Research
The SPINAC has a separate division that is involved in conducting advanced research into the historical and contemporary aspects of South Asia.
The focus is on:
- various aspects of history of Indian civilisation
- languages and literary traditions
- long-term historical social-cultural and political-economic transformation processes
- environmental policies and consequences
- history of science, medicine and technology
- empowerment dalits and women
There are two core research projects that the Trust is proposing to work on with the active support from the Government and corporate world under their corporate social responsibility:
- The survey, study and documentation of endangered languages and cultural forms are part of research agenda. In particular the tribes in India have evolved unique forms of oral languages and religious narrative traditions which are endangered in the contemporary world. The SPINAC has a special program to conduct research into the tribal life-world and preserve the endangered language forms in electronic form and creative public access.
- Developing "Medical humanity": it essentially means doing research and creating an ideal environment for a creative dialogue between the Bio-medical world and the world of Social Sciences. Social world is expanding outside the Bio-medical world and the latter can be provided with insight from the civil society and the historical practices of medicine. The urgent need is to create a link between the civil society and the Bio-medical sciences and this link creates medical humanity. The Trust therefore proposed to study mortality, diseases, medical care and drug inventions from the historical as well as contemporary perspective.
