Religious Belief and Practices: A Portrayal of the Integrative Process

Dr. Amitabha Sarkar has a Ph.D. in Anthropology from Calcutta University. His valuable empirical research in the arena of anthropology is ethnography, primitive art, culture change with special emphasis on the impact of industrialization and cultural ecology. Dr. Sarkar has published two books – Toto: Society and Change, and Dhodia: Industrialisation and Change in a Primitive Community. About twenty-six research papers have appeared so far in various leading scientific journals. He was nominated by the American Biographical Institute, Inc. U.S.A. and is a recipient of the Man of the Year, 1994, an international diploma of Cultural Honor and the 20th Century Achievement award. He joined the Anthropological Survey of India in 1977 and is serving as the Anthropologist and Head of the Department at the Anthropological Survey of India in Jagdalpur, Bastar (Madhya Pradesh).

Dr. (Mrs.) Samira Dasgupta (b. 1953) is a research personnel in the Cultural Anthropology Division of Anthropological Survey of India. She obtained her B.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in Anthropology from the University of Calcutta. Her special interest is to study tribal ethnography, culture ecology and culture change in which these tribal people face a bi-cultural situation. She has till now completed several research projects from Anthropological Survey of India, Calcutta and submitted the reports to the office ad carried out extensive field work in the Chotanagpur plateau of Bihar, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Gujarat and also in various remote and isolated pockets of Bastar districts of M.P. She has also authored a book Birijia: Society and Contributor of articles and research papers to reputed journals and at this moment she has published about twenty three research papers in her credit. Dr. (Mrs. Dasgupta has joined the Anthropological Survey of India in 1977 and presently posted at it’s Sub-Regional Centre, Jagdalpur, Bastar (M.P.)