{"id":3537,"date":"2026-08-11T22:11:40","date_gmt":"2026-08-11T16:41:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/notes\/environmentalist-movements\/"},"modified":"2026-08-12T02:57:41","modified_gmt":"2026-08-11T21:27:41","slug":"environmentalist-movements","status":"publish","type":"psir_note","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/notes\/environmentalist-movements\/","title":{"rendered":"Environmentalist movements"},"content":{"rendered":"
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PSIR Notes<\/a>\u203a<\/span>I-B Indian Government and Politics<\/a>\u203a<\/span>Environmentalist movements<\/span><\/div>\n
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Paper I \u00b7 Indian Government and Politics<\/div>\n

Environmentalist movements<\/h1>\n
Syllabus \u00b7 Paper I-B \u00b7 11<\/b> \u2014 Social Movement : Civil liberties and human rights movements; women\u2019s movements; environmentalist movements<\/span>.<\/div>\n<\/header>\n
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Environmental Movements \u2014 Character & Roots<\/h3>\n

Collective struggles over ecological security, livelihood, displacement, forest and water rights, pollution, sustainable development and environmental justice. In India they are not merely conservationist \u2014 they are tied to poverty, livelihood, caste, class, gender, tribal autonomy and democracy.<\/p>\n

Ramachandra Guha<\/span>: there are \u201cvarieties of environmentalism\u201d in India. Unlike much Western environmentalism, Indian struggles are usually led by women, poor communities, tribal groups, peasants, fisher folk and those directly hit by ecological degradation.<\/p>\n

Historical background<\/span><\/p>\n

Pre-1947:<\/span> tribal resistance to colonial forest laws; the Bishnoi sacrifice at Khejarli, Rajasthan (1763); Mulshi Satyagraha (1921) led by Senapati Bapat against a dam in the Lonavala hills. Post-1947 triggers:<\/span> Stockholm Conference (1972); Club of Rome\u2019s Limits to Growth<\/span> (1972); Project Tiger (1973); B. B. Vohra\u2019s EPW article on soil erosion and land degradation; the Chipko Movement (1973).<\/p>\n

Guha\u2019s Four Phases of Indian Environmentalism<\/h3>\n

From “interlopers” to neo-liberal backlash.<\/span> I \u00b7 1970s<\/span> \u2014 Environmentalism seen as an “interloper” \u2014 a luxury of rich nations; activists (Bhatt, Bahuguna) branded CIA agents; Marxists call ecology bourgeois \u2192 II \u00b7 1980s<\/span> \u2014 Environmental journalism grows (Anil Agarwal, Shekhar Pathak, Nagesh Hegde); Dept. of Environment (1980) becomes Ministry of Environment & Forests (1985) \u2192 III \u00b7 1990s<\/span> \u2014 Professionalisation \u2014 social & natural scientists, ecological research, credible data; IISc Bangalore builds capacity \u2192 IV \u00b7 1990s on<\/span> \u2014 Neo-liberal backlash \u2014 protests against mining, SEZs, displacement; activists branded anti-development \/ anti-national (e.g. Binayak Sen detained)<\/p>\n

Ideological Strands (Gadgil & Guha)<\/h3>\n
\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Strand<\/th>\nPosition<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Crusading Gandhians<\/span><\/td>\nReject the modern way of life on a moral \/ religious idiom; hold Eastern civilisation apathetic to economic gain; spread a non-modern ideology rooted in Indian culture<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Ecological Marxists<\/span><\/td>\nRead degradation in political-economic terms \u2014 unequal access to resources, not a values issue, best explains India\u2019s environmental decline<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Appropriate Technology<\/span><\/td>\nSeek synthesis of agriculture and industry, big and small, Western and Eastern technology; demonstrate socio-technical alternatives rather than attack the system<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Wilderness Enthusiasts<\/span><\/td>\nDocument forest and species decline; use \u201cbiological diversity\u201d science and \u201cspecies equality\u201d morality to demand more parks and total bans on human activity<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Scientific Conservationists<\/span><\/td>\nStress efficiency, management, planning and technical regulation<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n
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\u201cCrusading Gandhians, Appropriate Technologists and Ecological Marxists represent the three most forceful strands in the environment-development debate in India.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ramachandra Guha<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Deep vs Shallow Ecology & New Environmentalism<\/h3>\n
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Shallow ecology<\/th>\nDeep ecology<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Utilitarian, short-term; protects environment for human benefit; places humans above other species (e.g. recycling garbage)<\/td>\nAll living beings valuable; nature has intrinsic worth; humans and other species in one moral frame (e.g. tree planting, forest conservation)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

Deep ecology challenges anthropocentric development; shallow ecology fits reformist policy more easily.<\/p>\n

