Chief Editor: PLSI
G. N. Devy, taught at the Maharaja Sayajirao University, Baroda till 1996, before leaving to set up the Bhasha Research Centre in Baroda and the Adivasi academy at Tejgadh where he has since worked towards conserving and promoting the languages and culture of indigenous and nomadic communities. He has also been the recipient of many awards for his work in literature, tribal craft and language conservation. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 2014. He is the Chief Editor of the PLSI series.

Volume Editors
Tanmoy Bhattacharya, is an associate professor of Linguistics at the Centre for Advanced Studies in linguistics, university of Delhi. His research interests include syntax, psycholinguistics, gender, disability, deaf education and sign languages.

Nisha Grover, has been involved with the education of deaf children since 1974 for which the Akshar Trust was started twenty five years ago.

Surinder P.K. Randhawa, is a senior consultant with the Indira Gandhi National Open University, Delhi where she teaches the BA course in the Applied sign language studies.

The People’s Linguistic Survey of India
The National Editorial Collective
List of Volumes
Acknowledgements
Foreword
A Nation Proud of Its Language Diversity: Chief Editor’s Introduction
Introduction
Contributors to the Volume
An Appeal to Readers

PART I: FEATURES OF THE INDIAN SIGN LANGUAGE
1. Overview and Early History of Indian Sign Language
Madan M. Vasishta
2. Distinctive Features of the Indian Sign Language in Comparison to
Foreign Sign Languages
3. Space, Units and Order in ISL
Hidam Gourashyam Singh
4. Local Representative Signs of the Western Region
Nisha Grover 5. Fingerspelling
Rajesh Ketkar 6. Sign Writing
Hidam Gourashyam Singh

PART II: EDUCATION AND POLICY
7. Sign Bilingualism
Surinder P. K. Randhawa
8. Alipur, a Village with Hereditary Deafness in India: A Sociolinguistic
and Socio-educational Profile 
Sibaji Panda
9. Legislation and Policies in Relation to Sign Language and Sign Language Rights
Tanmoy Bhattacharya and Surinder P. K. Randhawa

PART III: THE PRESENT SITUATION
10. A Personal Account of Historical Developments of Indian Sign Language
Madan M. Vasishta
11. Indian Sign Language and Humour in Cyberspace
Neha Kulshreshtha
12. Organisations of Deaf People
13. Voices
Compiled by Surinder P. K. Randhawa
14. The Future of Indian Sign Language
Compiled by Surinder P. K. Randhawa

PART IV: SIGN LANGUAGE AND OTHER KNOWLEDGE SYSTEMS
15. Signs in Indian Tradition—the Chinha Shastra
Ganesh Devy
16. Sign Language and Signing in the Traditions of Performance in India
Tista Bagchi
17. Sign Iconicity and New Epistemologies
Tanmoy Bhattacharya

PART V: APPENDICES
Appendix I A List of Films
(Compiled by Surinder P. K. Randhawa)
Appendix II Sign Vocabulary of Western India (Gujarat)
(Drawn by Sanjeev Bhatt)
Bibliography of Indian Sign Language and Deaf Studies
(Compiled by Samar Sinha)