A Textbook of sociology written by Dr. Sartaj Ahmad published by University Book House ( Pvt ) Ltd Jaipur was released in the Mangalya Auditorium of Swami Vivekananda Subharti University Meerut at the occasion of United India Independence Day on 21 October 2019. Prof Vaibhav Goel Bhartiya and Dr. Manoj Kumar Tripathi are the co-authors of the book.
The book released by Chancellor Medam Stuti Kakkar, Vice-Chancellor Dr. N K Ahuja, Chief Guest Former Justice High Court Mr. Shambhu Nath Srivastav and Mayor Dehradoon Mr. Sunil Uniyaal. Dr. Atul Krishna, Dr. Mukti Bhatnagar, Dr. Shalya Raaj, all principals, HOD, faculty members, teaching and nonteaching staff were present at the function.
Introduction
Sociology is the science which deals with the study of human behavior. It is the subject of the
ways in which social experiences function in developing, maturing and repressing human beings
through interpersonal stimulation. The study of sociology in India started in 1919 at the
The University of Bombay, but it was recognized in 1930 and its study as a separate discipline was
started. Now, it is being taught at a number of universities and it is getting popular among the
students. Some Indian writers like G.S. Ghuriya, R.K. Mukherjee, H.T. Majumdar and more
have also made an original contribution to sociological studies. The students of humanities must
know the value of this important subject.
About Authors
Dr. Sartaj Ahmad, a sociologist of repute, having long teaching experience as a faculty of sociology in Swami Vivekananda Subharti University, Meerut UP India. He has published more than one hundred research papers in the reputed and indexed journals and more than a dozen of papers presented in National and International Conferences. He is the main author of “A Text Book of Sociology” and co-authors are Professor Vaibhav Goel Bhartiya, Principal and Dean, Faculty of Law, Swami Vivekananda Subharti University, Meerut Uttar Pradesh and Dr. Manoj Kumar Tripathi, Associate professor, Faculty of Law, Swami Vivekananda Subharti University, Meerut UP, India.
About the textbook of sociology
This book takes a fresh look at the social determinants of traditional and modern changing of Indian society. It provides an updated overview of Indian society encapsulated with the rich ideas of
the author.
The author highlights the changes witnessed in demography, caste, family and marriage, settlement pattern after divorce, increasing population, the problem of pollution and a healthy environment which are least touched aspects in other available text divisions.
This textbook of sociology is written in a lucid and comprehensive language with many examples to make it interesting for the social and legal fraternity. Due care has been taken to avoid repetition of material, conflicting statements, disjointed facts, superfluous data and vague statements that frustrate readers.
This book is organized into seventeen units and 57 chapters. Order of chapters is arranged in a logical manner with progression from basic understanding to orienting about the application of
knowledge and skills. Applied aspects of topics are covered clearly and adequately, along with relevant examples. Use of most recent and up- to- date research to define the magnitude of the social problems.
At the beginning of the textbook, the author has highlighted the concept and importance of sociology. In the further chapters, author has detailed discussed on concept of society, social research methods, socialization, culture, social inequality, social stratification, social mobility, race and ethnic relation, social institution, collective behavior, social change and social
movements, social groups, social organizations, social norms, social control, deviance, and crime, etc.
In this book types and structures of cities and villages are framed. The impact of migration and the presence of urban poverty also mentioned.
The author briefly discusses the structural and cultural characteristics of the Jati and Varna system and the issues of caste-based society. It must be added here that the elaboration on caste has significantly underplayed it’s oppressive and exploitative on both economic and social aspects.
Another chapter is related to Tribal India, the description of the tribes consists of the tribal distribution, the levels of their economy, social organizational forms, their cultural contact and government planning for their development.
Apart from mentioning that “tribal areas are relatively backward” and their “relative isolation obstructed the winds of change”.
The author has focused on the family and marriage system of various Indian religions. Today’s, various changes are found in the form and function of family and marriages.
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The summary of the recent law on the issue of Triple Talaq relating to Indian Muslim women under The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Act, 2019 is mentioned in this book. It
is the first time covered in the book of Sociology?
Worldwide, women are facing many social problems. So, prevalent forms of violence against women like female foeticide, infanticide, child marriage, genital mutilation, dowry, domestic violence, acid throwing, sexual harassment, and human trafficking have found a place in the book.
The author devotes a good deal to give the updated sectional profile of such social problems like problems of workers, corruption, black money, cybercrime, unemployment, etc. The majority of Indian citizens are not much aware of their constitutional rights. The chapter on Human rights of vulnerable groups and marginalized peoples also discussed.
This textbook meets adequately the specific needs of undergraduate and postgraduate students of humanities. It is very useful for those who are preparing for competitive exams.
Conclude remarks
This textbook is in many aspects, the end- a result of decades-long experience of teaching sociology to a continuing stream of undergraduate and postgraduate students of humanities.
This book can prove immensely useful to various other categories of students pursuing a specialization course in disciplines bordering sociology. This is a student-friendly book for it is easy to understand, retain and reproduce. It is felt that an orderly and sequential presentation of facts and analytical treatment of overlapping topics on parallel lines can facilitate the learning
process.
Despite the author’s sincere efforts to make the book as accurate and comprehensive as he could, it is observed that there is some deficiency of diagrams and pictures, etc. In our opinion, the author
should add these deficiencies and removed minor errors in the next edition.