New environmentalism<\/span><\/p>\n

Stresses affected people\u2019s knowledge, local context, dispersed information, community participation and sustainable use \u2014 and accepts that properly harnessed economic development can improve the environment. Traditional environmentalism often treats people as external to nature and ignores local knowledge.<\/p>\n

Sunita Narain<\/span><\/p>\n

Environmentalism is not only about planting trees or protecting tigers \u2014 environment is about democracy<\/span>. People must be seen as owners and custodians of natural resources; development must be sustainable. Environmental movements resist commodification, monopolisation, inequitable distribution and disempowerment of communities.<\/p>\n

Major Environmental Movements<\/h3>\n
\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Movement<\/th>\nWhen \/ where<\/th>\nFocus & leaders<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Chipko<\/span><\/td>\n1973, Garhwal (Uttarakhand)<\/td>\nStop commercial felling by hugging trees; women at the core \u2014 Sunderlal Bahuguna<\/span>, Chandi Prasad Bhatt<\/span>, Gaura Devi<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Narmada Bachao Andolan<\/span><\/td>\n1985, Narmada river<\/td>\nDisplacement, submergence, rehabilitation; Adivasis, farmers, environmentalists, activists<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Appiko<\/span><\/td>\nUttara Kannada & Shimoga, Karnataka<\/td>\nSouthern counterpart of Chipko; Panduranga Hegde<\/span>; extended the method to the Western Ghats<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Silent Valley<\/span><\/td>\nPalakkad, Kerala; National Park 1985<\/td>\nKerala Sasthra Sahithya Parishad vs hydropower; Salim Ali<\/span>\u2019s biodiversity argument<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

Chipko \u2014 the anatomy<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cChipko\u201d = to stick, to embrace. Earlier inspirations: Bishnoi resistance (1763), Sri Dev Suman, Mira Behn, Sarala Behn. Methods: tree-hugging, satyagraha, non-cooperation, hunger fasts, Bhagavad Gita readings, tying rakhees around wounded trees; Bajgis musicians and Ghanshyam Sailani\u2019s poems mobilised villagers. It was at once environmental, peasant, women\u2019s, regional and subaltern-cultural \u2014 a critique of the development model.<\/p>\n

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\u201cEcology is economy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chipko slogan<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Significance:<\/span> questioned state policy favouring industrial elites; linked ecology with livelihood; became a symbol of ecofeminism<\/span>; revived \u201cforest satyagraha\u201d (per Vandana Shiva<\/span> and Jayanta Bandyopadhyay<\/span>); influenced the 15-year ban on commercial green felling in the U.P. Himalaya and the National Forest Policy, 1988; won the Right Livelihood Award (1988). Ramachandra Guha<\/span> calls it \u201cEnvironmentalism of the poor.\u201d<\/p>\n

UPSC 2019 \u00b7 10m<\/span>Write a short note on the significance of the Chipko Movement.<\/span>Answer<\/a><\/div>\n
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UPSC 2013<\/span> \u2014 Comment: Compare and contrast the Chipko Movement with Narmada Bachao Andolan.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Recent Environmental Movements<\/h3>\n
\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Movement<\/th>\nIssue<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Climate Action Strike (2019)<\/td>\nStudent action across metros; Greta Thunberg, Bittu K. R.; demand climate action<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Right to Breathe (2019)<\/td>\nNew Delhi citizens\u2019 movement on air pollution and public health<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Save Dehing Patkai (2020)<\/td>\nAssam; against opencast mining in Dehing-Patkai Wildlife Sanctuary (98.59 ha)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Save Aarey (2019\u201320)<\/td>\nMumbai; against Metro-3 car shed in Aarey Colony; legal action + urban protest<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Save the Sundarban (2020)<\/td>\nOnline campaign after cyclone Amphan (#SaveTheSundarban)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Tehri Dam protests<\/td>\nSunderlal Bahuguna<\/span>; social & ecological impact (dam completed 2006)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Anti-POSCO<\/td>\nOdisha; against steel plant; Abhay Sahoo; project cancelled 2017<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Niyamgiri<\/td>\nIndigenous resistance to mining \u2014 tribal autonomy, ecology, resource justice<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Kudankulam<\/td>\nFishing communities vs nuclear plant (Tamil Nadu) over radiation, environment<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

Tuticorin (Sterlite) Environmental Movement<\/h3>\n

Protest against the Sterlite Copper plant of Vedanta in Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu \u2014 resistance since the 1990s, sharp visibility in 2018, demanding closure of the smelter over pollution and health.<\/p>\n

