A pre-conference workshop on “Research in Ladakh: Sharing experiences and research method” for youths and those interested in research was organised by the International Association for Ladakh Studies (IALS) in collaboration with Government Degree College, Kargil on 26th October, 2014. Around 50 people, including students from Government Degree College, Kargil and members of IALS participated in the workshop, which was in preparation for the 17th IALS conference in Kargil in 2015.
The workshop began with a welcome speech by Amjad Ali, senior
assistant professor at Government Degree College, Kargil. This was followed by an introductory
presentation by Sonam Wangchok, secretary, IALS, who spoke about the objectives
of IALS and gave an overview of the conference. Kargil district administration
was represented by ADC Moses Kunzang. In his opening address, he said, “I was
interested in research but did not have many opportunities to pursue it. This
is an opportunity for students and new researchers to grasp the opportunity
provided by IALS and learn how to conduct research.”
The
workshop was divided in two sessions. In the first session, Sonam Wangchok spoke
about research methodology and methods followed by a talk by Sunetro Ghosal,
editor of IALS’ journal Ladakh Studies,
on research methodology and ethics. In the second session, senior researchers
from Leh and Kargil shared their research experiences and encouraged youths to explore
their interest in research and Ladakh Studies. This included talks by Abdul
Ghani Sheik, Kacho Mumtaz Ali Khan, Tashi Morup, Tashi Dawa Tsangspa, Ajaz
Hussain Munshi, Tsewang Rigzin and Amjad Ali. Each talk was followed by an
interactive session, between the participants and the speaker.
A
meeting of IALS members took place after the
workshop, where it was decided that a meeting would be held in Kargil after the
Muhharam to finalise the date and venue for the conference and also form the organising
committee for 17th IALS conference in Kargil. For more information
about IALS and its activities, please log onto www.ladakhstudies.org
Sonam Wangchok
