Q. Analyse how the village studies contributed in understanding the Indian Social System. (2004) (250)
Village studies have its own importance. These have enriched the knowledge of the Indian Society in general and rural India in particular. These have given great encouragement to the growth of rural society.
A typical anthropologist, unlike his/her economist counterpart, saw the village ‘in the context of the cultural life lived by the people’ and the way ‘rural life was inter-locked and interdependent’ which ‘baffled social engineers as it could not be geared to planned economy. It was here that the economists needed the assistance of sociologists and anthropologists’ (Majumdar,)
Though they were supposed to only assist the ‘big brothers’ economists in the planning process, the anthropologist viewed their perspective as being “superior” because ‘they alone studied village community as a whole, and their knowledge and approach provided an indispensable background for the proper interpretation of data on any single aspect of rural life. Their approach provided a much-needed corrective to the partial approach of the economist, political scientist and social worker (Srinivas)
After independence, planners in India realised that unless Indian villages were properly studied, no real progress could be made.
Scholars now began to pay more and more attention to village studies.
(i) Village studies help in planning rural reconstruction.
(ii) Village studies provide useful information to other disciplines.
(iii) Village studies provide useful knowledge about Indian social reality.
Village studies provide useful knowledge about Indian social reality:
The significance of the village studies is such that sometimes their value may extend beyond national boundaries. But it is true that an understanding of different aspects of social reality is highly influenced by the indo-logical literature. Village studies have assumed sociological and socio-anthropological Importance.
Village studies provide useful information to other disciplines:
The sociologists and social anthropologists collect data Lo study different villages its several aspects, its problems etc. The collected data are more accurate, reliable and unbiased. Hence these are highly useful for other social scientists. These are raised by economists, political scientists and others. Village studies also provide the historians with a lot of information about rural social life.
Village studies help in planning rural reconstruction: According to M.N. Srinivas, village studies provide detailed information regarding various aspects of rural life. In these studies, either the holistic nature of the village communities is discussed or certain specific aspects of rural life are focused. The planning commission gave maximum attention to solve the social problems of rural India by the help of village studies also. From village studies, various aspects of rural life, for example, the extent of sub-division and fragmentation of holdings, the nature of rural credit, the conditions of landless labourers etc. are derived. It helps in planning rural reconstruction
Dasgupta in his ‘historical continuity and stability of villages’ strengthened the case for village studies The relevance of studying the village was viewed more in methodological terms. The village and its hamlets represented “India in microcosm” (Hoebel in Hiebert,). For the anthropologist, they ‘were invaluable observation-centres where he/she could study in detail social processes and problems to be found occurring in great parts of India’ (Srinivas). Villages were supposedly close to people, their life, livelihood and culture and they were ‘a focal point of reference for individual prestige and identification’. As ‘an important administrative and social unit, the village profoundly influenced the behaviour pattern of its inhabitants’. Villages were supposed to have been around for ‘hundreds of years’, having ‘survived years of wars, making and breaking up of empires, famines, floods and other natural disasters’
Main Drawbacks of Village Studies in India:
According to S.C. Dube, one should be very critical about their validity and be aware of their limitations.
He speaks of a few limitations of such studies.
(a) Village studies are not often represented in nature.
(b) Village studies exaggerate the unity and self-sufficiency of the village. Here unity and solidarity of the village is over-emphasised. It ignores the connecting links with other units of society,
(c) Village studies are influenced by the alien concepts. Those who undertake village studies, blindly Imitate western methods, western styles and western models.
There are also some problems related to village studies in India:
- There is a lot of duplication in data collection.
- There is no real comprehension about village studies. There is lack of coordination among the scholars of village studies.
- The scholars have tried to study village community in abiotic frame of reference. They practically ignore a basic reality that Indian village is a synthesized community.
- Most of the village studies are of mechanical nature. These do not add much to the existing knowledge about villages.
significance of Village Studies:
Srinivas made the following observations through his field experiences:
- Sociologists and anthropologists basically depend on other social scientists because they rely on first-hand Information with emphasis on micro-detailed in-depth studies.
- He distinguished between anthropologists as a field and social worker and the government officials. Government officials are biased, not very minute in their observation. They go through erroneous superficial Government Records.
These studies have taken into consideration the totality of the village life. However, same issues are raised in some of the studies. Some of the contributors have come out with certain conceptual constructs. The concept of Dominant caste has for the first time appeared in this edited book.