User:Ajay Pratap, Ph.D

AJAY PRATAP

AJAY PRATAP WAS EDUCATED AT MT. CARMEL CONVENT SCHOOL (FOR GIRLS, HOWEVER THE SCHOOL MADE AN EXCEPTION IN THIS PARTICULAR CASE), BHAGALPUR, BIHAR, INDIA; AND THEN ST. XAVIER'S HIGH SCHOOL, PATNA, INDIA; AND FINALLY AT THE ST. MICHAEL'S HIGH SCHOOL, PATNA, BIHAR, INDIA. HE COMPLETED HIS MATRICULATION IN 1975 WITH A FIRST CLASS, AND GAINED ADMISSION INTO THE PRESTIGIOUS ST. STEPHEN'S COLLEGE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF DELHI FROM WHERE HE GRADUATED WITH A HIGH FIRST IN HISTORY.

SUBSEQUENTLY, HE JOINED AS AN M.A. STUDENT AT THE DECCAN COLLEGE, POONA, AS A STUDENT OF ANCIENT INDIAN HISTORY, CULTURE AND ARCHAEOLOGY, WHERE HE SPECIALIZED IN PREHISTORIC ARCHAEOLOGY. FOR A YEAR, HE WORKED WITH PROFESSOR M.L.K. MURTY OF THE SAME INSTITUTION, AS A PH.D. STUDENT; HOWEVER ON RECEIVING A NATIONALLY VERY PRESTIGIOUS AWARD FOR STUDIES OVERSEAS, HE LEFT DECCAN COLLEGE FOR CHURCHILL COLLEGE, UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE, U.K.

HE COMPLETED HIS M.PHIL. DEGREE, AGAIN WITH THE BEST SCORE IN HIS BATCH, AND WAS AT THE BEHEST OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ARCHAEOLOGY, WITHHELD, TO CONTINUE AND COMPLETE HIS PH.D. FROM THE SAME INSTITUTION.

DR. PRATAP, HAS WORKED MAINLY ON THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF SHIFTING CULTIVATION IN THE RAJMAHAL HILLS OF SANTHAL PARGANAS DISTRICT, JHARKHAND, INDIA, BY PUTTING-IN ABOUT TWO YEARS OF FIELD RESEARCH AND EVEN NOW VISITS HIS FIELD-AREA, THE RAJMAHAL HILLS, NEARLY EVERY YEAR.

AS HE STUDIED WITH SUCH GREATS IN INDIA (M.L.K. MURTY, V.N. MISRA AND K. PADDAYYA) AND IN CAMBRIDGE WITH SUCH GREATS AS F.R. ALLCHIN, MR. C.R. WHITTAKER, IAN HODDER, COLIN RENFREW, CATHERINE HILLS, COLIN SHELL AND PAUL MELLARS; THE FOCUS OF HIS PAST AND PRESENT WORK REMAINS ETHNOARCHAEOLOGY. HE REMAINS IN-TOUCH WITH HIS OLD SCHOOL PALS, ENJOYS A DRINK NOW AND THEN, AND LOVES TO BANTER ON THE INTERNET, WHENEVER HE HAS SOME TIME.

AFTER A STINT WITH THE INDIRA GANDHI NATIONAL CENTER FOR THE ARTS, FROM 1988 UNTIL 1991, DR. PRATAP HAS BEEN TEACHING ANCIENT INDIAN HISTORY, AT THE DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY, FACULTY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES, BANARAS HINDU UNIVERSITY, VARANASI - 221 005. HE STARTED TO WORK HERE, IN 2004, AND CONTINUES TILL TODAY. AMONG THE PAPERS WHICH HE HAS BEEN TEACHING ARE: B.A. (HONS.) SEMESTER I AND II, HISTORY OF INDIA FROM THE EARLIEST TIMES TO THE MAURYAN PERIOD AND HISTORY OF INDIA FROM THE SUNGA TO THE GUPTA PERIOD, B.A. (HONS.) SEMESTER III AND 1V HISTORY OF NORTH INDIA FROM 600-1200 A.D. AND HISTORY OF SOUTH INDIA FROM 600-1200 A.D., B.A. (HONS.) SEMESTER V AND VI, HISTORY OF WEST ASIA AND RESEARCH METHODS IN HISTORY; M.A. PREVIOUS SEMESTER I AND II STATE AND GOVERNMENT IN ANCIENT INDIA, GOVERNANCE IN ANCIENT INDIA, SOCIETY, CULTURE AND RELIGION IN ANCIENT INDIA, AND TWO PAPERS, HISTORY OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND MEDICINE IN INDIA FROM THE EARLIEST TIMES TILL A.D. 1200, AND THE TRIBAL HISTORIES OF INDIA, WHICH HE HIMSELF HAS DESIGNED TO BE TAUGHT AT THE M.A. LEVEL. USING HIS UNDERGRADUATE STUDY OF EUROPEAN AND MODERN INDIAN HISTORY, HE HAS ALSO BEEN TEACHING THE HISTORY OF RENAISSANCE EUROPE (WITH EMPHASIS ON ART AND MUSIC) AND THE HISTORY OF MODERN INDIA (YOUNG BENGAL ONWARD),FOR VARIOUS COLLEAGUES PROCEEDING ON SABBATICAL.

USING HIS EXPERIENCE OF HAVING WORKED WITH THE PREHISTORIC ROCK ART OF INDIA, AT THE INDIRA GANDHI NATIONAL CENTER FOR THE ARTS, DR. PRATAP HAS BEEN BUSY WITH FIELDWORK AND DOCUMENTING THE ROCK ART OF MIRZAPUR DISTRICT OF UTTAR PRADESH, SINCE 2009.

OWING TO HIS LONG-WINDED WORK CAREER, DR. PRATAP ADVISES STUDENTS AND ALUMNUS OF HIS DEPARTMENT REGULARLY ON CAREER OPTIONS.