Volume 07 - Issue 04
Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://repository.kln.ac.lk/handle/123456789/13939
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Item Dimensions of Rural Poverty in Sri Lanka: An attempt to identify the crucial aspects of well-being of rural poor(Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka, 2015) Semasinghe, W.M.Though, identification of the dimensions of poverty of a specific setting is crucial for poverty analysis and designing targeted poverty reducing programs, there is no consensus among researchers, policymakers etc. on the dimensions of poverty. In fact, the criteria for selecting dimensions used in the literature remain controversial. In the Sri Lankan context, though, poverty has been greatly discussed recently as in many other developing countries, most of the analysis focused solely on the identification of incidence and trends of poverty based on uni-dimensional approach. It is hard to find the methodical attempts which made to identify the aspects of well-being and poverty. The main objective of this paper was to identify the dimensions of rural poverty. Qizilbash‟s „core poor‟ framework was applied in this analysis. Findings revealed that food, clean drinking water, agricultural lands, clothes, education and knowledge, health care, housing, income (money), and sanitation are the crucial aspects of well-being of rural people.Item Textile Industry of Ancient Sri Lanka(Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka, 2015) Dilhani, AnuruddhikaTextile Industry could be identified as one of highly valued industries in ancient Sri Lanka. The origin of the Textile Industry is indefinite. But there is adequate proof that this industry was been in existence during the period of various civilizations of different country. The first example of textile appears from the Neolithic period. Only Linen clothes were produced in Egypt. Information and paintings regarding the production of Linen are illustrated in most of the grave yards and machines made of timber have been used for weaving textiles from the ancient times. It has been revealed from archaeological excavations carried out on pre- historic civilizations in Indo River valleys that prior to the arrival of Aryans, people living in India have been using unstitched clothing in the from shawls covering the body. Factors regarding clothing in Sri Lanka is very scarce. According to chronicles and inscriptions, there is proof that people of Sri Lanka have been engaged with textile industry during the period prior to the Christian era earliest sources are not available regarding any of the attire used by prince by Vijaya or Kuveni. It could be implied that people of his island may have been making their own clothing at the time of the arrival of Aryans too. The objective of this study in related to the nature of ancient textile industry during the Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa period.Item Seasonal Feeding Ecology of the Elephants in the Udawalawe National Park, Sri Lanka: (A Geographical Survey)(Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka, 2015) Isthikar, M.A.M.Elephants (elphahas maximus maximus) play a vital role as the Flag ship Species in Sri Lanka. As the study area, Udawalawe National Park (UNP) is one of the ideal national parks for elephants in the country where they are considered to be a key stone species of the park. The entire area of the park within the declared boundary, together with the reservoir, is 32,315 ha. The major vegetation type of the park includes primary, secondary and degraded secondary forest, grass lands, shrubs and teak plantations. The aim of this study is to explore the feeding ecology of elephants in two different seasons at the UNP, Sri Lanka. Data for this research was obtained through primary and secondary data collection. Primary data was obtained from the east, west and south of the park in April and June through observation and discussions with park officers. Data analysis was carried out based on obtained both qualitative and quantitative data. According to the study, east and south areas of the UNP are drier than the west and north, and the vegetation is comprised of wet monsoon forest in the north, dry monsoon forest in the south. Chenna cultivation is very obvious in the adjoining areas of the park. There are more than 90 dominant plant species belonging to 38 families in the park. Particularly, secondary forest areas and grass lands provide food for around 325 elephants in the park throughout the year. Elephants spend more than 15 hours per day on feeding. During the day time they spend inside the park and at night around 7.00 pm to 1.00 am they spend outside the park especially in March and April. They consume around 140 kilograms of food and 80 - 160 litres of water per day, and they are getting water from Udawalawe reservoir for drinking and also for the purpose of lowering body temperature. Their diet includes different types of grasses, as well as juicy leaves which they are getting from the park and also in March and April they are feeds fruits and vegetable through croup riding outside the park. Beside this, elephants consume minerals from eating red soil which is available in the eastern part of the park, drink underground water for sodium and also eat barking teak trees in the southern part of the park to obtain the minerals from them.Item The Making of Womanhood in Early India: Pativrata in the Mahabharata and Ramayana(Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka, 2015) Kang, MyungnamAs the symbol of a patriarchal society, the Pativratas have been recognized as the ideal women in the brahmanical tradition. Traditionally Sita, Savitri, Arundhati, Anasuya and Damayanti have long been celebrated as the Pativratas. They accept chastity,2 submissiveness and wifely devotion as the highest qualities of their selfhood. They practice and pursue stridharma (pativrata dharma) during their entire life and even in their previous or afterlife. Sometimes the extreme devotion of stridharma enabled them to acquire extraordinary power. Their sexuality is totally controlled by their husbands. They all belong to the higher social varnas in the society. Since the husband is equated with god, to be worshipped according to the pativrata dharma, the most miserable situation for the pativrata is the death of her husband (god). In this paper, will focus on some of these depictions of the ideal women to bring out how the brahmanical tradition in early India was constructing notions of womanhood in conformity with caste and other social denominators to reinforce notions of social order and harmony, which privileged those in positions of social power.Item Women work issues in rural development: a case of m.g.nrega implementation in west Bengal, India(Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka, 2015) Sarmistha sahaBased on gender and development (GAD) approach, this paper explores how M.G.NREGA is opening a new window for the ease of livelihood for rural women in India. M.G.NREGA is the first right based and demand driven employment generating scheme of the country which ensures some special provisions for rural women. The focus of these provisions is to mainstream the rural women into the contemporary discourses of economic development. The paper keeps an inner look about the expectations from this scheme for the development of women livelihood in rural areas and the challenges in ground level implementation. The problem addressed in the paper is the women work issues generating through the successful implementation of the scheme. It is important to find out how the full benefits of the scheme can be explored. This exploration is needed for a large section of the societal benefit and improved livelihood. For the entire study, a twofold approach is taken. First, analysis of available literatures to understand the possible outcomes of the scheme with current discourses of economic development. Second, analysis of primary and secondary data for revealing the characteristics of the problem based on gender dynamics of the region. The study relates findings from the field survey of 210 samples in the state of West Bengal, India. Intensive field study has identified several positive outcomes like saving of time for domestic works, mainstreaming of women labour, generation of income and livelihood security for village women, reorganization of women‟s work etc., with wide regional variations. The study has identified major challenges to get these benefits. The result drawn from the study is general and regionally applicable.