Assam: World Social Work Day celebrated at LGB Regional Institute of Mental Health

Tezpur: The Department of Psychiatric Social Work organized a two-day celebration of the World Social Work Day on March 18 and 19 at the LGB Regional Institute of Mental Health. The first day featured a lecture session on Family Therapy and Research Ethics by Professor Dr. Srilatha Juvva, who is a professor at the Centre for Equity and Justice.

The event began with the felicitation of the esteemed guest by the faculties of the Department of Psychiatric Social Work. This was followed by a lamp-lighting ceremony to mark the beginning of the day’s event. The programme started with a welcome address by the Head of the Department of Psychiatric Social Work. The theme for this year’s celebration was BuenVivir: Shared Future for Transformative Change. The speakers for the day’s discussion included Dr. Debarshi Prasad Nath (Professor and HOD at Dept of Cultural Studies, TU) Dr. Monisha Behal (Co founder and Executive Director at Northeast Network) Dr. Samhita Barooah (Assistant Professor at Dept of Social Work Tezpur University) and Prof Srilatha Juvva. (Professor at the Centre for Equity and Justice, TISS, Mumbai)

The panel discussion was chaired by Professor Dr. S.K Deuri. The chairperson set the course of the discussion by giving a brief on the dawn of civilization, the evolution of human beings, and the judicious use of the authority that humans have endowed upon themselves. The role of social workers in the multidisciplinary approach to treatment in mental health institutions was also discussed.

Dr. Debarshi Prasad Nath spoke about the contribution of culture in transforming society by drawing similarities between the two disciplines of Social Work and Cultural Studies. He emphasized the need for a multidisciplinary approach that moves beyond the anthropocentric worldview. Following this, Dr. Monisha Behal spoke about “Women as Change Agents for a Shared Future”. She put forward anecdotes from her fieldwork experiences and compared the status of women of the Northeast with other parts of India due to the former roots in the Vaishnavite culture. She focused on the need to identify problems to bring about change.

Dr. Samhita Barooah, Assistant Professor from Tezpur University, spoke about the need for an inclusive collective. She drew on her understanding of inclusivity in terms of conjoining the 7 Es: Economy, Ethics, Emotions, Empathy, Equity, Ecology, and Entitlement.

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