialphilosophyandsocialwork.
Although,insomeuniversities,stillsocialpathologyandsocialpsychology
aretaughtasapartofsociologycourses.Inmanyothers,ahighly
diversifiedcurriculumstructureinpropersociologyexistsincludingsuch
specializationasruralandurbansociology,sociologyofkinship,sociology
ofreligion,sociologyofstratification,sociologyofeducation,political
sociology,medicalsociology,socialdemographyandsociologyof
economicdevel
opment.
Thirdly,diversificationfollowedthelinesofextensionofsociological
approachtodifferentareasofsociallife.Itwasrelatedtothegrowing
needsofdevelopmentinindependentIndia.Coloniallegacybecamea
thingofthepastanddemocraticprocesseswereintroducedatalllevels.
Sociologistssoonbecomesensitivetoproblemsofdevelopmentinthe
contextsoftribal,ruralandurbansituations.Problemsofrural
development,industrialization,andexpansionofeducation,controlof
population,newpoliticalprocessesandinstitutions,socialandpolitical
movementsattractedtheirareasofsociallife.Theystartedconducting
empiricalresearchwithaviewtounderstandthestructure,dynamicsand
problemsofdevelopment.Alltheseconcernshadafeedbackonthe
teachingofsociologyatvariouslevels.
Anotherimportantchangeintheteachingofsociology,whichcameafter
independence,hasbeeninregardtotheexternalintel
lectualinfluences.
Beforeindependencetheteachingofsociologyandsocialanthropology
wasmainly,ifnotwholly,influencedbythethencurrenttheoretical

concernsinGreatBritain.
Wehavealreadymentionedtheinfluenceofdiffusionismand
functionalism(ofMalinowski).Thesyllabialsoreflectedtraditionsof
ethnology,evolutionismandIndology.Afterindependence,however,
Americansociologicaltraditionshadamajorimpactontheteachingof
sociologyinIndia.Thisisevidentfromsuchtopicsinthesyllabias
structuralfunctionaltheory(ParsonsandMerton)andresearch
methodology.
BesidestheAmerican,theFrench,GermanandMarxianintellectual
influencesalsohadanimpact.Inthemidstofsuchdiverseintellectual
stimuli,Indiansociologistsbegantocriticize,modifyanddevelopdiverse
sociologicalapproachesinthestudyofIndiansocietyandculture,and
thesearereflectedinthecourseofstudyofdifferentuniversities.
DevelopmentsintheSeventies:
Therehavebeenafewreviewsofdevelopmentsinsociologyandsocial
anthropologysinceearliertimestill1970sandonwards(see,forexample,
thecollectionofessaysinUnnithan,Singhetal.,1965ICSSR,1971,1974,
1985Rao,1974Mukherjee,1977Mukherjee,1979Singh,1986UGC,
1978,1979,1982Lele,1981OommenandMukherjee,1986Dhanagare,
1993Singhi,1996).Ofthese,RamKrishanMukherjeesreviewhasbeen
moreexhaustiveandsubstantialforthedisciplineasawhole.
TheICSSRtrendreportscoveredindetailthedevelopmentsin
eachofspecializations.Rao(1982:1623)reviewedthe
developmentsintheseventiesunderthreeheads:
(i)areasoftheinterestsandspecializationwhichgotcrystallized
(ii)areasofinterestwhichhasdevelopedbutnotgotcrystallizedand

(iii)emergenceofnewapproachesintheestab
lishedareas.
Theseventiesofthelastcenturysawafurthercontinueddiver
sificationof
interestsandspecializationinsubstantiveareasofresearchandteaching
inthesixties.While,earlier,villagecommunitystudiesdominated
researches,buttheinterestsintheareasofagrarianrelations,land
reforms,peasants,agriculturallabourers,andscheduledcastesandtribes
begantoattractgreaterattentionofsociologistsandsocialanthropologists
intheseventies.
TheproblemsofruralsocietywereformulatedintheMarxianframework
ofanalysisemphasizingconflictsandcontradictions.Theotherareasof
intereststhatwerecrystallizedintheseventieswereindustrialsociology,
urbansociologyandsocialstratification.Secondly,thereweresixareasof
interestthatstartedgettingsomeattentionintheseventiesbuthavenot
reallygotoffthemark.
Thesewere:sociologyofprofession,sociologyoforganization,medical
sociology,socialdemographyandstudiesonwomen,MuslimsandHindu
Muslimrelations.Thirdly,itissignificanttonotethattheseventiessaw
newapproachesandfociinthelargeareasofresearchandteachingsuch
ascaste,kinship,religion,politicsandtribalstudies.
PerspectivesintheEighties:
Manyoftheareasofspecializationmentionedintheforegoingaccount,no
doubt,gainedstrengthintheeightiesofthelastcentury.Someareasof
enquiry,suchassocialdemographyandmedicalsociology,were
crystallized.Afewotherareasofinvestigationopenedupandmore
researchintheestablishedareaswasundertakenonnewlines.Someof
thenewareashavebeenintroduced.
Thesewere:sociologyofdeviance,sociologyofknowledge,sociologyof

