'Nepal's Dalits in Transition' wins Suvedi Prize

The book "Nepal's Dalits in Transition" has won the 2025 Suvedi Prize for the Study of Nepal, awarded for outstanding research on Nepal. The UK's Royal Asiatic Society announced the decision.

The book was edited by social anthropologist Professor David Gellner and researcher Dr Krishna Adhikari. According to the society, the panel of judges selected the book unanimously.

The judges assessed the book as a notable contribution to debates on Dalit studies, Nepal studies, and social inequality. The book is said to bring together, for the first time in one place, studies by many scholars, including Dalit writers and researchers themselves.

It includes essays by Tilak Bishwakarma, Raksha Ram Harijan, Purna Nepali, and Ramesh Sunam, among others. According to the society, the book will serve as a useful reference for researchers, policymakers, and political leadership.

The book was published in Nepal by Vajra Books, which the judges praised. Professor Gellner is Emeritus Professor at the University of Oxford and has long researched religion, society, and culture in Nepal. Dr Adhikari is affiliated with Oxford's Institute of Social and Cultural Anthropology and is also the founder of the Centre for Nepal Studies UK.

The prize is named after Dr Surya Prasad Subedi, Professor of International Law at the University of Leeds in Britain.