Findings & institutional failures<\/span><\/p>\n

NEERI report (2011) found high copper, lead, cadmium and fluoride in groundwater; a 2013 gas leak brought a fine and temporary closure. The plant sat 14 km from Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park (norm: >25 km from an eco-sensitive zone); the green-belt requirement was allegedly cut from 250 m to 25 m. The Centre for Science and Environment<\/span> noted three states had rejected the proposal before Tamil Nadu accepted it; a faulty EIA was alleged. Vandana Shiva<\/span> called for shutdown.<\/p>\n

Base:<\/span> locals, fisher folk, small farmers, Dalit communities, women, church groups, traders, student unions, cultural activists \u2014 women from fishing and Dalit backgrounds became its moral voices. Methods:<\/span> dharna, hunger strike, social media (100,000+ online), documentation, Tamil folk songs and art. State response:<\/span> the Pollution Control Board had rejected clearance yet construction continued; it culminated in police firing \u2014 eleven died \u2014 and the factory was sealed in May 2018.<\/p>\n

Assessment:<\/span> the case exposes the conflict between industrialisation and environmental justice and weak governance; the Second ARC\u2019s triple bottom line<\/span> (People, Planet, Profits) is invoked; S. N. Sahu<\/span> reads it as reinforcing Swaraj and democracy; Sunita Narain<\/span>\u2019s critique applies \u2014 movements close some plants but fail to change the development model.<\/p>\n

UPSC 2018 \u00b7 15m<\/span>Critically analyse the environmentalist movement in Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu.<\/span>Answer<\/a><\/div>\n

Environmentalism of the Poor<\/h3>\n

Struggles by poor and marginal communities against ecological damage that threatens livelihood, health, culture, autonomy and access to land, water and forests.<\/p>\n

Joan Martinez-Alier<\/span><\/p>\n

Describes environmentalism of the poor as the struggles and practices the poor engage in when threatened by ecological distribution conflicts<\/span> \u2014 over mining, dams, land grabbing, biomass, oil, gas and waste. It is rooted in survival, not leisure; links human rights and environmental rights; combines distribution, recognition and participation; often speaks in idioms of livelihood, dignity and the sacredness of nature.<\/p>\n

Indian examples: Chipko, Narmada Bachao Andolan, Niyamgiri, anti-POSCO, Tuticorin, forest-rights struggles. Qualification:<\/span> the thesis does not claim the poor are always environmentalists \u2014 only that in many extraction and waste conflicts the poor stand with nature because their life depends on it. Ramachandra Guha<\/span> distinguishes Northern \u201cfull stomach\u201d environmentalism (led by scientists) from Southern \u201cempty stomach\u201d environmentalism (led by the poor).<\/p>\n

UPSC 2023 \u00b7 10m<\/span>Comment on the environmentalism of the poor.<\/span>Answer<\/a><\/div>\n

Constitution & Environment<\/h3>\n

The Constitution is an enabling document<\/span> for environmental protection, expanded through judicial interpretation.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt shall be the duty of every citizen of India to protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife and to have compassion for living creatures.\u201d<\/p>\n

Article 51-A(g)<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Directive Principles:<\/span> Article 47<\/span> (public health, which includes environmental protection); Article 48<\/span> (scientific agriculture and animal husbandry); Article 48<\/span>-A \u2014 \u201cthe state shall endeavor to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

Article 21<\/span><\/span> has been expanded by the Supreme Court to include the right to a healthy, pollution-free environment. Key cases: Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India<\/span> (expanded Art 21); the Dehradun Quarrying Case<\/span>; M. C. Mehta v. Union of India<\/span> (pollution-free environment under Art 21); Kovar G. B. Bharucha v. Excise Commissioner, Ajmer (environment vs freedom of trade). Article 19<\/span>(1)(a) does not cover loudspeakers causing noise pollution. PIL runs through Articles 32 and 226<\/span>.<\/p>\n

Statutes:<\/span> Wildlife Protection Act, 1972<\/span> \u00b7 Water Act, 1974<\/span> \u00b7 Water Cess Act, 1977<\/span> \u00b7 Forest Conservation Act, 1980<\/span> \u00b7 Air Act, 1981<\/span> \u00b7 Environment Protection Act, 1986<\/span> \u00b7 PESA, 1996 \u00b7 National Environmental Appellate Authority Act, 1997<\/span> \u00b7 Biological Diversity Act, 2002<\/span> \u00b7 Forest Rights Act, 2006<\/span>. Institutions: Pollution Control Boards, EIA, National Green Tribunal, National Biodiversity Authority.<\/p>\n

UPSC 2016 \u00b7 15m<\/span>Critically examine the provisions made in the Constitution for the protection of Environment.<\/span>Answer<\/a><\/div>\n

Environmental Movements & Governance<\/h3>\n

Movements shaped governance by raising awareness, forcing state response, influencing laws, triggering judicial activism, exposing ecological injustice, questioning development models and building citizen participation.<\/p>\n