scienceandtechnology,andhistoricalsociology.Rao(1982)anticipated
theseareasforresearchintheeighties.Therewasanindicationthat
interestinsociologyofscienceandtechnologymightgetmorewidespread
(Uberoi,1978Vishwanathan,1977).Thegrowinginterestinhistorical
sociologywasreflectedinFox(1977).
Damle(1982:5758)anticipatedthetaskofsociologyfortheeightiesin
India,whichwastoanalyse(1)thetransformationofIndiansociety,(2)
thelimitsofsuchtransfor
mation,and(3)theimpactoftheselimitsto
suchtransformation,whichwasreflectedeitherinthefrustrationsofthe
effortstosurmounttheobstacles.Inthiscontext,newideologiesand
protestmovementsacquiredaspecialsignificance.
Inmanyofthenewlydevelopingbranchesofsociology,scholarshave
madenotablebutisolatedcontributions.Therehasbeenthinkingthat
researchshouldbepromotedintheninetiesintheareasofsociologyof
planninganddevelopment,sociologyofprofessions,sociologyof
organizations,socialdimensionsofpoverty,lawandsocialchange,
sociologyofnationalintegrationetc.
ImperativesintheNineties:
Thecountryduringtheninetiesofthelastcenturywaspassingthrough
radicalpolitical,economicalandsocioculturalchangesasaresultof
whichthescopeandfocusofIndiansociologyhasexpanded.Underthe
influenceofsuchdevelopments,theIndiangovernmentthatadoredthe
policyofmixedeconomyeversinceindependenceandcherishedthe
idealsofwelfarismproceededtoallowthemarketorientedpolicyto
prevail.
Toachievethisgoal,thegovernmentadoptedanewpolicyofeconomic
reformsintheyear1991withaviewtoglobalizeitseconomy(Singh,
1997).Globalizationisamovepromptedbytheleadersofthedeveloped

world.Liberalizationpolicy,includingthefreedomaccordedtotheforeign
companiesandcapitaltoenterintoIndianmarket,isthetwomajorsteps
ofthegovernmentinthisdirection.
TheimpactofglobalizationonIndianculturalheritageandgenerallife
situationofthepeopleofthecountryhasgeneratednewareasthat
deservetheattentionofIndiansociologistswhodoseemtobeattentiveto
suchrelevantareasascivicsociety(Gupta,1997),crisisandresil
iencein
theprocessofsocialchange(Singh,1993)andsecularismandnational
integration0oshi,1997)butspecificsocialimpli
cationofthenew
economicpolicyisyettobeanalysed.
Afewcourseshavebeenintroducedrecentlyonglobalthemesinsomeof
theuniversities.Theyareasfollows:ecologyandsociety,issuesofhuman
rights,sociologyofmanagement,humanresourcedevel
opment,media
andsociety,actionsociologyetc.Thereisalsoneedtostartsomemore
newcourseslikesociologyofpublicorderpeace,securityand
developmentsecuritymanagementandinfor
mationtechnologyetc.
Thesecoursesarenotonlyimportantforteachingbutalsoforresearchin
theconstructionofsocietyandusefulforthemodernoccupationand
profession.

