The seventh International Conference and meeting Kiran Bedi

 The seventh International  Conference was organised by Tagore Government Arts and Science College at Puducherry on the theme, Interdisciplinary research in contemporary Women's Studies. I gave  the key note on Women's studies and how this came about and what issues it addresses. Kiran Bedi, the Lieutenant  Governor gave the inaugural address and as usual she was full of energy and very motivational in her talk. I had met her some fifteen years back when in   Vignan Bhawan at Delhi  a  Conference was organised for the  Women police and she was the chairperson of this. I had been invited as a speaker and we had earlier spent some time organising the nitty gritty of this Conference. I still remember the impact she had made then on all the women police from constable level to officer levels, that had come from different parts of India and the hall was jam packed and every one listened with full attention. In Pondicherry she said that we are all talking of Beti  Bachao slogan but now we need to say Beta samjhao or  Ladka samjhao. The Chief minister Mr. V. Narayan Swamy also spoke very well and showed how women in Puducherry were already empowered. The Educational Minister, Kamlakannan, made a lot of sense in what he said. They all looked very  simple in their white shirts and lungis  but spoke very powerfully.I felt here was the best combination of the tradition and the modern. I was stuck by the fact that the minister was in no hurry to go and he continued to sit through out and give away the certificates. Prof. Gurmeet Singh the Vice Chancellor of Pondicherry University was also there in the inauguration. A delegation from Egypt had also come and they had picked up Tamil greetings and greeted every one in Tamil. A very interesting Conference and the hospitality of the hosts was wonderful and we got to see a lot of Puducherry after the Conference. A lovely cultural programme showcasing the different classical and folk forms of dance was performed by young children. Indeed a very well organised Conference and credit goes to the leadership provided by Sasi Kant Das.

Meeting Sasi Kant and Sandeep two Old students

 Meeting Sasi Kant and Sandeep after more than two and a half decade. It is always a great joy to connect to my old students. In Pondicherry, I am invited, by Sasi Kant  Das to an International conference on Women's studies. Sasi Kant is the principal of, Tagore Government arts and Science College and he has worked wonders. I am told by other faculty members that when he was transferred from Bhartidasan College a girls college in Puducherry, the students there went on strike for a week demanding that the Government take back the order. Today he has changed the landscape of the Government college which like any Government college earlier was neglected and in a state of decay. He has today with in a span of a year and half made the campus green, clean and beautiful. They have an organic vegetable garden, the walls are all painted by the students and the examination  results have improved. My other student Sandeep, a 1987-89 batch student is now Head of the Department of History in the College. Sasi Kant continues to be very soft spoken person and Sandeep is his usual jovial self and was a little naughty earlier and continues to be the same and he can light up a room. A real treat and I feel very happy to see our students from the History Department of HCU doing so well and being recognised by the whole population of the union territory for doing their bit to bring about a change and make a difference.

In Pondicherry

 Reached Pondicherry on 12th April, 2018. The hotel where I am staying  in Pondicherry is in Promenade which is a road running for about 1.5km.next to the beach. It has some beautiful houses with a French architecture. Just went around the beach and going around the streets with two lovely friends from Ahmedabad Rekha Mukherjee and Anuradha who have come to attend the International Conference on Women's studies.

At Sreenidhi International school

 It is always fun to connect to school children. I spent a day on 11 th April, 2018, at Sreenidhi International school and I was in a totally different world. This school offers an International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma programme for 9th and 10th and 11th and 12th classes. In History they have to do a project under Historical Investigation and I spent time talking about Historical investigation and how does one go about it. The students are very bright and they are reading some very good quality material for the topics that they have chosen. There were Projects on Society in 2nd Cen through the view of the  Arthasastra, Looking at the Textile Mill strike, Bengal famine, the only three Indian topics and more on American and European history, with Cold War, Nazis and and racism theory, and many more. The children had really done great research, collected lot of materials. I also looked at their   History syllabus.Since these are formulated abroad there is very little of India in here. These schools are doing yeomen service by providing international and quality education but unfortunately there is hardly any thing of Indian history taught. Most of these students are NRI, 's or students who  would go abroad to get a degree or study in US universities but they will go there with our any knowledge of Indian history or its culture. I console myself that once they know the method, the steps to research they will pick up and understand Indian history and culture and evaluate it. But it is not a part of the regular official syllabus. I am very impressed at the quality of teaching and the inquisitiveness of the students.

