at
Sree Shankaracharya University of Sanskrith , Kalady, Kerla
Jointly Organised By
National Association of Professional Social Workers in India (NAPSWI)
and
Department of Social Work, Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapith,Varanasi
The thematic argument of 5th ISWC “Social Work Profession and Social Realities: Responses and Ripostes” has surfaced from the sensitivity to the present-day social alarms and struggling incidents in the continuum of the micro to macro geography of the social and ecological existence. The emergence of new economic realities around the globe especially in India, over powered by the information technology and compelling dominance of the Euro - American economic philosophies mooted by the newer political alliances and ideologies in power, has uprooted the being and living of common people and marginalized existences. The State and organised power holders with the mightiness of money and machine have started to make the democratic and harmonious existence of the underprivileged and the periphery dwellers highly challenged and threatened. The market driven ethics of the persuasive powerhouses with forsaken social consciousness and social responsibilities has converted the social realities as hard-hitting social experiences of exclusion and elimination. Nevertheless, the self-critical and reflective deliberations on the scientific and strategic response of the Social work profession so far, make us precariously silenced and challenged. In the highly complex and polarized social truths around the globe in general and India in particular the engaged space of social work profession as a system of crafting the art of survival and empowering propositions is not effectively identified, addressed and propounded.
This dilemma of dichotomy with social and professional incompatibility is very clearly manifested in the domains of all social walks. The Social institutions like, family, education, religion, politics, social legislative orders and other societal systems are challenged with the survival and meaningful presence. The psychological, social and physical health care services and institutions are monopolized by the power groups and the health seeking patterns are dictated. The life and dignified engagement of the farming community is on the verge of genocide as the tradition of farming is taken away by the market forces and greedy money powers. The ordinary people are forcefully displaced from their natural dwelling as the gripped boots of the development cancer is enlarging with its invisible leashes. The everyday existence and normal social living of the marginalized and the minorities (on the basis of age, region, sexuality, gender, color, cast, religion, economy, education, occupations etc...) are questioned by the mighty powerful in the mainstream. The potential safeguards in a democratic polity (press, media, legislature, judiciary, civil societies and the socially committed individuals) are conspicuously restricted by the executive using their men in uniform and political brigades. The policies and programmes of the governments at various levels in the nexus with the money houses and international traders are in fact not bringing the desired changes in the social conditions but are making the life of the common and the underprivileged with the fragile purchasing capacity really miserable and unpromising.
The 5th Indian Social Work Congress will provide a platform to discuss and deliberate on how the profession of social work can respond itself in achieving the above objectives. At this point of time, where social work profession is undergoing major transformation from local to global level, 5th ISWC - 2017 shall take the torch and pave the road ahead to investigate newer dimensions and directions in making it more visible, powerful and creatively contributing.