TeachingofSociologyinIndia:
TheoriginofsociologyinIndiaasadistinctdisciplinecanbetracedback
totheperiodaround1920s.TeachingofsociologystartedinBombay
Universityasearlyas1914butthebirthofcurrentacademicsociology
tookplaceonlywiththeestablishmentofdepartmentsofsociologyin
BombayandLucknow.
Asforteachingandresearch,nothingsuchhappenedexceptnominal
teachingofthedisciplinewhereveritwasintroducedforalmostaquarter

ofacentury.WhatParvathammastatesaboutMysoreUniversityremains
truefortheentirecountryandforthedisciplineofsociologyasawhole.
TheundergraduatesyllabiinsociologyasframedbyWadiacontinued
almostforaquarterofacentury.
Onlyinthelate1950s,itwaschanged(Parvathamma,1978).Thoughone
findsanominalbeginning,nothingofanyconsequencehappenedinthe
realmofsociology.Itremainedmoreorlessstaticduringthe192047
periods.ThiswasthelastphaseofthecolonialruleinIndiawhenthe
nationalleaderswerepreoccupiedwiththeliberationmovement.
Preindependencescholarshavecontributedtothefoundationof
sociologybyprovidingatraditioninwhichsociologyinIndiacouldgrow
andevolve(Unnithanetal.,1967).Theircontributions,however,beganto
makeanimpactonlyafterindependence,thoughthenumberof
universitiesincreasedfrom11in1920to16in1945.However,thenumber
ofsociologydepart
mentsremainedjusttwoandofthese,onlyonewas
concernedforindependentdegreeinsociology(Unnithan,1982).
Thepercentageofuniversities,havingsociologydepartment,hadbeen
fallingduring192050.Itbegantoshowatrendtowardsregularincrease
after1950.By1960,23.8percentofuniversitiesinIndiahadsociology
departments.By1965,thisnumberroseto29.6percent.Now,thereare
95universitiesincludinginstitutionsthataredeemedtobeuniversities.
Fiftyoneofthemorabout54percentaccommodatedepartmentsof
sociology.
Inspiteoftheirrelativelygreatergrowthinsociologydepartments,itis
interestingthat44(46.3%)outof95universitiesdonothaveany
sociologyteachingatall.Ofthe51universitiesthatteachsociology,only
32haveseparatedepartments,whereas14conductundergraduateand
postgraduateprogrammesincludingPhD.

Thereare16universitieswheresociologyiscombinedwithothersocial
sciencedepartmentsbutanindependentdegreeisawardedinthree
departmentsnodegreeisawardedthoughthesubjectistaught(Unnithan,
1982:64).Besidesthese,accordingtotheUniversitiesHandbookofIndia,
1973,the16AgriculturalUniversities,thefiveAllIndiaInstitutesof
Technology,thethreeInstitutesofTechnology,thethreeInstitutesof
Management,theIndianStatisticalInstitute,Kolkata,theTataInstituteof
SocialSciences,Mumbai,andtheGujaratVidyapeeth,Ahmedabadalso
offeredsociologyasasubjectofstudyand/orresearch.
SociologyisverypopularsubjectintheuniversitiesandcollegesofIndia
today.Currently,outof133traditionaluniver
sities,about85have
departmentsofsociologyapartfromotherdepartmentsofsocialsciences
relatedtosociologylikepopulationstudiesandwomenstudies.
Amajorityofstudentsoptforsociologyasoneoftheirsubjectsat
graduationlevel.Itisconsideredasaneasysubjecttogetthroughin
examination.Itisusuallypreferredbygirlsparticularlythosewhoarenot
muchcareerconscious.Similarly,atthepostgraduateleveltoo,sociology
receivesalargenumberofstudents.
Therankofsociologycomesfifthintermsofthenumberofthe
universitiesofferingsocialsciencesandalliedsubjects.Thisshowsthat
fromthequantitativepointofview,thepositionofsociologyasan
academicdisciplineisnotverylowinspiteofthefactthatitenteredthe
universitycurriculumonlyveryrecently.
Itisalsoseenthatatthepostgraduatelevel,sociologyhasestablished
itselfasasubjectofmajorimportance,attractingthelargestnumberof
studentsnextonlytoeconomics,historyandpoliticalscience.
Postgraduateenrolmentintheyear196970wasalone4,918taking
sociology(4,442)andanthropology(476)togetherwhichcontributed
11.57percentofthetotalenrolment(42,479)forpostgraduateeducation

