Dr. Mohansingh Priyamvadha is a distinguished Professor in the Department of Criminology and also serves as the Head of the Department of Women's Studies at the University of Madras. She holds a Ph.D. in Criminology and possesses two Post Graduate degrees in Criminology and Human Rights and Duties Education. Additionally, Dr. Priyamvadha is an esteemed member of the Academic Council and the Senate, which are the decision-making bodies at the University. She also served as the former General Secretary of the Indian Society of Victimology. Throughout her career, Dr. Priyamvadha has been recognized with several prestigious awards. These include the Srimathi Devkunvar Nanalal Bhatt Memorial Gold Medal in 1998, the "Achiever’s Award" in 2014, and the "Fellowship Award" from the Indian Society of Victimology in 2014 and an award from the Indian Society of Criminology in 2018. Moreover, in December 2022, she received the ISC-SS Srivatsava Award from the Indian Society of Criminology. Most recently, in April 2023, she was honored with the DG’s Commendation Disc by the Bureau of Police Research & Development, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, for her exceptional contributions in preparing 50 Prison Training Manuals for prison officials and staff.

Currently, Dr. Priyamvadha is actively involved in teaching gender and human rights to Post Graduate students and guiding Ph.D. scholars in criminology and victimology research. Her scholarly research primarily focuses on the rights of children, women and the elderly, and she has published numerous articles in peer-reviewed journals. For her research study on "Misrepresentation of Women in Media," she received a gold medal by the Indian Society of Criminology. Dr. Priyamvadha's scholarly contributions have been recognized globally, leading her to actively participate in national and international conferences held in over 30 countries. In addition, she co-edited the book titled "A Global Perspective on Victims of Crime and Victim Assistance: Best Practices around the World," which was launched at the World Society of Victimology conference in Spain in June 2022.

IVLP Impact Award Project: Combating Technology-Facilitated Gender Based Violence against Women and Girls (TFGBV)

This project empowered women and girls in Tamil Nadu by providing digital literacy training programs aimed at safeguarding them from technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV). Through the formation of a "Voluntary Women's Cyber Consortium (VWCC)," the project trained 50 dedicated volunteers who, in turn, collectively educated more than 400 women and girls from six districts and in seven cities (Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, Dharmapuri Maduranthakam, Kotagiri and Rameswaram) of Tamil Nadu, India. The trainings sensitized participants on recognizing and preventing TFGBV in the virtual space, responding effectively to potential threats and how to use social media in a safe way. The training equipped women and girls with essential digital skills, enabling them to protect themselves online and navigate cyberspace confidently.

In each city between 48 and 85 women and girls were trained, for a total of 463 participants. Among the participants in each city, about half were girl students and half women that include homemakers, members of self-help groups, NGOs, teachers, police officers, lawyers, among others. Another aspect of the project was the creation of a website for the purpose of sharing knowledge on cyber space that includes the entire process of conducting the project, details about the volunteers, working partners, resource persons, photographs, videos and other legal and redressal mechanism, web links etc. In the post-workshop survey, 222 of the 315 participants who responded reported being “very satisfied” with the training, and 298 individuals indicated they were willing to join and spread awareness about cyber-crime to diverse groups.

Visit the Voluntary Women’s Cyber Consortium Website

"I have learned a lot today and I will make sure that this information will reach all my students, as everyone must know about it." - Project Participant

IVLP Exchange Experience 

Dr. Priyamvadha was a participant in the IVLP Project Road to Safe Social Media Space for Girls and Young Women, organized by the U.S. Department of State and Meridian International Center.

Dr. Priyamvadha's exchange experience led to the development of her IVLP Impact Award Project: "The IVLP was a great opportunity to get first-hand information in USA from various stakeholders working for the protection of women and girls particularly in social media. The synergy between the government and non-government organization is commendable...[the way] they work hand in hand in handling women and children related issues [is] very impressive and I am dreaming that...different organizations in my own country [can] converge with a single focus to eradicate the challenges of women and girls in cyber space."

U.S. Communities Visited

San Francisco, CA; Washington, DC; Minneapolis, MN; New York City, NY

"The institutional mechanisms available for creating awareness, prevention, protection and access to justice... in [the] USA are admirable and have encouraged me to bring the best practices to my country." - Dr. Mohansingh Priyamvadha

Country: India

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