Role of Christian Missionaries in Educatiing Girls during Dogra Rule

Abstract: The present paper attempts to assess the development of girl’s Education during Dogra Rule. Jammu and Kashmir, which was under the autocratic rule of Dogra Maharajas, was the most backward among all princely states and education was no exception. Initially the Dogra Rajas utterly ignored the education of girl’s. The vacuum was filled by the Christian Missionaries. The paper will mainly focus on the educational policy and the attitude of the Dogra State towards the development of girl’s education in the Kashmir state. The nature of girl’s schools was confined to reading of literary and moral books, some arithmetic, needle work, house hold work etc. So by education women were tied more securely to the home to domestic tasks by realigning patriarchal domesticity. Moreover, religious and moral education was part and parcel of curriculum of girl’s schools, since they were supposed to be more chartered and disciplinarian than the boys. First part of the paper will discuss the governments’ laissez faire policy and the role of Local Advisory Committees in the Dissemination of education among girls. Second part will elaborate the shift in the government policy, although some reforms were brought, but government showed an ambivalent policy towards it, and invested less in girl’s education compared to boys’, besides ignoring higher and technical education altogether. Third part will look into the role of private agencies especially Christian missionaries and Women Welfare Trust. Notwithstanding the government and nongovernment educational ventures development of girl’s education has not been able to grow in a progressive manner.