Conferences/Webinars

The Vislavath Lalu Nayak Memorial Knowledge Centre, in collaboration with the Osmania University Centre for International Programmes (OUCIP), organized a two-day international conference titled “Unfinished Legacy of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar: Margins Claim a Share in the Center” on August 26-27, 2019. This event was held at OUCIP, Hyderabad, and was inspired by the Unfinished Legacy Conferences of Brandeis University, USA. The conference was also organized to honor Professor T. Nageshwara Rao, who retired as the In-Charge Registrar of The English and Foreign Languages University (EFLU), Hyderabad. Professor T. Nageswara Rao, a distinguished scholar from the Yanadi tribe of Andhra Pradesh, was the first from his community to pursue a Ph.D. at Strathclyde University on the prestigious Commonwealth Fellowship. His scholarly work in Modernism, Canadian Literature, and Feminism has earned international acclaim. He has also completed an ICSSR-sponsored research project titled “Dialectics of Marginality and Modernity: A Case Study of Yanadi Tribe of Coastal Andhra Pradesh.” Throughout his career, Prof. Rao has been dedicated to the upliftment of Tribal and Dalit communities, guided by the ideology of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar.

The conference began with a keynote address by Prof. Virginius Xaxa, Professor Emeritus at Tezpur University, on the topic “Understanding Margin, Marginality and Marginalisation.” The first day's post-lunch session included a plenary session by Dr. Bodhi from TISS Mumbai, chaired by Prof. Tharakeshwar V.B., where the discussion focused on “Contemporary Debates in Tribal Studies.” This was followed by two parallel sessions where scholars from various universities presented their papers on topics ranging from Dalit literature to tribal representation in modern Indian cinema.

• Some of the paper presentations included :
• • Anandita Pan & Dr. Srinath VS : Contesting Margins through Ambedkar’s Philosophy : An Intersectional Standpoint Praxis
• • Dr. Deepa Jyothi & Anuradha : Social Discrimination and Dalit Consciousness : A Study of Baburao Bagul’s When I Hid My Caste
• • Arjob Roy : Identity Questions and Left Radicalism in West Bengal during the Sixties-Seventies
• • Aneeta V George :Understanding Dalit Literature in the Light of Ambedkar’s Ideas
• • Dudapaka Naresh :Anna Bhau Sathe: Unknown Legendary Personality among the Marginal Community
• • Vismaya V: Representation of Caste in Modern Indian Cinema
• • Samy Victor Marandi:Tribal Representation in Contemporary Fiction

The day concluded with another plenary session by Dr. Rajesh Sampath from Brandeis University, USA, who spoke on “The Persistence of Caste: The Impossible Simultaneity of Religion and Social Revolution,” followed by a seminar dinner. The second day of the conference featured plenary speakers including Dr. Vijaya (OU, Hyderabad), Dr. Bipin Jojo (TISS, Mumbai), Dr. Asma Rasheed (EFLU, Hyderabad), Dr. Manohar Reddy (NALSAR, Hyderabad), Dr. Jibu Mathew George (EFLU, Hyderabad), and Dr. Ram Das (UoH, Hyderabad). Discussions covered a wide range of topics, from literary representations of tribals and Dalits to revisions of Ambedkarite philosophy. The event also paid special tribute to Prof. T. Nageswara Rao, with testimonies from his family members, colleagues, and students, adding an emotional tone to the proceedings. The conference provided a platform for critical discussions on the ongoing struggles of marginalized communities in modern Indian society, continuing the legacy of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar’s fight for social justice.