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Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare The historical evolution of social welfare, which was presented in the previous chapters pointed out the changing emphasis on social welfare at different periods of history. In India, the earliest conception of what has now come to be known as social welfare, was dana, and the philosophy underlying it was known as dana dharma or dhamma. Dana literally meant sharing, and Dharma had a variety of meanings, ranging from duty or obligation to charity or equity. During the medieval period when Muslim kings ruled the country, charity was known as khairat. The goal of social welfare has been described at different times in Indian history as lokasangraha, loka sreya and sarvodaya.
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Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare The title of this chapter has been carefully chosen, after much deliberation. Bhakti as a religious concept is said to be present in rudimentary form even during the vedic period, while it is widely believed to have its origin in the Agamas and post-Agamic religious literature, culminating as BhaktiYoga in Bhagavadgita. Here we are concerned with its manifestation during a period of almost thousand years from the seventh century, originating in Tamil territory (Tamil Nadu) moving upwards to Kannada speaking territory (Karnataka) from there to Marathi (Maharashtra) and Gujarati (Gujarat) speaking territories. It also erupted in the north-eastern U.P., spread towards the eastern India (Assam, Bengal, Bihar and Odisha) and downwards to the central parts of the country (Rajasthan, M.P). A religious concept developing into a religious ideology, modifying in major respects the earlier version of Bhakti, with mass appeal, attracting in significant numbers the middle and lower strata of society, cutting across all barriers of jati (caste), gender, occupation, social status, and even religion. This phenomenon has been described, debated, eulogized and critically assessed by scholars from different parts of the country over a period of several decades. It has been labelled as an "event", socio-religious, socio-political and social protest movement, etc. Some writers have gone so far as to call it a revolution'.* So some preliminary clarifications and observations seem to be necessary on the choice of the title, before proceeding further.
Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare Two models of social welfare are usually mentioned in historical reviews of social welfare. The dominant and popular model is usually referred to as the remedial or residual model which is contrasted with the other model described variously as the institutional-redistributive or developmental model of social welfare. It is frequently argued by some wellknown western and Indian writers that the latter model is more suited to the developing countries which include India.
Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare In September 1964 the Gandhian Institute of Studies, Varanasi, appointed a Working Group consisting of Gandhian constructive workers and professional social workers with the purpose of developing a bridge between the two which might ultimately lead to the "fusion of the traditional concepts of social work as visualised by Mahatma Gandhi and the professional concepts of social work developed in the Western countries". The Report of the Working Group has already been published. The Gandhian Institute organised another seminar at Varanasi from March 20 to 22, 1967, to continue the dialogue between the two groups of social workers. The purpose of this seminar was to develop a greater insight in the sarvodaya methods of social work by making "a comparative analysis of some of the important techniques as practiced by a few outstanding leaders of the sarvodaya field".
Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare It should be made very clear at the beginning that this paper does not deal with the religious issues raised in Bhagavadgita. I am not competent to do it nor am I interested in that exercise. There is a vast literature published in English and most Indian languages, which should be referred to by those interested in Bhagavadgita as a religious text. My purpose is non-religious and limited to exploring the model of the helping process in the Bhagavadgita. In other words, I take the problem faced by Arjuna at the battlefront as an eternal human problem – what is one’s duty when faced with a critical situation? Self-interest? Interest of “others”? Who are these “others”? What are the guiding principles to make the correct or the right choice?
Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare Counselling is a form of psychological help provided by professional persons to people who need it in order to cope with their problems. Such help is offered in a face-to-face relationship through discussion between the counsellor and the counsellee. There is no agreement on what constitutes counselling and how it is different from case work and psychotherapy. And there are different types of counselling based on a large number of psychological theories. The term counselling has been in use in social work literature since the early thirties. Almost all authors on case work consider counselling as a part of case work. It was classified as one of the techniques of direct treatment (psychological help) by Hamilton.
Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare During the past several decades, there has been much talk of the need for developing an indigenous model of social welfare. Very rarely this idea has been pursued seriously to the point of making a beginning in that direction. The reason for this is obvious; it is easy to criticise but difficult to create. G.R. Banerjee is one of those very few Indians who has tried patiently and persistently to be creative by continually thinking and writing on an Indian perspective of social work. Her contributions have been brought together in a book of essays-Papers on Social Work-An Indian Perspective. In the first thirteen papers, she propounds the basic concepts which form part of Indian social work. They are: concepts of social welfare as kalyan or mangal; concepts of love, duty or Dharma and Ahimsa; Concept of detachment or Nishkama Karma; concepts of self, professional self, self-help, and Karma theory; concept of social functioning and social consciousness. According to Banerjee, the ancient Indian concept of social welfare was broader in scope than the western concept. It included not only remedial but also preventive measures. It was not restricted to a particular group or class but was meant for all, rich, or poor, normal or handicapped. The goal of human activity was the welfare of all human beings; i.e. loka sangraha. It was the duty of human beings, particularly the leaders to work for the welfare of society.
Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare There has been considerable discussion in recent years regarding the role of voluntary organizations in social welfare in India. An indication of the rethinking that is going on in the field is a recent spurt in the publication of articles in the popular press and the discussion following these publications. The debate seems to centre around the roles of voluntary organizations in the changing social context, and the national goal of the welfare state. There is also a feeling of dissatisfaction about the role played by voluntary organizations since Independence. Disappointment is expressed that inspite of considerable financial support by the government, the performance of voluntary organizations in social welfare has been far from satisfactory.
Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare The profession of social work in India is more than thirty years old.* Yet, I am afraid, it does not seem to have come of age. Mature thinking, broad perspective, sobriety born of the felt responsibilities of work in a problem-ridden society, a sense of identification with progressive thought, of belongingness to the community and the culture of which it is a part, and a sense of mission and creative innovation in the realm of thought and action-all these are the hall-marks of a mature profession where clients are human beings as individuals and as collectivities. We may scan the social work horizon to discern the evidence of these, but we see a disappointing and depressing picture. Professional social workers have not shown themselves to be vitally concerned with the serious issues of our time and our society. They are in a state of peace and contentment; they have no right to be, given the living conditions of people in our country today.
Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare After reviewing the literature for fifty years, pertaining to social welfare, social work and development it was observed that some key concepts like social change, macro-micro levels and structures, and problem of inter-linkages between them, empowerment and so on, have neither been adequately and clearly conceptualized nor discussed in operational terms”….and the literature failed to provide guidelines for practice or testable propositions which can be the basis for the further development of usable theory, discovery of operational procedures and techniques for practice”. There has been very little research on the theory building and practice of social development and social welfare “(Pathak, 1997)
Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare There is a widespread belief among professional social workers that social work in India had attained the status of a profession on the eve of the Independence of the country. The assumption that social work in India became a profession many years ago, deserves to be carefully tested. This chapter attempts to discuss the professionalization of social work in India, particularly during the past thirty years, in historical perspective. The label 'professional social workers' is used here in a broad sense to distinguish a group of social workers from other types of social workers, such as sarvodaya social workers, voluntary social workers and paid social workers who have had no education in schools of social work. The analysis will focus on the group of social workers who have completed their education at the post-graduate schools of social work and have worked or are currently working in the field of social work in India; their impact on the field of social work; and their achievements and failures in their quest for professional status.
Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare In the evolution of social welfare in India, like in many countries, two broad trends can be noticed: reform of the society and the provision of specific services to the handicapped and disadvantaged individuals and groups. Much before the beginning of social reform during the nineteenth century, there were several religious reform movements by the saints. They were revolting against the religious inequality and in some cases against social inequality as well. They fought against the prevalent practice of excluding the lower groups in society from opportunities to worship God, and their access to religious knowledge. Some of them attempted to remove the social discrimination by preaching that all human beings were equal before God.
Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare In recent years there has been an increasing interest in social change in many countries of the world. This interest is not confined to developing countries engaged in the task of national development (the socalled Third World) which are characterised by mass problems of poverty, disease, illiteracy, etc. It is also evident in the affluent, industrially advanced countries which are discovering problems of persistent poverty amidst national affluence. The field of social welfare is not unaffected by this resurgence of interest in social change. Is this, then, an unthought of response to a currently popular international trend or is this the result of certain developments that have been taking place over the years? This is the question that merits discussion.
Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare The East India Company was established in 1600 and began its trading activities in the southern part of India soon after wards. With the acquisition of Diwani rights in Bengal in 1765, the Company took on a new role as the colonial ruler of a part of the country. But the Company had little interest in framing a social policy towards its subjects, because of its preoccupation with maintaining and expanding colonial territory. It was only by the beginning of the nineteenth century that it was compelled to devote some attention to the other aspects of administration, apart from the collection of revenue and the maintenance of law and order. In this chapter we will discuss the colonial government's social policy in broad outline from the beginning of the nineteenth century. Social policy, in the final analysis, pertains to governmental policy. When we take into account the nature of colonial society and the government, it includes the policies of the government in such areas as religion, social welfare and social legislation, education and medical care.
Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare The long period of Mughal rule which is described as the golden era of medieval India came to an end in 1757 with the victory of the British army under Robert Clive at the Battle of Plassey in Bengal. This event marks the beginning of colonial rule, though it took another sixty years before the process of conquest could reach a decisive phase following the defeat of the Peshwa army at Panipat in 1818. The colonial period represents an altogether new phase in the life of the country. There had been invaders and conquerors before, but they soon settled down as the natives of the country. The governments changed at the political centre of the time without disturbing the continuing features of society, especially in the countryside. The colonial rulers were different in this respect and with them came a variety of new social forces like religion, technology, education, a system of law and judicial administration, etc.
Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare The official religious policy of the East India Company was one of neutrality towards the native religions. This was a continuation of the policy followed by the Muslim rulers during the medieval period. Their reason for continuing this policy was the belief that the earlier Portuguese rule had come to an end because of attempts to forcibly convert the Indian people to Christianity. As a result of this concern, the Company government prohibited both the entry of missionaries into the territories under their control and any attempts at conversion of their subjects to Christianity.1 However, in 1793 two English missionaries, William Carey and John Thomas, both Baptists, set out to India with the clear intention of starting a mission. In view of the ban on missionary activity they settled down in the Danish Colony of Serampore, north of Calcutta. William Carey, along with two other missionaries, Joshua Marshman and William Ward established the Serampore mission in 1799.2 These three missionaries who were to play a major role in the renaissance of Bengal were known as the 'Serampore Trio'.
Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare Historical literature on the evolution of social welfare generally deals with the modern period from the time of Rammohun Roy and occasionally with the ancient period before the advent of Muslim rule in India.1 This is a sad commentary both on the secularism of modern, post-independent era of Indian society and in particular on the tradition of scholarship among writers on social welfare. It is well known that the British colonial administration was based on the administration as it had evolved during the Mughal rule and that in turn was influenced by the contributions of the Sultanate period. For a proper understanding of the present social policy, a historical perspective is necessary and desirable because it would reveal a thread of continuity in social policy as a response to the prevalent social structure.
Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare In Indian literature on social reform and social work it is customary to trace the heritage of modern social welfare to the beginning of the nineteenth century, especially to the time of Rammohun Roy. If at all any reference is made to an earlier period, it is by way of stray remarks in passing about the social reform activities of some Muslim or Maratha ruler.1 Occasionally one comes across, however, vague, global reference to social welfare in ancient India-mostly as a glorification of the past.
Special Articles / Shankar Pathak / Social Work and Social Welfare INTRODUCTION
A survey, whether in India or abroad, reveals the relative absence of theoretical and analytical literature dealing with social welfare-its nature, goal, function and evolution.1 This is more so with regard to the Indian situation. A limited attempt at the theoretical analysis of social welfare in the Indian social context has been made by only Gore. Explaining his approach to social welfare, Gore makes reference to the relationship between social welfare and social structure in some of his writings.2 He also states that his approach is sociological. The main problem in these brief discussions on social structure and social welfare is the lack of a definition of the concept of social structure. Blau writes: |
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