International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR)

ISSN (Online): 2319-7064

Index Copernicus Value (2013): 6.14 | Impact Factor (2013): 4.438

New Social Movements in India: An Aspect of

Environmental Movements
Dr. Bina Rai
Assistant Professor (Political Science), R.G. (P.G.) College, Meerut

Abstract: The Indian Constitution itself contains provisions for environmental protection. The Directive Principles of State Policy
acknowledge the State’s responsibility with regard to environmental protection has laid down under Article 48-A of our Constitution that
“The State shall endeavor to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country.” India faces
problems of environmental degradation and lack of governance on matters related to these.The new social movements in the Third
World show a rare sensitivity to the heterogeneity of the sources and structures of exploitation and oppression. The new social
movements can be seen as vehicles of cumulative change in the social, economic and political fields. The role of these people's
movements and experiments transcends not only state power, but also the new existing civil societies.

Keywords: Democracy, Ecofeminism, Environment, Indian Constitution, Social Movements,

1. Introduction in sustained interactions with elites, opponents and

authorities.
Democracy is largely understood as popular sovereignty
where people have control over the decision made by the It is important to note, however, that such tendencies and
state. Since it is not practically possible for the people in the trends, and the influence of the unconscious or irrational
modern democratic societies to participate in the decision factors in human behavior, may be of crucial importance in
making process of the state directly, they do so through illuminating the problems of interpreting and explaining
representatives. But when political parties become social movement. Objectives, ideology, programmes,
ineffective in representing the interest of the people, we see leadership, and organization are important components of
the emergence of social movements (SMs).It is a truism that social movements. They are interdependent, influencing
no society is static. Space, processes and nature as well as each other. These social movements then bring about change
the direction of social change vary from time to time and in the social, economic and political environment and
society to society. Social movements are nothing new and thereby, become a social force themselves.
they are taking place all around the globe, whether, they are
based on certain issues or interests, under different M.S.A. Rao defined social movement as a ‘sustained
institutional environments. In India also social movements collective mobilization through either informal or formal
have taken place around identity issues or interest based organization or which is generally oriented towards bringing
activism. Social movements play an important role in about change’. Social movements involves:
escalating not only the processes of change, but also in a) Collective mass mobilization
giving direction to social transformation. Till the 1960s, b) Collective mass support
sociologists’ interest in social movements was largely c) Formal or informal organization
focused on sanskritisation and socio-religious reform d) A conscious commitment towards its aims and beliefs
movements, excluding the political dimension as beyond e) Deliberative collective action towards change
their scope. It issometimes argued that the freedom of
expression, education and relative economic independence 2. Types of Social Movements
prevalent in the modern Western culture are responsible for
the unprecedented number and scope of various David Bayley (1962) divides ‘coercive public protest’ into
contemporary social movements. However, others point out legal and illegal protests. Each category is further sub-
that many of the social movements of the last hundred years divided into violent and non-violent protests. Some others
grew up, like the Mau Mau in Kenya, to oppose Western classify movements into grassroots and macro movements.
colonialism. Either way, social movements have been and Social movements are also classified on the basis of issues
continued to be closely connected with democratic political around which participants get mobilized. Some of them are
systems. Occasionally, social movements have been known as the ‘forest’, ‘civil rights’, ‘anti-untouchability’,
involved in democratizing nations, but more often they have ‘linguistic’, and ‘nationalist’ and other such movements.
flourished after democratization. Some others classify movements on the basis of the
participants, such as peasants, tribal, students, women,
Charles Tilly defines social movements as a series of Dalit’s, etc. In many cases the participants and issues go
contentious performances, displays and campaigns by which together. Social movements into the following types on the
ordinary people make collective claims on others. basis of the socioeconomic characteristics of the participants
and the issues involved:
Sidney Tarrow defines a social movement as collective 1) Peasant movements
challenges by people with common purposes and solidarity 2) Dalit movements
3) Backward caste movements
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Paper ID: SUB158569 1918
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 International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR)
ISSN (Online): 2319-7064
Index Copernicus Value (2013): 6.14 | Impact Factor (2013): 4.438
4) Women’s movements 6) Many of the new environmental movements forced the
5) Industrial working class movements governments to take affirmative policies in the form of
6) Students’ movements; and new laws and provisions.
7) Middle class movements
