STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: Women’s Collective of J and K, a group of people having academics and activists’ approach towards gender issues, on Monday held its first collaborative workshop with the Department of Lifelong Learning, University of Jammu. Professor Rekha Choudhary, a well known academician and former Dean Research Studies, University of Jammu presided over the workshop while Prof Abha Chouhan, Professor, Department of Sociology, coordinated the event.
Dr. Kavita Suri, Director and Head, Department of Lifelong Learning welcomed the participants to the workshop.
Highlighting the idea of Women’s Collective, Prof. Abha Chouhan informed that the initiative came into being from the Indian Association for Women Studies (IAWS) in their recent conference in Chennai where it has been worked out that there was a dire need to have structural approach to the issuers and concerns of the women in J and K.
“The workshop aims to debate the issues confronting women in Jammu region and to explore the possibilities of forming a Women’s Studies Group in the State. The idea is to have an academic-cum- activist group that can organise a few activities around the gender-specific issues and provide a platform for women and men sensitive to such concerns to come together,” informed Prof Rekha Chowdhary adding that the exact agenda of the group; the format of the organisation; the activities – all these things were debated in this workshop.
The workshop started with the presentation of the Prof. Lalit Mangotra, a well known name in the field of language and literature in the region where he gave a detail of the issues where women has been positioned in the local Dogra culture. The tradition of Dohari (mutual exchange of brides), the issue of Purdah and its various aspects navigating various layers of the social classes and caste in the Jammu region has thoroughly been illustrated by him. Prof Mangotra also referred to many incidents and events where women roles have witnessed manifold changes with the passage of the time.
Other who spoke at the occasion included Dr Kavita Suri, Member, J and K State Women Commission, Ellora Puri , Assistant Professor Political science, Dr. Saranjit, Assistant Professor, Centre for Women studies, Dr. Shweta Sharma, Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology, Dr. Sandeep Singh, Assistant Professor, Department of Lifelong Learning, Randheer Kour, Research Scholar, Department of Punjabi, Mehnaz Mir, Research Scholar, Department of Sociology and other research scholars and students where issues ranging rural women , access, role and space for women in the unions , structure exploitation existing in various institutions of the State and society, the ineffectiveness of the State for offering gender orientation to the policies were discussed in detail.
The presentations were followed by open discussion. The workshop resolved that Women’s Collective of J and K shall act as a research and policy intervention groups with focus on advocacy on the issues of women in the region.
Among those who attended the workshop include Dr Pallavi Sachdeva, Dr Bharti Prabhakar, Dr Savita Nayar, Dr Navdeep Kaur Sasan, Dr Bindu Sangra, Dr Seema Nargotra, ,Dr Nirlepe Kaur,Dr Archana Kaul, Malvika Kalra, students of various Departments of the University including Political Science, Sociology, Rural Development, Education, DSRS, etc.
