Observations from the Visit to Lower-Cauvery Delta
Fumiko Oshikawa, Professor emeritus, Kyoto University, Japan, gave a presentation at the office of the Foundation on February 5, 2020.
Professor Oshikawa shared her observations from a recent visit to the FAS study villages, Kilvenmani and Palakurichi, in Nagapattinam district, Tamil Nadu. She discussed the tentative structure and plan for her study of literacy and schooling in the villages. This study is part of an ongoing research project on Agrarian Relations in Lower Cauvery Delta, undertaken by the Foundation in 2018.
Her discussion had two broad components. Firstly, she presented her impressions about the state of the schooling system (public, private, government-aided and facilitated by the christian missionaries) in Nagapattinam district. This was followed by a presentation on her ideas to study the inter-relationship between the presence of private-funded higher educational institutes in the region and engagement in salaried employment.