Now we add two more type—human rights and The post-independence era has witnessed environmental
environmental movements. These movements are based degradation on an unprecedented scale. Soil erosion, air and
around certain issues and their theorizations claim to cover water pollution, rapid depletion or forest cover and wild life
all social and economic groups. Though the leadership of are just some of the effects of environment degradation. III-
these movements in the contemporary times comes from the conceived plans of urbanization and industrialization have
middle class, they primarily raise the issues affecting the only led to further ecological crisis. As has been pointed out
deprived classes and communities. by eminent scholars that development results in destruction
of eco-friendly, labor intensive traditional means of
3. Environmental Movements in India production; pollution of the environment and depletion of
bio mass; and a result of the above two, deprivation of the
The United Nations, conference on Human Environment, ecosystem results in the loss of the sources of livelihood of
Stockholm, 1972 paved the way for a number of studies and the people. The most tragic industrial accident has been the
reports on the condition of the environment and its effect on poising caused by the leakage of MIC gas in Bhopal
the present and future generations. It expressed concern to (Madhya Pradesh). In mid night of December 2-3, 1984 a
protect and improve the environment for present and future catastrophe unfolded itself in the city of Bhopal, when a
generations. The development of ‘green polities’ or ‘eco- deadly lethal gas floated over the city causing causalities to
greens’ or the ‘green movement’ in Germany and North- thousands of humans and animals and creating unbearable
America in the early 1980s boosted the formation of the sufferings for those who survived as they developed genetic
‘green network’ and the ‘green movement’ throughout the defects because of MIC gas causing blindness, kidney and
world, including India. A number of action groups, research liver failure and a variety of chronic diseases. The people of
institutes, and documentation centers have been established Bhopal still continue to be a vulnerable population as 390
to study and mobilize public opinion on environmental metric tons of poisonous waste lay around the factory area
issues (Spretnak and Capra 1985). By now the material on for 25 years awaiting court’s decision. Justice has been
the environmental situation in general and in certain sectors denied to the victims of tragedy as main culprit Warren
such as air, land, forest, water, marine resources, etc. has Anderson is absconding, and there are no chance of his
proliferated in different forms from popular literature to extradition to India.
‘scientific’ studies. Environment provide valuable material
not only on various aspects of the environment but also Other environmental hazards can be seen as being caused by
people’s resistance and struggles. There are large areas of heavy environmental pollution caused by thermal plants, the
forests which are inhabited by rare species of animal life. main effluent being flying ash, as in case of Kolaghat, West
The country is also having many rivers which provides Bengal. Sewerage system, betel cultivation and floriculture
livelihood for a considerable number of people including the have been worst hit by such fly ash.
Adivasi .However these natural resources were a favorite
prey for the vested interests in the state. They exploited the Ecological movements have erupted wherever there have
nature without any social concerns. This resulted in larger been threats to forests and agriculture lands by inundation,
issues of development and displacement. With the water logging, salinity resulting from the construction of
endangered nature the dependent population also faces many large dams and massive projects like the Tehri Dam,
threats. Many of these threatened communities were also KoelKaro, Sirsi and Inchampalli. Sometimes environmental
marginalized groups including the poor and Adivasi. Their movements may spring from the urge of the forest dwelling
inability to fight against the mighty interests also accelerated communities to save forest from destruction like the Chipko
the environmental exploitation and degradation. movement and similar movements in Western Ghats, the
Aravallis and also the Vindhyas, and also in the tribal belts
The environmental movements in India were of special of India. As Vandana Shiva points out that in India,
significance in the history of new social movements in India. ecological movements can be seen to have certain
These movements can be classified as new social commonness although they may differ in their methods and
movements because of their following characteristics; their protest agenda. The commonness can be said to be in
1) The movements were addressing novel issues like term of:
environmental degradation
2) The movements were massive with the active Economic conflict between two types of economic activity-
participation of marginalized groups one aiming at securing survival for the people in a
3) The demands of the new movements were novel in the sustainable manner through a genuinely collective
sense that it demanded right to livelihood and rights of management and the other aiming at maximizing the growth
displaced rate even at the cost of bare survival of many.Technological
4) The environmental movements adapted non-violent conflict arising out of the choice between two types of
strategy technologies, one indigenous which is labor- intensive and
5) The movements incorporated hitherto unrepresented other western capital-intensive. The former causes lesser
sectors of society including adivasies, women and the ecological hazards and the other annihilation of ecological
marginalized. pattern of a particular area.

