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There is enough literature on the human development process, particularly on induced development, in different disciplines of social sciences. A thorough study of these and an amalgamation of the ideas contained in the subject matter would make a development practitioner as sure-footed as it is possible to get. There must be a fairly large number of development practitioners who make this effort, and yet the development landscape is littered with examples where the process has gone awry or the benefits accruing from the process has remained suboptimal. The present paper looks into one such small development initiative carried out in the Sundarbans, very close to the venue of the 39th Annual Conference of the Indian Anthropological Society. In fact, it is this proximity that has prompted the selection of this development example, apart from the fact that the initiative has thrown up the opportunity to closely, scrutinise the reasons for accrual of sub-optimal benefits despite having taken into account the wisdom available in the various disciplines of social sciences. Although the example is very local, it is quite typical of development practice, and the lessons learnt should hold true for almost all non-urban situations. This paper analyses the development initiative in question and attempts to share the lessons learnt. It is hoped that our collective understanding of human development is enhanced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Economic crises, health related issues, socio-psychological adjustment, leisure and recreation, family environment and care, extra familial rehabilitation and condition in the old age home etc. are the major aspects of the elderly persons: of India which have been dealt by the researchers on gerontology in India. However, it is revealed that most of the gerontological studies in India are centered on urban, middle class, educated and service sector populations, and in most of the cases the elderly people have been considered as liabilities rather than assets. In this background, the present paper is an attempt to highlight the different roles, engagement as well as contributions made by the elderly population living in a rural area and leading an agrarian way of life. The paper also makes an attempt to derive some policy recommendations, which may be useful for better understanding of the condition as well as socio-economic and cultural contributions of the elderly people of rural India in agrarian settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anthropological discourses on the traditional Indian rural institution, the jajmani, usually suggest either a single system immutable model like that of Wiser or Dumont, or the multiple system models of Parry. Reheja, Lerche, and others. In this paper it is suggested that neither of these models satisfactorily explains the nature of inter-jati exchange relations in rural India. It is, therefore, imperative to simultaneously examine the basic ideology behind these relations, and the impacts of many socio-political and historical forces to devise a locally adaptive form of such relations without necessarily obliterating the basic ideology. Critically examining Lerche's views on coastal Orissa as an example, the paper explicates that as the jati dynamics in its locally adaptive form does not necessarily contradict the basic principles of jati organization, similarly the inter-jati exchange relations may take different forms for meeting the common goal or survival needs. It is only wrapped with ritual fervour to legitimize the occupational monopoly of different jatis and to ensure its sustainablity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]