RONO HILLS, Jan 31: Rajiv Gandhi University’s (RGU) anthropology department conducted an 18-day ‘ethnographic fieldwork’ in Basarnallo village, in Papum Pare district, from 14 January.
The team, which comprised 24 MA second-semester students of the department, dealt with various socio-cultural issues of the people of Basarnallo, such as women’s health, women’s status, drug abuse, the changing scenario of marriage, kinship, religion, economics, etc.
“The fieldwork has broadened the perspective of the students and helped them in understanding the ground realities and different problems and issues of Basarnallo and different challenges being faced by them,” Assistant Professor Md Asghar, who led the students, said.
Quiz and drawing competitions and special counselling sessions were conducted for school students, focusing on early marriage, drug addiction, career, education, and such.
A special skit was presented by the team, based on the theme of drug addiction and early marriage. “The skit sent a strong message about the ill-impact of social evils like drug addiction and early marriage,” Md Asghar said.
The team also planted trees of different species in the campus of the government secondary school in Basarnallo.
The fieldwork is conducted every year as part of the academic curriculum of MA students of RGU’s anthropology department to sensitize the local public to problems and issues of the society, and to find ways to resolve them.