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Paper ID: SUB158569 1919
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 International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR)
ISSN (Online): 2319-7064
Index Copernicus Value (2013): 6.14 | Impact Factor (2013): 4.438
Ecological movements therefore, focus their concern Anti – Tehri Dam Movement:
regarding the use of resource-hungry of modern technology In 1972, the Indian Planning Commission approved plans
and accompanying high ecological and social costs. Many of for Tehri Dam, naming the principal town it would
the movements in India have been and continue to be submerge, along with two populated and fertile valleys.
political movements grappling with ongoing or potential loss Protest against the project began in 1967 and continued for
of control over natural resources. Their concerns derive from more than two decades. The people’s committee formed to
State policies that claim to be founded on the notion of oppose the dam succeeded in forcing the government to
economic development but which often end up seriously make several reviews of the project. In the mid -1980s the
impairing the habitats, livelihoods of communities and plan was abandoned for some time after the committee
obstructing their access to natural resources. appointed by the government to review the project
recommended ending it on environmental grounds. By 1992,
Chipko Movement: when construction of the dam was well under way, the
This renowned movement began in 1971 in the hills of opposition movement peaked, and it seemed for some time
Uttrakhand drew upon the Bishnoi’s action in Rajasthan that the protestors might persuade the government to again
nearly 265 years ago. Chipko Movement means hug-the-tree halt the project. The movement swelled, and environmental
movement. The Chipko Movement’s first action started in activists, concerned citizens, and others joined the residents
March 1974 in Reni village in the Garhwal Himalayas, when of Tehri, neighboring villages, and the adjoining area of
a group of village of women led by Gauri Devi hugged the Uttarakhand in urging the end of what they viewed as a
trees and prevented the hired sawyers to cut them down for a destructive, costly and unnecessary dam. Ultimately the
sports goods company. The movement spread rapidly movement was not successful and the authorities pressed on
throughout the valley. Women, being most affected by the with Tehri Dam, finally submerging most of Tehri and the
hardship of both the ongoing degradation to their proposed valleys in 2005.
environment and the privatization of basic resources, played
a prominent and decisive role. When attempts were made to Narmada BachaoAandolan (NBA):
divert the attention of the men, the women stepped into save The other movement has been against the construction of
their environment and their livelihoods. This simple action Mega dams. India’s planned economic development failed to
translated into an organized and peaceful movement under take into consideration the displacement of huge number of
the leadership of Chandi Prasad Bhatt. The movement people from the land where they have been living for
largely drew upon Gandhian principles of non-violent and generations. NBA is an ongoing movement to save the river
Satyagrah. This was the first movement of its kind, not just valleys of the Narmada River in central India. It has
in post-independent India, but also across the world. It is mobilized people at the grass roots level on a scale
regarded as one of the hallmarks in the history of the unprecedented for an environmental movements in post-
environmental movement. independent India. The movement is primarily against the
construction of the SardarSarovar Dam which is estimated to
As the movement gained steam the government finally displace 300,000 people – largely peasants and tribal people-
yielded and the Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, declared a and inundate farming land and forest area which is inhabited
ban on tree logging in the 5000-kilometer Trans Himalayan by rare species. The NBA and its supporters argue that the
region. A United Nations Environment Program feature projected benefits, given past experience, are unlikely to be
lauded the efforts of the participants: ‘the Chipko people are realized and are far outweighed by the social and
working for a socio-economic revolution by wining control environmental costs. The NBA is believed to get media
of their forest resources from the hands of a distant visibility and catch international attention and NBA has
bureaucracy which is concerned with selling the forest for succeeded in provoking a larger public debate on
making urban-oriented products. It also sensitized civil development and the environment within India. It has
society in India to the need to pressure the government to initiated discussion about which model of development is
formulate an ecological policy that would promote appropriate for India. NBA argues for the latter, nothing the
sustainable development. idea of precaution in environmental matters, as well as the
social, cultural, and economic rights of the displaced. It
Anti-Dam Movements: encourages the adoption of traditional water harvesting
Prime Minister JawaharLal Nehru referred to dams as ‘the systems in villages and improving dry farming techniques,
temple of modern India’. After independence, the which all also promote social and ecological harmony. As a
government sanctioned several large-scale dam projects with last resort, NBA also advices improvement of the efficiency
the aim of making drinking water available to all and of existing dam projects.
making India self-sufficient in food production. India is
