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MA

MA

MA Programme

The Masters Programme in Development and Labour Studies is a full time two-year interdisciplinary course which will add value to the University’s existing MA Programmes. At present only two institutions, Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) Mumbai, and Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), New Delhi, run an MA Programme that covers the broad rubric of Labour Studies. In addition to this there is also an MA in Development Studies in TISS, Mumbai and Ambedkar University, Delhi (AUD) which are both deemed and state universities respectively. At present none of the Central universities in the city or in the country are offering an interdisciplinary MA Programme in Development and Labour Studies. Thus the proposed programme is a unique effort at combining the broad thematic parameters of the emerging disciplines development and labour studies.

OBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAMME

  • Preparing students to get interdisciplinary training to do doctoral research on contemporary issues pertaining to labour and informal sector.
  • Providing an interdisciplinary perspective on the contemporary themes and issues on informality and labour drawing from the disciplines of history, economics, sociology and political science.
  • Providing basic theoretical and empirical training to undertake an indepth analysis of the structural changes and public policy challenges that confront the labour in the informal sector in the contemporary world.
  • Training students in development and labour studies so that they can develop leadership skills to work as professionals in these sectors.

ELIGIBILITY FOR PROGRAMME

Students with a bachelor degree in any discipline with minimum 50 per cent marks are eligible to apply. The applicants for the M.A. programme will be examined in the light of their knowledge on themes and issues studied in a standard social science bachelor programme. The purpose of entrance exam is to test the candidates' general awareness on issues related to development and labour studies, their capacity to comprehend and reflect on academic articles, and their ability in analytical reasoning on the contemporary issues of informal sector. The M.A. admission test will carry a total of 100 marks and students will be tested in the broad thematic areas of major social science disciplines: political economy, theories and contemporary history of development, development economics, sociological and political theories. The purpose of the test is to select candidates who demonstrate aptitude for analytical skills and ability for original thinking. 

THE STRUCTURE OF THE PROGRAMME
The basic structure of the M.A. Programme follows the norms laid down by the University. It is a two year full time Programme spread over four semesters. A student will have to complete 64 credits in order to qualify for a Masters degree. 
The 64 credits of the Masters Programme will be allocated in the following manner:
Eight Core Courses of 4 Credits Each                  32 Credits.
Eight Optional Courses of 4 Credits Each           32 Credits.
Total Credits                                                        64 Credits
Eight Core Courses will be offered in the first two semesters of the programme. Optional Courses will be offered in the third and the forth semesters. Students can take a total of two (or three, with due permission of the faculty) optional courses in the Third and Fourth Semester (maximum of two in one semester) outside the Centre.
The courses for the proposed MA Programme shall be spread over four semesters and are distributed in the following manner:


First Semester

4 CORE Courses

4 x4= 16 Credits

 

All students credit these courses.

Second Semester

4 CORE Courses

4 x4= 16 Credits

Third Semester

4 OPTIONAL Courses

4 x4= 16 Credits

Out of a total of 8 optional courses, students will have to compulsorily take one Seminar Course offered by the Centre

Fourth Semester

4 OPTIONAL Courses

4 x4= 16 Credits

The list and details of the Courses are as follows:


First Semester

Credits

Course Incharge

CORE COURSES

  • Development: Concepts And Approaches
  • Theoretical and Historical Perspectives on Labour
  • Informal Sector: An Introduction
  • Research Methods in Social Sciences

 

4
4
4
4

 

Total credits earned-  16

Second Semester

  • Indian Economic Development: Selected Issues
  • Production Conditions and Labour in Rural India
  • Urbanization, Migration And Labour
  • State, Globalisation and Labour

 

4

4
4
4

 

Total credits earned- 16

Third Semester

  • Four optional Courses*

(Note: The student can take one or two Optional Courses* of 4 credits each outside the Centre)
Or

  • One Seminar Course offered at the Centre and three Optional Courses*

 

4 Credits x 4=16

 

Total credits earned-  16

Fourth Semester

  • Four Optional Courses*

(Note: The student can take one or two Optional Courses* of 4 credits each outside the Centre)
Or

  • (for those who do not opt for a Seminar Course in Semester III) One Seminar Course offered at the Centre and three Optional Courses*

 

4 Credits x 4=16

 

Total credits earned-  16

* The students can opt for a maximum of three optional courses of 4 credits each from outside the Centre, spread into two semesters (III&IV) with the permission of the Centre.