insocialsciences.
However,thepercentagewasalittlehigherforPhD(16.34%).Ofthe2,153
studentsenrolledforPhDinsocialsciences,352wereinthefieldof
sociologyalone.AccordingtotheUGCreport,outoftotal2,582faculty
membersofthepostgraduatedepartmentsinsocialsciencesinthe
universitiesandcolleges,243weresociologistsand119anthropologists.
Until1971,thecountryhasproducedatotalof485PhDscholarsinthe
fieldsofsociology,socialanthropology,criminologyandsocialwork.
Since1968,theaveragerateofPhDsinsociologywas46peryear.Thisis
animpressivefigure,indeed,comparedtothefiguresforpreviousperiods.
Thus,34PhDsweresubmittedduringthedecade193140and79inthe
subsequenttwodecadesof194160.
ThereweremorethanahundredPhDsfromtheuniversitiesofUttar
PradeshandofMaharashtraupto1970whereasthepositioninother
stateswasasfollows:Bihar(43),Delhi(42),MadhyaPradesh(23),
Gujarat(15),WestBengal(14),Rajasthan(12),Punjab(9),Karnataka(7)
andothers(13).
Thecoursesandthesyllabiinsociologyofthevariousuniver
sitiesreveal
yetanotherdimensionofdevelopmentofthedisciplineinIndia.Sociology
isbeingtaughtatalllevelsintheuniversitiesfromgraduationto
MPhil/MLittlevel.Somecoursesgivespecialemphasistoresearch
methodology.
Asregardsthesubjectmattertaughtatthegraduateandpostgraduate
levels,thereseemstobesomeroughsimilaritybetweenuniversitiesinthe
course.PrinciplesofSociology,IndianSocialInstitutionsandSocial
ChangeareofferedatboththeBAandMAlevelsinmostuniversities
whileResearchMethods,RuralandUrbanSociology,SocialAnthro
pology
andSocialPsychologyareamongtheothersubjectsincludedinthecore

coursesatMAlevel.
Therestofthesubjectscoverawiderangeofspecialareasinthe
discipline,namely,politicalsociology,educationalsociology,industrial
sociology,sociologyofkinship,religion,marriageandfamily,andsoon.It
seemsthatfromthenationalpointofview,thereisawiderchoiceof
optionalsubjectsforthestudentsofsociologythanisavailabletostudents
ofotherdisciplines.
Ananalysisofthecoursesrevealsseveraldeficiencies.Atpresent,thereis
alackofintegrationofsyllabiatalllevelsthatcouldensureastandardof
uniformminimalknowledgeinsociologyalongwithpossibilitiesfor
specializationandadvancetraininginsociology.Hardlyanyeffortis
noticedtointroducenewcoursesonthebasisofrationalesocietal
consider
ations.
Largely,theoldcoursescontinue.Thegravityofproblemisaccentuated
bythecontentsofthecoursesandthetextbooksprescribed.Thecontents
ofthecoursesareoftenirrelevanttothestudentsofsociologyinIndiaas
instructionisbasedmostlyonbookswrittenbyforeignscholarsfor
studentselsewhere.Allthesepointsreflecttotheoverallunderdeveloped
natureofsociologyinIndia(Unnithan,1982:68).
Overall,thequantitativeexpansionofsociologyisincreasingbutthe
qualityaspectofthedevelopmentofsociologyasanacademicdisciplinein
collegesanduniversitiesisappalling.Exceptafewprestigious
universities,thestatusofsociologyinmostoftheuniversitiesinthe
countryisreallydegraded.
Hence,thequalityresearchandteachinginsociologyhasconsiderably
slumped.Singh(1997)writes:Professionalanxiety,achievement,
motivation,entrepreneurialaspirationandchangingmodeof
consumptionhaveimmenselyaffectedthestandardofsociology.

Therefore,theteachersandotherscholarsofsociologywillhavetotake
careandpainsforitsrevival.Importantly,andspecifically,weneedtobe
academicallyandpoliticallyactivetoinfluencethedevelopmentofanew
sociologicalcurriculum.

