Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Ecology, Environment and Society: Basic Concepts

Pre-requisites

Objectives In this first introductory module, we will discuss basic concepts

that help us understand the relationship between ecology and
society. We will underline how the term ecology and
environment were defined and different schools of thought
emerged within ecological studies. We would also spend some
time discussing on the changing human-environment
relationship. We will discuss in greater details, concept of
resilience, sustainability, risk and vulnerability
Keywords Resilience, Vulnerability, Sustainability, Ecological Equilibrium,
Ecological Footprint

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Ecology, 1. Introduction
Environment and 2. Ecology & Environment
Society: Basic 3. The Changing Human-Environment Relationship
Concepts 4. Risk and Vulnerability

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Investigator
Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Dr. Shalini Sharma Asst Professor, Tata Institute of Social

Writer/Author (CW) Sciences, Guwahati
Content Reviewer Dr. Himanshu Asst Professor, Azim Premji University,
(CR) Upadhyaya Bangalore
Language Editor Dr. Himanshu Asst Professor, Azim Premji University,
(LE) Upadhyaya Bangalore
 Ecology, Environment and Society: Basic Concepts
Dr.Shalini Sharma1

Topics
5. Introduction
6. Ecology & Environment
7. The Changing Human-Environment Relationship
8. Risk and Vulnerability
9. Resilience and Sustainability

INTRODUCTION
What is the relationship between ‘nature’ and society? In what different ways scholars have
attempted to examine and theorise environment–society relations? If and how has this
relationship changed over the time, in what ways? What caused this change? Are these
changes driven by human activity or ecological/environmental limits? What about the
implications of a changing human-environment relationship? How have we responded to
these changes? To respond to these questions, which are at the core of this course on Ecology,
Environment and Society, we require a basic familiarity with certain key concepts that can
help us identify the coupled, and dynamic nature of human and ecological/environmental
systems. The following sections undertake precisely this task by introducing the key
concepts, whilst also unpacking their connections and complexities to some extent.

ECOLOGY & ENVIRONMENT

The term Ecologywas coined by a German scientist Ernst Haeckel in 1866 who described it
as a scientific study of interaction(s) between living organisms and their environment. But its
foundation was laid possibly much earlier in 1789 when British scholar Gilbert White, in his
book The Natural History of Selborne, regarded plants and animals, not as independent
individuals, but as parts of a community of living organism that interacted with other
organisms, humans and the environment (in May &McLeon 2007:1). However, unlike natural
history, ecology is the study of life and not merely organisms. It concerns itself with learning
about life processes explaining interactions and adaptations; the flow of energy and materials
through living communities; the successional development of ecosystems, and the
distribution and abundance of biodiversity in context of the environment (for the scope of
ecology see, Begon et al 2006).

1
Dr. Shalini Sharma, Asst. Professor, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Guwahati.
These interactions could be of several different kinds ranging from simple to highly
complex– between one organism and another, between one or more organisms and their
physical environment etc.; ranging from those among simple organisms like bacteria, to those
between multifarious plants, animals, birds and human beings in a forested area. For
instance; food-websare networks depictingcomplex and multi-scalar prey-predator or
consumer-resource relationships (see, Begon et al 2006). With such intricate networks
existing between different organisms and their environment, it is not surprising that impacts
of these interactions have implications for the entire ecosystems. By Ecosystems we refer to
the web of relations among organisms, including human beings, at different levels of
organisations (ibid). Therefore, ecology is also defined as “the study of the relationships
between organisms and their environment, the “economics” (or livelihood) of the earth and
its totality of life forms” (Sutton and Anderson 2010:35).
However, Environment, as such, refers to the surrounding of an organism, including other
organisms and the physical world, and is known to have two types of components
(Kormondy 1996): ‘Biotic’ that includes living factors with biological origins such as genes,
cells, organisms of same or different species; and the ‘abiotic’ that includes non-living factors
like inorganic materials and physical aspects such as oxygen, carbon dioxide, temperature,
light, climate, rainfall, etc. However, it is understood that both biotic and abiotic components
of environment interact and impact each other; non-living factors can affect the living ones.
For instance; lack of rainfall leads to poor vegetation which in-turn affects the wildlife
dependent on it for food and habitat; or consider how leaves crumble and fall on the ground
in too harsh a climate, eventually decomposing and becoming part of the soil. That is to say,
change in one ecological or environmental factor can impact the dynamic state of the whole
ecosystem.
If ecologists highlighted the environment as constituting of “webs of interconnecting
relations of dependency and reciprocity” between the people, and for the diverse other living
creatures and vegetation, sociologists have described environment as “the context which
provides the conditions for the existence” to them (Cudworth 2003:2). In addition to these
conceptualisations, sociologists have also extended the definition of environment to include
‘built environment’ of human manufacture such as a city or a slum or a national park. These
connote human made surroundings acting as an interrelated whole, interacting with human
activities over time; although built for human purposes these mediate the overall environment
with results that affect the environmental context (see, Bartuska 2007). From this perspective,
the natural world, the human-built world and the social world of human relationsare all
considered environment. The concept of environment thus extends from physical or natural
environment to also include cultural environment of human societies.
While ecologists have highlighted the idea of ecological equilibrium or balance of nature to
describe the self-restoring tendency of ecological systems - where ecological systems tend to
maintain stability by returning to some stable point after each disturbance through self-
correcting mechanisms (for detailed discussion see, Rhode 2005). This idea of nature striving
always for permanent stability as long as left alone is currently considered obsolete given
many proofs of variations in nature with and without human intervention (see,Ricklefs 2001,
Rhode 2005). However, “the balance of nature is not a status quo; it is fluid, ever shifting, in
a constant state of adjustment. Man, too, is part of this balance. Sometimes the balance is in
his favour; sometimes—and all too often through his own activities—it is shifted to his
disadvantage,” as Rachel Carson (1962:146) pointed out over five decades ago. Examining
human-environment interactions, therefore, becomes necessary to understand condition of
survival, and how we might be impacting them. This includes human ability to unleash
ecological destruction as well as human ability for creation and restoration.