OBJECTIVES OF THE PROPOSED CORE COURSES (SEMESTERS 1 AND II)
The core courses, spread over the first two semesters of the M.A. Programme, cover broad thematic areas which provide students with an overview of the subject and basic theoretical knowledge of the structural factors that impact on labour processes and their growing informalisation. These courses provide a holistic view on multiple themes in development and labour studies from an interdisciplinary perspective. As will be noticed in the structure and the content of these courses, they focus on providing an overview of recent debates and contemporary areas of research. Thus the core courses will be different from optional courses which will elaborate on specific problems and themes on which the students can undertake indepth study.

PROPOSED OPTIONAL LECTURE COURSES (SEMESTER III AND IV)
Students will have to do between seven lecture courses (out of the eight optional courses) out of the pool of Optional Courses being offered by the Centre in the third and fourth semesters of the M.A. Programme. As mentioned earlier, the optional courses will focus on specific themes and problems and allow students to undertake indepth analysis on areas of their interest. Since the optional courses will be offered since 2016, responsibility of teaching optional courses will be fixed as and when new members join the faculty. Two sanctioned positions of Associate Professor are likely to be filled very soon. The Centre has been assured of one additional post at the earliest. You may also note that this is the first cut of optional courses and a few more may be added to the list subsequently. The proposed list of optional courses to be offered by the Centre is the following:


Semester/Course Title

Number of Credits

  • Women and Work
  • Nature, Capital and Labour
  • Development, Displacement and Labour
  • Contemporary Indian Society
  • Sociology of the Informal Sector 
  • Classical Modern Social Theory and Labour
  • Occupational Safety and Health
  • Workers Movements In India
  • Urban Politics and Informality
  • Advanced Qualitative Research
  • Political Economy of Institutions
  • Economics of Labour
  • Advanced Quantitative Techniques

4
4
4

4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4

PROPOSED OPTIONAL SEMINAR COURSES (SEMESTER III AND IV)
Students will have to do one Seminar Course out of the pool of Seminar Courses being offered by the Centre in the third and fourth semesters of the M.A. Programme. The Seminar Course is a non-lecture, reading-cum-research based course of four credits. It will focus on introducing students to original research on micro issues and problems. It will enable students to think and debate on such issues. Students will work under the guidance of the teachers who will provide the outline, themes covered and the mode of evaluation during the semesters. At the end of the semester, students will have to produce a fully referenced and scientifically argued 10000 words research paper. The list of proposed Seminar Courses are:

  • Child Labour in India
  • Labour Laws in India
  • Economic and Social Rights of Labour: Problems and Prospects
  • Research Methods in Labour Studies
  • Technology, Innovations and Skill Development.
  • The Political Economy of Care
  • Dalit and Adivasi Workers in Contemporary India
  • Women Workers in the Trade Union Movements.
  • Manual Scavanging in Contemporary India
  • Movements of the Marginalised Sections in India.

Apart from these proposed seminar courses, the faculty committee may decide to declare any optional lecture course as a ‘seminar’ course on the recommendation of the course instructor.

MODE OF TEACHING AND EVALUATION OF CORE COURSES:

  • The Core Courses offered to CISLS Masters students will be 4 Credit courses that may also be offered as M.A Optional Courses for Social Science Students outside the Centre for the same number of Credits.
  • For all core courses the division of the 4 Credits will be the following: the internal assessment will be of 2 credits and one end semester examination of 2 credits.
  • The internal assessement can be either in the form of mid-term tests or term papers or assignments or fieldwork or a combination of any of these methods as decided by the course instructor.
  • The method of instruction will be classroom teaching and tutorial discussions. In total the core courses will have 40 hours of face to face contact and teaching per paper.

