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Wednesday, 20 September 2017

PG Department of History organises seminar to celebrate 50 years of its establishment

Bhanja Bihar: At a time, when we all are worried about violation of human rights on the heels of burning issues like Rohingya exodus, assassination of Gouri Lankesh, Nagada malnutrition etc, Department of History of Berhampur University organised a two-day national seminar on “Violation of Human Rights in Contemporary India: Challenges and Prospects” at the old conference hall here in campus during September 18 and 19, 2017 to mark the celebration of 50 years of its establishment.

Inaugural function of a UGC sponsored seminar to mark 
the Golden Jubilee of Dept of History at the old conference
hall of Berhampur University 
PG Council Chairman Prof. Devi Prasanna Patnaik inaugurated the UGC sponsored seminar by lighting the lamp. After the guest introductions given by Prof Bhagaban Sahu, PG Council Chairman Prof. Patnaik felicitated three former professors of the department – Prof. K.C. Jena, Prof. L.N. Rout and Prof. S.C. Padhy.

Introducing the seminar topic, the Head of the Department Dr. Sadanand Nayak said human rights violation is ‘seeing a human as not a human’. Law and punishment is not enough in the context, rather we need to break the shackles of ignorance to address the issue, he opined.

Addressing the gathering, key note speaker Prof. Anil Kumar Mohapatra from Fakir Mohan University elaborated regarding the problems and prospects of human rights. He spoke about two approaches of human rights violations i.e. traditional and alternative. He indicated that the alternative approach to human rights violation is prominent now which is a matter of concern throughout the world.

In order to define human rights, Prof. Mohapatra said these are inherited rights before the birth which is ensured beyond the state jurisdiction. He clearly distinguished the scope of fundamental rights from that of human rights. He explained about proscriptive rights (State is prohibited to provide certain rights) and prescriptive rights (State is asked to provide some rights). He also highlighted some of the current issues on human rights violation and concluded his speech with a quote, “We can secure our human rights, only by securing the rights of others.”

Addressing the gathering, department former Professor K.C. Jena, who was instrumental in naming the campus as ‘Bhanja Bihar’, recounted his days in the university. He invoked the students to stay happy always as the destiny is unpredictable.

Former Professor L.N Rout spoke about a number reason behind the increasing cases of human rights violation and opined that through eradication of discrimination and proper education, the human rights violation cases can be addressed. Meanwhile, former Professor S.C. Padhy explained about effects of blessings and benefits of being optimistic.

In the valedictory function, Vice-Chancellor Prof. Rajendra Prasad Das enlightened the participants about the duties and rights. He said, “Talking about human rights is the beginning of the topic, but when we talk about duties, we move towards solutions. We can’t grow by ignoring our duties and remain in the shelter of rights.” He concluded his speech by saying, “The rights are being protected by the Constitution and nobody can take it away from us if we perform our duties.”

Valedictory function of Golden Jubilee celebrations of 
Dept. of History in Berhampur University
Addressing the gathering, Chief Guest Mr. Sunil Kumar Mishra, IAS, State Chief Information Commissioner, opined that until and unless human rights are linked with development and distributive justice, the present stand on human rights can’t be a reality. 

“The person, who has greed for power and thrust for dominance, usually victimises the people who are voiceless (politically and economically deprived section of the country)due to perceived fear of these people to lose their importance by getting less benefits (government schemes and policies) than the lower section”, Mr. Mishra said adding that these people are the main obstacles for efficient penetration of policies and awareness made by the government. 

Talking about the present day scenario, Mr. Mishra, who is also an alumni of this university, held ethnic and religious groups responsible for violation of human rights. He suggested that there is a need of reformation and effective collaboration of United Nations Organisation to deal with the issues. He concluded his speech by giving information about the RTI Act-2005 and its status in Odisha.

HoD Dr. Sadananda Nayak coordinated the function while Dr. Shankarshan Mallik proposed the vote of thanks. Other faculty members of the department Dr. Bishnu Prasad Padhee and Dr. Ramakant Bhuyan were also instrumental for the success of the Golden Jubilee celebration. 

Dr. Ramesh Chandra Mallik from Utkal University, Dr. Alaka Mishra, DCWO, Ganjam and Vibhu Acharya, OAS were among the notable delegates present during the technical sessions of the seminar. 

(A report by Alka Digal and Dhaneswar Jena, JMC, Semester-III, 2017)

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