SociologicalResearchinIndia:
Sinceindependence,withtherapiddevelopmentoftheteachingof
sociologyinIndianuniversitiesandcolleges,therehasbeenaconcomitant
increaseinthenumberofresearchstudiesondifferentaspectsof
sociology,resultingindoctoraldissertationsandinthepublicationof
manyvolumesandarticlesinvariousprofessionaljournals.Several
previoussurveysofthedevelopmentofsociologyinIndiapresentthe
processindifferentphasesandtrends,notablythosebyBeckerand
Barnes(1961),Saran(1958),Bottomore(1962),ClinardandElder(1965),
Vidhyarthi(1972),andtheIndianCouncilofSocialSciencesResearch
(ICSSR)(1972).
Despitetheseattempts,littleattentionhassofarbeenpaidinthe
directionofproperresearchtakingstepsofmethodsofdatacollection,
techniques,degreeofquantityandquality,arialunitofstudy,and
theoreticalorientationsinspecificsubstantiveareasofsociology.
Usually,itisseenthatwhileattheuniversitydepartmentlevel,thereare
facilitiesofdoingresearchwhichdonotexistatthecollegelevel.Evenat
thedepartmentlevelthereisnosystemofsabbaticalleavewherethe
teachercantaketimeofffortheresearch.Fieldworkisanessentialaspect
ofresearchinsociologyandunlessateacherhasayearorninemonthsoff,
hecannotconductresearch.
TheICSSRandtheUGChavesuitableschemesforprovidingthese
facilities.Thereisthusnownodearthofmoneytoconductresearch.The
problemistocontrolspuriousresearch.TheICSSR,whichisthemain
agencyforpromotingresearchinsociologyandsocialanthropology,has

laiddownprioritiesinkeepingwithsocialgoals.Itisnecessarytoinitiate
researchtoteachnewcoursesasresearchandteachingareintimately
relatedinthedevelopmentofthediscipline.
Researchinsociologygotaconsiderableboostinthecountrysince
independence.Severalstudiesconductedbysociologistswerefinanced,
sponsoredandsupportedbyseveralagencies.Therewasanotherwelcome
trendintheintroductionofthecoursesonmethodsofsocialresearchas
partoftheMAsyllabus.Infact,thiswasalsoemphasizedbytheUGC
ReviewCommitteeonSociology(1960).
Significantsophisticationinresearchmethodologyisanurgent
desideratumforpresentassessmentoftherapidlychangingandcomplex
socialorganizationtowhichwebelong.Inthefieldofdoctoralresearch,
theprogressinsociologyhasbeenremarkable.
Inspiteofthefactthatalmosttillthemiddleofthefifties,amuchless
numberofrecognizedsupervisorswereavailablefortheguidanceofthe
doctoralresearchstudentsinthedepartmentsoftheuniver
sities.Besides
theselimitations,sociologyandotheralliedfieldsgrantedasmanyas438
doctoraldegreesupto1970andeconomicsandpoliticalscienceexceeded
thesefigures.
Thepersonnelpositioninsociologyisstillonthelowerside.Thereare
only243sociologyteachersascomparedtolargernumberineconomics
andpoliticalscience,psychologyandgeography.Thishastobefurther
viewedinthelightofthenumbersoftheuniversityandcollege
departments.
Intermsofthenumberofdepartmentsattheuniversitylevel,sociology
(51)isbehindonlyfromeconomics(72),politicalscience(59)and
commerce(56).Thepositionatthecollegelevelisroughlythesame.
Whenwetrytomatchthespreadofthedisciplineanditsmanpower

requirements,itbecomesclearthattherehadbeensomedefectinthe
recruitmentpatternasrevealedbytheexistenceofalargenumberof
unfilledprofessorialpostsinseveraluniversities.
Seniormembersoftheprofessionshouldtakenoteofthisunsatis
factory
situation.Inspiteofthelimitationofpersonnel,averylargenumberof
researchprojects(50),constitutingthehighestshare(25.5%)oftheICSSR
grants,wereundertakenbythescholarsbelongingtothesociology
discipline.
Atotalof19theseswerepublishedinsociology.Thepositionisstill
brighterifweaddinitsocialanthropology.Infact,theacceptanceofthe
largestnumberofprojects(above20%)insociologywasamatterof
satisfactionbecausetheformulationsoftheproblemswererealisticand
sound.
Therehasbeenarealizationthatdiverseresearchmethodswere
complimentaryratherthanconflicting.Theearlyseventiessawabitter
debatebetweenthesurveyorsandparticipantobservers.But,both
realizedthatthetwocouldbecomplementary.Therehasbeenmore
researchesusingstatisticalsurveysmethods.
Therewereanumberoftrainingcoursesinquantitativemethods
includingcomputerprogramming.Besidesquantitativetechniques,other
techniquessuchashistoricalanalysis,casestudiesandpartic
ipant
observationarealsoincreasinglyusedbysociologistsandsocial
anthropologistsdependingonthenatureoftheproblemofinvestigation
anditsaim.

