History

Distinguished by an emphasis on the study of peoples and regions with particular reference to social, cultural and economic developments in North East India, the department's objectives are (1) to provide at the Master's level a broad knowledge of human history and particularly of the areas and themes of special concern to the department and modern approaches to its study through a suitably structured and balanced syllabus, and (2) to promote historical research in hitherto unexplored areas, especially in North Eastern region through the Ph.D. programmes and faculty members' research. The department's major achievements have been in the areas of syllabi innovation and promotion of North East India studies. New grounds have been broken in regional history and in the history of the bordering areas or countries. Through the researches of its faculty, its Ph.D. programmes and through the North-East India History Association, which it helped to establish and nurture since its foundation in 1979, the department has played a crucial role in laying the foundation of regional studies in the region. It is now recognized as the leading centre for historical studies of North Eastern region. In 1994 it was brought under Special Assistance Programme (SAP) of the UGC with North East India Studies as the thrust area and in 2001-02 the programme has been renewed by the UGC for another five years (till 2005-2006).

The Department has been organized, as its placement in the School of Social Sciences bears out, on the concept of history as a social science. Its character is distinguished by an emphasis on the study of the history and cultures of peoples and regions with special reference to India and the neighbouring regions, and within it, North-East India. North-East India is the thrust area of the studies conducted by the Department.

In the three decades of its existence the Department has been playing an important role in meeting the mandate of the University in its postgraduate and research programmes and the research undertaken by the faculty. The Department has over the years popularised the concept of the importance of regional histories in the context of macro-histories and has helped in producing research materials and also reading materials for researchers and students on the societies of North-East India.

The Department has been receiving recognition from the UGC under its DRS programme and has recently become a SAP/DSA department. The Department is also engaged in research activities in the Area Studies Programme under the University with Potential for Excellence (UPE) scheme of the UGC.

The Department has been, for almost three decades, the headquarters of the North East India History Association which is a premier organisation of Historians and other social scientists of the region and has thus served the larger interest of social science research in the region.