W.H.R. Rivers (FRC, FRAI)(Photo Credit: Wikipedia) The anthropological conversations among the members of the United Indian Anthropology Forum engages constructive and critical deliberations on various important issues and highlights the significance of anthropology and contributions of anthropologists in these debates. These conversations bring about critical thinking driven by inference from anthropological research and validated information […]

Padma Bhushan awardee renowned social anthropologist and sociologist late Prof. M.N. Srinivas has inspired an entire generation of Social Scientists to shift from Book view of the Societies to its Field View. Mysore Narsimhacharya Srinivas was born in a traditional Brahmin family in Mysore on 16th November 1916. He came from a family that valued […]

Indian anthropology is often critiqued for not having made significant contributions to anthropological theory and methodology.  This is primarily due to the absence of concerted efforts to document and present contributions of eminent anthropologists in the public domain. Lack of access to open international academic spaces is one of the reasons for denying this legitimate […]

Webinar organized by UIAF in collaboration with Department of Anthropology, University of Lucknow, 21st March, 2021 on the Topic – Affairs of the Tribes of Andaman and Nicobar Archipelago . Web-symposium on Practicing Anthropology Organized by United India Anthropology Forum In collaboration with Savitribai Phule Pune University, Pune 20th March, 2021 Webinar DAY 4 – […]

The Journal of Indian Anthropological Society brought out a special issue in memory of Surajit Chandra Sinha (2003) in which certain aspects of his life and work were written besides there were twenty two other papers covering topics in which Sinha was directly or indirectly interested.  Here the focus will be on two aspects: one […]

During his checkered career taught Anthropology and Human Geography at Calcutta University, was Director, Anthropological Survey of India and Commissioner for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. He had served as Mahatma Gandhi’s secretary and interpreter during Gandhi’s famous trip to East Bengal at the height of communal violence there. He was editor of Man […]

Prof. Pooran Chand Joshi (PCJ) was a passionate academic and administrator and remained actively engaged when he suddenly passed away due to massive heart attack on June 20, 2025. Anthropology was his passion that started in 1972, when he joined Delhi University (DU) to pursue a Bachelor of Science degree. He went on to do, […]

I met her in 1988 during the 12th International Congress of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences held at Zagreb. She had organised a session on ‘Codification of Customary Laws into Family Laws in Asia’. Hearing her for the first time I was awed by the power in the presentation of this petite, beautiful woman. She spoke […]

Prof. Vinay Kumar Srivastava (VKS) was the Director of Anthropological Survey of India, the largest Government funded body of anthropologist in the world, when he passed away on 23rd of December 2020. In his own words, his academic journey was summarised as follows:              “I taught Sociology at Hindu College, […]

Former Director, Institute for Human Development, Eastern Regional Centre, Ranchi Dr. Vijay Prakash Sharma is an eminent social Anthropologist and did his M.Sc. in 1975 and Ph.D. in 1984 from Ranchi University. Former Director, Institute for Human Development, Eastern Regional Centre, Ranchi; He served as -• Adjunct faculty, NIRD&PR, Ministry of Rural Development, Government of […]

The conversation on 13th June2022 was initiated by Prof. P.C. Joshi on the 96th birth anniversary of Jerome Jean-Louis-Marie-Lejeune. Celebrating his contributions, he wrote: “Jerome Lejeune was passionately devoted to alleviating sufferings of those afflicted with disability caused by chromosomal aberrations. He genuinely wanted to find a cure and dedicated his life towards it. Sadly, […]

Every morning, Prof. P.C. Joshi (former acting Vice-chancellor of Delhi University and currently president of SIMA President, Society for Indian Medical Anthropology) discerns in few sentences relevance of a particular date being celebrated as a special occasion to remind us of its historical, cultural, or contemporary relevance. 17th May is celebrated as World Hypertension Day. […]

At the time of Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro held on 5th June 1992, convention for biological diversity was opened. It was on 29th December 1993, the second committee of the UN general assembly signed the “Convention of Biological Diversity”. India became a signatory to the convention agreement on February 18th, 1994. United States […]

India is home to galaxy of anthropologists who have relatively remained unsung. Their contributions are often ignored by varied traditions of anthropology practised across the World. On this platform, UIAF is bringing together their contributions to anthropological epistemology along with their personal and academic journeys, mostly documented by scholars who have worked closely with these […]