SociologicalResearchinIndia:TheStateofCrisis:
TherecentyearshaveseenthepublicationsinEPWofanumberof
articlesdiscussingandforthemostpartdeploringthecurrentstateof
researchandteachinginsociology.Speakingespeciallyofthesituationin

westernIndia,theysupporttheviewthatsociologyinIndiahasbecomea
ratherlacklustredisci
pline,itsleadingconceptspresentedthrough
outdatedmassmarketAmericantexts,andnotablydevoidofengagement
withthesocialworldoutsidetheclassroom.
The1990shaveseenengageddebateonthecrisisinthediscipline.This
debatesawaseriesofresponsesfromthescholarsinthefieldassessing
thetirednessofthedisci
pline(Deshpande,1995),thepossibilitiesofa
communityofdiscourse,thedangersofuncriticalmetropolitanism
(Murthy,1993)andtherelevanceofgenderandfeministpedagoguesas
strategiestoconfrontthecrisis(Rege,1994Uberoi,1994).
Thediscussionhasbeenmadeontheconstructionofsocio
logical
discipline(Thappan,1991Hegde,1992)andteachingofsociologyin
Indianuniversities(Uberoi,198990Deb1997).Intherecentyears,a
newdimensionhasbeenreflectedinthedebatetakingtheissueofgender
studies(Dube,1986,1996,1997Desai,1997BhagwatandRege,1991
Patel1994Uberoi,1994)andwomensmovement(Niranjana,1992
John,1996).
VeenaDas(1993)triestolocatethecrisisinsociologicalresearchinIndia
inthreeinstitutionalstructurestheuniversities,theUGCandthe
professionalbodiessuchastheIndianSocio
logicalSociety.Atthelevelof
theuniversities,theproliferationofthesubjecthassimplynotbeen
matchedbythewilltoensurecompetenceinteachingandresearch.In
severaluniversities,textbookssuchasthatofMacIverandPage,written
almost50yearsago,continuetobetaught.
Second,whereteachingandresearchareconductedinregionallanguages,
studentsdonotacquireprofi
ciencyeveninreadingintheEnglish
language.Thisisinfactthatrhetoricalstatementsaboutnationalself
respectnotwithstanding,neitherthetranslationsofcompetent
sociologicalworksintheregionallanguagesnororiginalcontributionsadd

uptoasufficientbodyofliteraturethatmaybeavailableinthese
languages.
Thus,astudentfailstoacquirecompetenceinhissubjectonthebasisof
thisliterature.Third,thepoliciesforrecruitmentandpromotionof
teachersincreasinglysacrificeacademiccompetenceforpolitical
expediency.Fourth,theexaminationofPhDdissertationsismanaged
withinsmallcoterieofscholars.
Iftheuniversitiesaretotakeashareoftheblameforthefallingstandards
forresearch,theUGCcannotescapeitsmajorresponsi
bilityeither.The
decisionmakingbodiesintheUGCseemtohavecompletelymisguided
notionsaboutthestateofsocialscienceresearchinthecountry.Finally,
theprofessionalbodieshavedonelittletosalvagethesituations.The
interestsoftheprofessionlienotonlyinproducinggreaternumberofjobs
forsociologistsbutinensuringthatethicalpracticesinthedisciplineare
maintained.

PossibleSociologicalDiscourses:
Weneedtoconcentrateonsomeoftheessentialsofsociological
discoursestodevelopsociologyinIndia.Theyare:
(1)ThedevelopmentofsociologyinIndiamaybeviewedintermsofthe
historicityofsocialconditionsthathaveshapedthesociological
perspectivesfromtimetotime.Thetheoreticalandcognitivesystemsof
sociologyaresociallyconditioned(Singh,1986).
Itistobehopedthatthinkinginthisdirectionwillresultinthe
concentrationofcontestedthemesandintherecoveryofkeyIndiansocio
culturalrealitiesandtextualtradi
tions,traditionsthathaveremainedor
continuetoremainasanexcludedpartofhegemonicsociologyorits
margin(Nadarajah,1996).Perhaps,thisistherighttimetoresumethe
Indiansociologybyrecognizingcontextandcultureofthesocietyandto

