“THERE IS a dire need to humanise history so that the people’s history could be given its due in the process of development of society and polity in India,” commented Prof Ishrat Alam, Member-Secretary of the Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR), New Delhi while delivering the valedictory address in the Refresher Course in History here yesterday.

Prof. Alam said that various models of history have been framed to interpret historical evidences by many schools of historical thoughts, from colonial to national to Marxist to subaltern schools of history, but still the history has to ascend from the Pupils’ history to Peoples history in right perspective. The writers of history have assumed the role of performers of history now.

He said the de-elitisation of history will help in understanding the process of history in proper manner. People in general need to be given their due. Citing many examples, the ICHR don said that over the ages, the heaviest manual labour has been thrusted upon the weakest section of the society, the women, who work hard in fields, constructions and at home also doing odd chores. New history writing is taking place in Mexico and Algeria these days from people’s point of view. Indian historians also need to draft their own models to write history of people.

Referring to the role of the ICHR, Prof. Alam said the ICHR has taken up a colossal and monumental job of publication of series of dictionaries of social, economic, cultural and administrative words over the ages in Indian context. Meanings and connotations of words of Sanskrit, Pali, Prakrit, Persian, Arabic, Urdu, Devnagri and regional vernacular languages of the country are being documented. For the last 40 years, Bhandarkar Institute has not gone beyond the first word of Devanagri (A), such is the herculean task before the ICHR which was instituted by an Act of the Parliament to promote history of India.

Citing an example of the need for such dictionaries, the ICHR Secretary said the word Viman has a different meaning what is perceived today. The great grammarian Panini has meant Viman as tool, 6th century Amarkosh meant by it as tool, and artisan. Moreover Vidhan Chintamani has meant it as tool, artisan and loom (charkha), but nowhere the meaning of Viman has been given as an aeroplane. With the change of meaning of words, there is possibility of change in the course of history writing also, he added.

Prof. Alam applauded the role of History Department of Kurukshetra University for organising a refresher course of three weeks on the theme of Depressed Classes which has not been done by any of the universities in the country. He advised the participants to take up minor research projects on grey fields of history in their colleges for which the ICHR will provide financial assistance.

Thirty three teacher-participants of History subject from different colleges of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and UP participated in the three-week long deliberations on the theme of the Depressed Classes in India. The Course was inaugurated by Lt Gen. Dr DDS Sandhu, Vice chancellor of Kurukshetra University.

Prof. Mohinder Singh, Director of the Academic Staff College of the University exhorted the young teachers of history to write on untraded fields of history after being trained in this refresher course. He thanked Prof. Chattar Singh for organising this refresher course on such a topic which attracted historian and scholars from faraway places like Mumbai, Baroda, Hyderabad, Jammu, Amritsar, Aligarh besides the north Indian states. Later, all the 33 teacher-participants were given certificates of participation in the course. All of them secured A grade. They were also given two books entitled Historigraphy by E.Sridharan and Dalit Movement in 20th century by V Tripathi. Prof Alam was also given a memento by Prof Mohinder Singh.