Friends of the Centre at Women's Studies

 Women's Studies is interdisciplinary in nature and when we started the program in the University of Hyderabad in 2007, I was  very proud of the fact that our centre was the only centre that had faculty from Literature, Sociology, History, sciences, physics and Life sciences and they were teaching courses and guiding Ph. D students. Today on 9th April, 2018, some of these members came to meet me and we hope to have interdisciplinary studies as a prominent feature of our Centre. Prof. Anita Jagota from Life sciences, Prof. Bindu Bambah, Dean of Physics school, Dr. Tutun Mukherjee from Comparative Literature, Prof. Ajailiu Niumai from Centre for Social Exclusion and a Prof. Sita from the School of Management Studies. These members were with the Centre from 2007 and I will continue to bank on them for support.

Of birthdays and birthday parties Suresh's Birthday

 We think we are a little too old and grown up and do not need birthday parties.  Suresh Pande , for us his birthday went about quietly with only greeting each other, visiting the temple in the morning and then going about our work. But my five year old neighbour Samira has other ideas about a birthday and a cake is an integral part of this in her world view. So we had a lovely birthday party with a cake from Samira for her Nanu and a home baked cake from Hameeda. Thanks Khusbu Rath, Swastik Dash, Omar, Hameeda and our sweet little Samira for replacing our children who have flown the nest. A lovely ending to a beautiful day.

Taking over as head, centre for Women's Studies

 Very happy to share with my family, friends, well wishers and students, that today I have taken over as the Director of the Centre for Women's Studies in the University of Hyderabad on 5th April, 2018. The order was issued on 2nd April and I will be in charge of the Centre for a three year period. I became very emotional and went back into memory lane as I stepped into the New Building of Women's Studies. We had struggled to have a Centre from 1984, but could never get one from the UGC. In between, I became so frustrated and luckily  went on Deputation to Maulana Azad National Urdu University as Director of their Women's Studies Program. When I returned to my University in 2007,our VC Prof. Sayed Hassnain  had set up the C.WS  with out UGC approval and I became its Director. Within a year we got the UGC approval. We had no building, no staff but lots of students. I was operating from my History office room for we had no building.  Malladi Subamma, an activist on Women's issues from Hyderabad then donated money to have this building constructed. She was not an industrialist, like Tatas , Ambani or Jindals . She was an ordinary middle class person like any of us and since her children were all settled and doing well she sold her house, her jewelry and opened a trust  and wanted to give it to an organization that worked on Women's issues. She gave us this money for the building. As I left this Centre in 2013to take up responsibility in the History Department we had lots of discussions on where this Centre should be located, what should be the building plan. Today  I stepped into this building for the first time  after it was completed two  years back. The building looks very bare and I  imagine a beautiful garden around it with lawns and lots of greenery. I see students lots of them loitering in those lawns and sitting under the trees, under the cool breeze discussing many issues. Today, I could not but remember Malladi Subamma who is no more,  but her passion for Women’s issues remains in the form of this Centre and it will be my endeavor to make her proud that she had done the right thing by giving this money to our University for she was toying with the idea of four Universities before she  finalised her choice. Today in this building I see her passion, her hard work, her commitment to Women's Studies, her jewellery, her house being sold for this. I just want you to be proud of your decision Malladi Garu where ever you are. I was very happy that few of my Ph. D students were with me today as I took over charge and thanks a lot for every one that supports women's issues.