Renowned Anthropologist Prof L K Mahapatra No More

Bhubaneswar: Well-known anthropologist Dr Lakshman Kumar Mohapatra, one of the distinguished scholars of Odisha, passed away at around 8 am here on Monday. He was 90.

His wife Hiranprava predeceased him; she died in October, 2019. He is survived by daughter Sheela and son Sujit, who is founder of Bhubaneswar-based Bakul Foundation.

As the Head of the Department of Anthropology, Utkal University, he had introduced teaching of SouthEast Asia as a regular course in collaboration with Departments of Geography and History. This was the first time, this area was studied at an Indian University. He also introduced specialisations of “Development Anthropology” and “Population Anthropology”, another first in the country for Anthropology Departments.

He was appointed Vice-Chancellor of Utkal University in 1986 and served in the same post at Sambalpur University from 1889-90.

In 1990, Prof Mohapatra joined as director of  Nabakrushna Choudhury Centre for Development Studies, Bhubaneswar, a Research Centre of the Indian Council  for Social Science Research (ICSSR) with the State Government. He then served as the director of the centre from 2003-06.

Other Assignments

1. Vice-President, Indian National Confederation and Academy of Anthropologists
2. Vice-President (Former), Anthropological Association of India
3. Co-Founder and President, Association for Social Research and Action (ASRA) working with the Hill Bonda
4. Founder President, Association for Friendship and Cultural Cooperation with Indonesia
5. Founder-President, National Organization for Family and Population Welfare (NOFAP)

He was also the consultant, World Bank in India and the US on Rehabilitation of displaced population (1985-88, 1995-96).

Prof Mahapatra was awarded the Gold Medal for Lifetime Achievement in Anthropology by the Indian Anthropological Society, 2004. He was conferred with the Think Odisha Leadership Award as Educationist by The Times of India in 2011. He was also felicitated by Indian National Confederation and Academy of Anthropologists (INCAA) in 2015.

He has also authored several books on folklore and tribals of Odisha:

1. The Contours of Social Welfare jointly with H M Marulsiddaih, Karnatak University, 1974
2. Folklore of Orissa with K B Dash, National Book Trust, 1979
3. Swidden Cultivation in Asia, Vol X (with others), UNESCO, Bangkok, 1983
4. Swidden Cultivation and its Traditional Alternatives in Orissa, NC Centre for Development Studies, 1990
5. Tribal Development in India: Myth and Reality, Vikas Publishers, 1994
6. Resettlement, Impoverishment and Reconstruction in India: Development for the Deprived, Vikas Publishers, 1999
7. State, Society and Religion: Culture-historical Comparative Perspectives of SouthEast Asia, Emerald Publishers, 2003
8. People and Cultural Traditions of Orissa: Civilization, Society and World View, New Age, 2005
9. The Challenges of Self-Managed Development: the Fierce Hill Bonda Case with R P Mohanty, Mittal Publications, 2009
10. Tribal Peasantry in Bonai Hills, SCSTRTI, 2012
11. Gods, Kings and Caste System in India and other Essays, Amadeus Press, 2010
12. Swidden Peasantry in Indonesia, Indira Gandhi Manav Sanghralaya and SERIALS, 2011
13. Tribal Transformation and Cultural Integration: India and Odisha, Mayur Publications, 2012
14. Development for Whom: Resettlement and Rehabilitation Policy in India, Mittal Publications, 2013
15. Knowledge for Actions: A Treatise in Anthropology, Edited with Meera Swain APH, 2016