THE CHANGING HUMAN –ENVIRONMENT RELATIONSHIP

Ecologists have illuminated our understanding about life as a manifestation of complex web
of interactions between different organisms and their physical environment, including the
complex interdependencies between people and environment. Studies on evolution,
particularly Charles Darwin’s work on origin of species and Herbert Spencer’s concept of
‘survival of the fittest’, have helped us understand the process of differentiation and
elaboration in natural environment. The history of human society is also well known to show
similar process of specialisation, organisation and expansion (see, Durkheim’s work on
division of labour in society). Human species is not external to the nature, it thrives within it;
therefore examining the nature of human-environment interactions and their impacts becomes
crucial.
Both human society and environment can be studied as systems where systems refer to a
group of interacting or independent parts which maintains its existence and functions as a
whole through the interactions of its parts. Berkes et al (2003) define ecological systems
(ecosystems) as self-regulating communities of organisms that interact with one another, and
with their environment; social systems deal with human-led governance (access to resources
and property rights), with human knowledge, ethics and world-views defining use of natural
resources and human-nature relationship; finally social-ecological systems to refer to the
integrated concept of human-in-nature, expressing interlinked nature of social systems and
ecosystems. Both ecosystems as well as social systems are dynamic systems, with
interactions that change over time. There are practically no ecosystems untouched by people,
and no people who don’t need or benefit from ecosystems.
When society itself has changed, can human-nature relation remain same?
By understanding shifting nature of a society we can gain important insights about the
changing society-environment relationships. For instance, Roberts(1998) described how over
the course of around 10,000 years in Europe, humans once entirely dependent on natural
environment through agricultural subsistence, advanced from hunter-gatherers to a
technological and industrial society. During this process, he argued, the relationship of
humans with their environment became increasingly asymmetric, unequal: Initially humans
depended upon the environment, being ‘part of’ it, but with the growth of agriculture they
started controlling it to some extent; and as demands of natural resources increased their
exploitation of their own environment increased too. Similarly, Crosby(1986) provided a
historical explanation of European expansion since the late fifteenth century, by incorporating
the role and treatment of natural world and examining the associated ecological destruction, a
process he called as ‘ecological imperialism’. In fact, over past 300 years as human societies
‘progressed’ from foraging communities to agriculture and then to modern societies, the
nature and scale of human impact on environment too changed from local to global changes,
from causing visible changes to earth’s surface and resources to also affecting its flow of
material and energy (see, Goudie 2006). Even as environmental change also occursnaturally,
there is hardly any doubt about the significant role of human agency in driving it (ibid).
Human population has increased in both size and scale of its ambition. During early 1800 the
entire human population was nearly one billion; by 2050 it is expected to cross nine billion.
This is a tremendous growth, but one that relied heavily on ecosystems and the services they
provide to meet the rapidly growing demands of a rapidly growing human population. These
have put considerable strain on earth’s carrying capacity, which refers to the maximum
number of organisms that earth can support with its existing resources without exhausting
them (see, Sayre 2008). However, population growth isn’t the only factor adding to
ecological footprint, a term coined by William Rees in 1992, which conveys the human
demand on environment and resources often compared with ecological capacity to regenerate
(see, Wackernagel and Rees 1996). There are a range of other factors that shape human
behaviour towards environment; these factors are rooted in the society itself. For instance;
within technological and industrialising societies one sees growingconsumption and
materialism;, increasing individualism and competition; risinginequality andmarginalisation,
disparity in terms of access to technology and capital; and growing collective impact of
human activities on nature. Consequently, the nature of human-environment relationship is
becoming increasingly skewed and confrontational.
What will be the implications of human impact on nature?