Competing interpretations<\/span><\/p>\n

Bajwa and Bains<\/span> and O. P. Dwivedi<\/span>: governance emerged partly from global initiatives (Stockholm). Subir Sinha<\/span>: from resource-intensive development causing ecological imbalance and deprivation. Atul Kohli<\/span>: from societal forces and movements. Vandana Shiva<\/span> and Ashish Kothari<\/span>: from environmental groups and public awareness. Madhav Gadgil<\/span>: Chipko and Narmada forced the state to rethink extraction \u2014 People\u2019s Biodiversity Registers and the Gadgil Committee on the Western Ghats reflect participatory governance.<\/p>\n

Movements influenced cost-benefit analysis, EIA, environmental auditing, risk analysis, public inquiries, legal reform and judicial activism. Through PIL the Supreme Court acted on Ganga pollution, vehicular emissions, deforestation, quarrying and industrial pollution \u2014 the M. C. Mehta<\/span> cases being the model.<\/p>\n

Criticism & assessment<\/span><\/p>\n

Ramachandra Guha<\/span> calls Joseph Cornelius Kumarappa<\/span> the founder of modern Indian environmentalism \u2014 village economy, resource conservation, distinguishing selfish Western \u201cpack-type\u201d from collective Indian \u201cherd-type\u201d societies. Verrier Elwin<\/span>: forests are central to tribal life and rebellion. Ulrich Beck<\/span> and Anthony Giddens<\/span>: modernity is a \u201crisk society.\u201d Robert Bullard<\/span>: environmental harm falls disproportionately on the marginalised. Weaknesses: low environmental consciousness, local and reactive movements, legal wins that do not change ground reality, weak NGT\/EIA implementation, and ecology rarely a manifesto priority.<\/p>\n

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\u201cPolluted skies, dead rivers, disappearing forests, falling water tables, ever increasing hills of untreated waste, displaced peasants and tribes\u201d \u2014 India as a \u201cBasket case of all sorts of environmental tragedies.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ramachandra Guha<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

UPSC 2024 \u00b7 20m<\/span>Discuss the role of environmental movements in shaping the environmental governance in India.<\/span>Answer<\/a><\/div>\n
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UPSC 2012<\/span> \u2014 Discuss the impact of environmentalist movements on government policies in recent years.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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UPSC 2009<\/span> \u2014 \u201cThe environmental movements have challenged the policy and pattern of economic development in post-independent India.\u201d Analyse with examples.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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UPSC 2022<\/span> \u2014 The high concentration of economic activities and consumption patterns in the post-liberalisation period has led to the failure of environmental movements in India. Elucidate.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Environmental Movements after Liberalisation<\/h3>\n

Roots in colonial forest management, tribal displacement, post-independence dams, mining and state-led projects. Major mobilisations:<\/span> Chipko \u00b7 Appiko \u00b7 Narmada Bachao Andolan \u00b7 Silent Valley<\/p>\n

After liberalisation, industrial and mining activity expanded and FDI accelerated resource extraction; tribal areas in Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh faced deforestation and displacement. K.B. Saxena<\/span> and Rajkishor Meher<\/span> link LPG development with displacement, dispossession and unrest among indigenous communities.<\/p>\n

Why movements weakened<\/span><\/p>\n

State\u2013corporate nexus; economy over ecology; weak legal enforcement; corrupt permissions; fast industrial clearances; fragmented movements; limited citizen participation; expert-dominated discourse; a consumerist culture. Arun Kumar<\/span> \u2014 the state\u2013MNC nexus suppressed recent environmental movements.<\/p>\n

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\u201cenvironmentalism was never an organized \u2018movement.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Donella Meadows<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Judicial jurisprudence<\/span><\/p>\n

Built through Vellore Citizens Welfare Forum<\/em> (tanneries), the Fertilizer Gas Leakage case, S. Jagannath<\/em> (coastal management), Goa Foundation v. Konkan Railway<\/em>, Narula Dyeing<\/em> and Indian Council for Enviro-Legal Action<\/em> \u2014 giving the public liability<\/span>, polluter-pays<\/span> and precautionary<\/span> principles and the \u201cright to environment\u201d within \u201cright to life\u201d under Article 21<\/span><\/span>. Consumption after liberalisation brought hyper-consumerism, food waste, urban pollution, a rising Gini and SDG 11\u201312 concerns.<\/p>\n

UPSC 2022 \u00b7 10m<\/span>High concentration of economic activities and consumption patterns in post-liberalisation period has led to the failure of environmental movements in India. Elucidate.<\/span>Answer<\/a><\/div>\n
Previous<\/em>Women\u2019s movements<\/b><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n

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