Srinagar: The University of Kashmir Wednesday formally started the postgraduate programme in Anthropology at its Institute of Kashmir Studies (IKS). The Masters in Anthropology is among new courses introduced at the varsity to enable holistic study of social and cultural systems, with in-depth and interdisciplinary approaches to understand human society.
In their messages, KU Vice-Chancellor Prof Talat Ahmad and Registrar Dr Nisar Ahmad Mir complimented the newly-admitted students in Anthropology and urged them to work hard to address the pressing societal concerns.
Prof Bashir A Khan, Dean School of Social Sciences, was the chief guest at the modest inaugural ceremony.
“Anthropology is concerned with the study of ‘who we were and what we are’,” he said, hoping that the students would study the “pressing” social and cultural concerns in detail. Prof M Y Ganai, Director IKS, thanked the Vice-Chancellor for his continuous support to the IKS and for encouraging the launch of new programmes in the University.
Speaking about the importance of the course, Prof Ganai said: “Anthropology extends our vision beyond familiar social contexts and experiences. It is essentially a comparative study of humans, their societies and their cultural worlds. Our students will develop a critical awareness of changing social values and practices in line with the New Education Policy (NEP) guidelines.” The course, he said, will enable the students to prepare for various career options, especially civil services, academia and private sector jobs.
Prof Gulshan Majeed, former Director Centre for Central Asian Studies (CCAS), KU, was the guest of honour on the occasion. Anthropology, he said, is connected to all disciplines and the start of the programme “is a great beginning”.
Prof Noor A Baba, former Head, Department of Political Sciences, University of Kashmir, delivered the keynote address.
“Anthropology is multi-disciplinary and deals with all branches of knowledge and stages of human development,” he said. Dr Humaira Showkat presented a vote of thanks. The inauguration was followed by an interaction session of the IKS faculty with the newly-admitted students of Anthropology.