among what are called ‘big dam’ countries, third only to MedhaPatkar, a central organizer of NBA, states that the
China and the United States. Though these large dam model of development symbolized by projects like the
projects have met with some success in providing food SardarSarovar Dam represent the ‘epitome of unsustainable
security to India, it has been argued they have come at a development’, and there is no other way but to redefine
huge social and environmental cost. Roots of opposition to ‘modernity’ and the goals of development, to widen it to a
dam projects can be traced to the government’s failure to sustainable, just between human beings and between people
rehabilitate displaced victims and to concern about and nature. The movement has drawn attention to the
ecological sustainability. conflicts between environment and development at a popular
level. By demanding that affected people be given voice, the
NBA was instrumental in the World Bank’s decision to
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 International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR)
ISSN (Online): 2319-7064
Index Copernicus Value (2013): 6.14 | Impact Factor (2013): 4.438
withdraw its funding and participation from the project on Interdisciplinary Water Resources Studies (2nd July,
the basis of human and environmental concerns. The 2002)
Supreme Court of India ruled on the NBA’s litigation [2] GauriGadgil, ‘RamchandraGuha: The Trouble with
against construction of the dam in 2000, judging that the Radical Environmentalists, Infochange Makers, at
project could go forward as long as resettlement and http://www. Infochangingindia.org/changemakers.
rehabilitation of displaced people was appropriate and [3] Gopa Joshi, ‘The Chipko Movement and Women’,
effectively carried out. The judgement, while recognizing PUCL Bulletin, September 1982.
the economic and housing rights of the valley’s inhabitants [4] International Institute for Sustainable Development,
to be fundamental, did not evaluate the environmental ‘Chipko Movement, India’ at http://www.iisd.org
aspects of human rights. [5] Krishnakumar, R, ‘ Threat to a Valley’s Silence’,
Frontline, Vol. 21 Issue XIII (19th June-2nd July, 2004)
The Silent Valley Project [6] Phillipe Cullet, ‘ SardarSarovar Judgement and Human
Another significant anti-dam movement is against the Kerla Rights’, Economic and Political Weekly, (5th-11th May
Government’s proposal to construct a dam across the river 2001)
Kunthi in the Silent Valley. The government has argued that [7] Poonam, Kanwal, ‘Environmental Conflicts, Protests
it is a viable alternative to the more expensive and polluting and Movements in India: Question of Survival and
sources of thermal power. However, environmental and Democracy’
citizen groups oppose it due to a threat that it may upset the [8] Shiv Visvanthan, ‘A Celebration of Difference: Science
delicate ecological balance of the bio-diversity reserve and Democracy in Modern India’, Science Magazine,
inhabited by some rare species in the Silent Valley. Vol. 28, Issue 5360 (3rd April 1998).
International organization such as the World Wide Fund for [9] Shiva, Vandana, ‘ Ecology Movements in India’, in
Nature (WWF) and International Union for the conservation Oomen, T. K.(Ed.), Social Movements: Issues of
of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) mounted pressure Identity, Vol. 1, Oxford University Press, New Delhi,
on the government, leading to the shelving of the project in 2011
1983 by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. This movement met [10] Shekhar Pathak, ‘Tehri Dam : Submersion of a Town,
with success fairly early and is one of the very rare instances Not of an Idea’, Economic and Political Weekly (13 th
where the State yielded to pressure and retacted. August 2005)
[11] Singh M. P., and SexnaRekha, ‘Indian
4. Conclusion Politics:Contemporary Issues and Concerns’ Prentice
Hall of India, Pvt. Ltd, 2008
The success stories have been rather unique in their initial [12] Ranjeet Dev Raj, ‘World Awaits Court’s Decision on
conditions and not easily generalize. And, to get back to the Narmada Dam’ Asia Times (16th March,2000)
conservative bias of Indian environmentalism, [13] Whose Environment is it? Problems of Poverty and
‘Environmental advocacy is wary of movements, such as the Development in India’ South Asian Voice, (January,
Gonds of Adilabad, where the struggles for rights are acutely 2000).
destabilizing, even while a less threatening peasant
movement like Chipko is celebrated.

Ecofeminism in the West, rooted in the analogy of women’s

and nature’s biological, procreative, and maternal role, is
echoed in Indian concepts of Purush/Prakriti and Shakti.The
problems of development and environment in India are
extremely complex. It is important to note that people at all
levels of society-government, NGOs, scientists, and citizens
often disagree about the best way to use resources in the
most efficient, environmentally friendly, and equitable way.
Therefore, it is crucial that any environmental movement
that seeks to be a people’s movement, and aims to become
lasting and relevant, must sympathize with the concerns of
all of India’s poor and disadvantaged. There is no doubt that
these movements have yet to play important roles in the
preservation of both social and environmental rights within
India, but such movements must fully recognize and value
the right to development, in tandem with the right to a
functional and healthy environment, if they are to meet with
success on the public and political levels.

References
[1] Bandhopadhyay J, Malik B., Mandal M., and Perveen S,
‘Report on a Policy Dialogue on Dams and
Development’, South Asian Consortium for

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