Issues and challenges of fields of social work in India-A study

Education is one of the dominant sectors of the economy in terms of enrolment of students in Trinidad and Tobago and India. The practicum is an integral part of many professional courses in higher education, and is manifest in several different forms depending on the area, such as field experience, case work, group work, community organisation, block placement and clinical practicum. Social work has not received the kind of attention it deserves in our country from institutions. However, the concept is not new to Indians or the Indian psyche. We have been into social work since time immemorial although we have not been publicising the exercise. Our people have always been against bragging about their philanthropic activities. As a result, we have been into social work for ages although we did not call it as such. We merely looked upon it as our obligation towards our fellow human-beings. However, the concept of social work has undergone some change in recent years. Social work is sought to be mandated by regulators and the government in the interest of the welfare of the disadvantaged sections of society. Such attempts at mandating social work has raised a few eyebrows since, by definition, social work is something one should voluntarily undertake. Although the regulator/government and the volunteers have faith in the concept of social work, differences arise with regard to popularising social work and implementing social work. It is believed in some quarters that a host of stakeholders, including the academia and industry, should chip in with their mite. The question therefore boils down to one of how the various stakeholders associated with social work go about the task.