MODE OF TEACHING AND EVALUATION OF OPTIONAL LECTURE COURSES:

  • The Optional Courses offered to CISLS Masters students will be 4 Credit courses that may also be offered as M.A Optional Courses for Social Science Students outside the Centre for the same number of Credits.
  • For Optional Courses the division of the 4 Credits will be the following: the internal assessment will be of 2 credits and one end semester examination of 2 credits.
  • The internal assessement can be either in the form of mid term tests or term papers or assignments or fieldwork or a combination of any of these methods as decided by the the course instructor. 
  • The method of instruction will be classroom teaching and tutorial discussions. In total an optional lecture course of 4 credits will have 40 hours of face to face contact and teaching per paper.

MODE OF TEACHING AND EVALUATION OF OPTIONAL SEMINAR COURSES:

  • The Optional Seminar Courses offered to CISLS Masters students will be 4 Credit courses that may also be offered as M.A Optional Courses for Social Science Students outside the Centre for the same number of Credits.
  • Attending regular meetings and discussions with the course instructor all through the semester will be compulsory.
  • The division of the 4 Credits will be the following: 2 credits for mid term research evaluation and 2 credits for research paper submitted at the end of the semester.
  • The research papers of 10000 words including bibliography and footnotes have to be submitted at the Centre's office by the due date to be announced in the beginning of the third and the fourth semesters. Students are encouraged to undertake original research using primary sources for the same.

The courses offered in the Centre will be accessible as optional courses to all MA students of the other Centre's of the University interested in labour studies and the informal sector.

A warm welcome to the modified and updated website of the Centre for East Asian Studies. The East Asian region has been at the forefront of several path-breaking changes since 1970s beginning with the redefining the development architecture with its State-led development model besides emerging as a major region in the global politics and a key hub of the sophisticated technologies. The Centre is one of the thirteen Centres of the School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi that provides a holistic understanding of the region.

Initially, established as a Centre for Chinese and Japanese Studies, it subsequently grew to include Korean Studies as well. At present there are eight faculty members in the Centre. Several distinguished faculty who have now retired include the late Prof. Gargi Dutt, Prof. P.A.N. Murthy, Prof. G.P. Deshpande, Dr. Nranarayan Das, Prof. R.R. Krishnan and Prof. K.V. Kesavan. Besides, Dr. Madhu Bhalla served at the Centre in Chinese Studies Programme during 1994-2006. In addition, Ms. Kamlesh Jain and Dr. M. M. Kunju served the Centre as the Documentation Officers in Chinese and Japanese Studies respectively.

The academic curriculum covers both modern and contemporary facets of East Asia as each scholar specializes in an area of his/her interest in the region. The integrated course involves two semesters of classes at the M. Phil programme and a dissertation for the M. Phil and a thesis for Ph. D programme respectively. The central objective is to impart an interdisciplinary knowledge and understanding of history, foreign policy, government and politics, society and culture and political economy of the respective areas. Students can explore new and emerging themes such as East Asian regionalism, the evolving East Asian Community, the rise of China, resurgence of Japan and the prospects for reunification of the Korean peninsula. Additionally, the Centre lays great emphasis on the building of language skills. The background of scholars includes mostly from the social science disciplines; History, Political Science, Economics, Sociology, International Relations and language.

Several students of the centre have been recipients of prestigious research fellowships awarded by Japan Foundation, Mombusho (Ministry of Education, Government of Japan), Saburo Okita Memorial Fellowship, Nippon Foundation, Korea Foundation, Nehru Memorial Fellowship, and Fellowship from the Chinese and Taiwanese Governments. Besides, students from Japan receive fellowship from the Indian Council of Cultural Relations.