overcomefromtheidentificationofsociologyassolelyawestern.
(2)Theproductionofsociologicalknowledgecanbequalitativelychanged
withasociologicalcurriculumhelpingthemultifacetedcontestationof
westernsociologicalknowledge.Thereisaneedtoconsidernotonlythe
contentofsocialscienceeducationinouruniversitiesbutalsothe
methodologyusedintheproductionofsuchknowledge(Nadarajah,
1996).
(3)Institutionalizationofresearchrequiresaproperfitbetweenthe
growingneedsoftheoryandtheincreasingdemandsofsociety.Generally,
publicfundsaremadeavailablebythegovernment,UGC,ICSSRand
otheragenciesintermsofthecriteriasetoutforpriorities.Thequestionof
prioritieshastobeansweredinthecontextoftherelevanceofresearch.
(4)Whilepayingattentiontoresearchpriorities,theneedsofindividual
scholarspursuingapromisingbutoutofthewayenquiryshouldnotbe
neglected.Researcheffortsinvolvinginterdisciplinaryapproachorbold
methodologicalinnovationshould,onprinciple,beencouraged.The
ICSSRstandingcommitteehasalsorecommendedthesesuggestionsin
theeighties.
Toconclude,thehistoryofthedevelopmentofsociologyhasnotbeen
muchencouraging.Atitsbeginninganthropologyandethnologyhelped
thecolonialruletoestablishitsfoundation.Inotherwords,thediscipline
ofsociologywaspartlyresponsibleforthesurvivalofcolonialismand
feudalisminprincelystates.ThefeudalmentalityofIndianpeopleisthus
duetosociology,anthro
pologyandethnology.Itmustbesaidthatthis
disciplinehasnotbeenworthitssaltinIndia.
Ifwemakeasurveyofthesociologicalliteraturewhichhascroppedup
duringthelastabout100yearsdoesnottakeintoaccountanymassive
eventwhichtookplaceinIndia.Indiasfreedomstrugglewasalong

struggleanditsoughttheparticipationofthemasses.Allthepeople
participatedinthemovementnotwithstandingthepluralcharacterofthe
Indiansociety.
ItwasagreateventinthehistoryofIndia.Thesociologistsdidnothingto
analysethefreedomstruggle.Itisdifficulttofindanybookonsociology
writtenbyoursocalledsociologists.Whenthemasseswerebusyfighting
fortheirfreedom,oursociologistssuchasN.K.BoseandG.S.Ghuryewere
writingoncasteandethnicity.Sucharecordofsociologycaneasilybe
calledungratefultothenation.Howcanwebeproudofsuchsociologists?
AnothermemorableeventinIndiashistoryhasbeenthemassexodusof
peoplefromPakistanafterthedivisionofcountrybetweenIndiaand
Pakistan.BurningtrainsfromPakistanwerecomingtoIndiaandthe
bloodstainedtrainswereleavingIndiaforPakistan.Lakhsofrefugees
crossedtheborders.Itneverhappenedearlierbutthesociologistswho
claimedtobetheanalystsofIndiansocietydidnotmentionanything
aboutthistragicevent.
Besides,anevent,whichisaremarkableinthebuildingofournation
state,istheeraofbuildingmodernIndia.Nehrujiandhisgenerationof
nationalleadersstartedFiveYearPlansforthedevel
opmentofindustry
andvillageagriculture.Thesociologistsagainturnedtheireyestothisera
ofdevelopment.
Itisdiscouragingtolearnthatthesociologistsobservedsilenceonthis
processofdevel
opment.However,thesociologistsmadesomevillage
studies.Actually,therewasafloodofsuchstudies.Thesestudiesmade
somecontributions.But,thesecontributionshavefalsetheoreticalclaims.
Dominantcaste,sanskritization,westernization,parochializationand
universalizationaresomeofthecontributionswhichhavenotprovedto
beofanyhelpforthedevelopmentofvillages.Theyhaveprovedtobe
Utopianforthenation.

Thereareseveralproblemsforthecountry.Theproblemsaremulti
ethnic,multicaste,multireligion,multiregionandmultilinguistic.
Economicproblemscoupledwithunemploymentaredisasters.Itis
expectedofsociologytoanalysethesocialillsandbringoutsome
solutions.Inthepresentwork,wearediscussingsocialthinkersof
contemporaryIndia.Theyarealsoresponsibletorelaxincomfortable
armchairsandenjoytheacademicstatus.