A range of environmental problems are arising due to the overall interconnectedness of the
components of the global natural environment (Jackson and Jackson 2000): a) Human impact
on natural systems like interference in natural systems or a loss of habitat or destruction of a
species or organism for e.g. overfishing or threats to Sundarban forests and Majuli islands,
both biodiversity hotspots; b) Impact on human health and wellbeing due to human induced
changes in natural conditions for e.g. increasing respiratory problems due to increased
toxicity of air in Delhi; c) Human impact on natural landscape- considered problematic in the
more developed countries which value the natural areas which are still ‘untouched’.
In fact, due to unprecedented rates of human activity and resultant strain on natural
environment, we are already witnessing an ecological crisis. This involves issues of fast
degrading ecosystems (according to UN Millennium ecosystem assessment-2005, 60% of
earth’s ecosystems are nearly degraded); the global warming and climate change is expected
to soon become irreversible. It is already known that if environmental conditions change too
much, ecosystems can undergo Regime Shifts i.e. they may suddenly change to another
regime (alternative state) which might no longer provide Ecosystem Services i.e. benefits
essential for human well-being; these are also resilient so that the loss of ecosystem function
caused by the regime shift is irreversible (see, Folke et al. 2004). For instance; a shift from
dryland to savannas in Africa due to bush encroachment and with implications for cattle
ranching (see,Roques et al 2001). Other examples include lakes (see, Carpenter and Kinne
2003), coastal ecosystems (Jackson, et.al.2001), coral reefs (Bellwood et al 2004, Hoegh-
Guldberg et al. 2007), and even polar regions of Atlantic (see, Green et al. 2008).
How do we respond to such alarming impacts on socio-ecological systems?
Malthus (1789) had warned against impacts of unchecked population growth fairly early on
for human kind to take note of imminentcrisis. 1960 onwards when human population had
already increased massively, resources were showing signs of fatigue, environmental changes
were being recorded- a series of proposals came. These include: emphasis on human
ingenuity to find scientific and technical solutions(see, Boserup 1965, 1976), but to also avert
exhaustion of common resources due to indiscriminate human use referred commonly as
‘tragedy of commons’ by rethinking natural resource management andregulating access and
control (see, Hardin 1968). The critique of private resource regimesfound effective examples
of collective management of commons (Ostrom 1990), leading to a framework of Socio-
Ecological Systemsor SES (Ostrom 2009) that considered socio-ecological problems as
manifestations of complex and different human-nature interactions.
The unprecedented impact of human activity on natural environment (see, Goudie 2006),
which remained at the centre of Human Ecology (see Marten 2001),also triggered diverse
ideas on how can one examine and respond to environmental problems given the interacting
nature of human and ecological systems. For instance; Deep Ecology,proposed the idea that
nature is sacrosanct and should not be seen as a resource for human exploitation;keeping
nature free from any form of human activity due to deep empathy for other life forms
(see,Naess 1989). In contrast, Social Ecology approach, countered them vehemently
highlighting the intricate relationship between nature and human society, and the fact that all
ecological/environmental problems are ultimately and fundamentally social in nature (see,
Bookchin 1993) caused due to deep seated problems of society and not merely human
activity or overpopulation; resolving environmental problems therefore require a fundamental
shift in society, i.e. within people, their actions and attitudes. Yet others took to Cultural
Ecology which examined role and impact of culture in unfolding environmental problems and
their solutions, including human adaptations to different and shifting environment
(seeSteward 1972, Sutton and Anderson 2010). Further, Political Ecology unpacked the
political and economic roots ofenvironmental problems. For instance, land degradation in less
developed countries as a product of their political economy (see, Blaikie 1987), Yet others,
combined cultural and political ecology, to investigate the intersecting domains of culture,
knowledge, power and nature (see, Escobar 1998, 1999), thus articulating environmental
issues not merely as socio-political issues, but also as matters of justice.
These various, and growing, schools of thoughts have expanded our knowledge on nature of
ecological/environmental issues, and about community and institutional responses to them.
By combining ecological sciences with social sciences in their analyses these have also
questioned and exposed what makes our society and environment weak, by examining the
risks facing socio-ecological systems, and their vulnerability and resilience.

RISK AND VULNERABILITY

By risk we mean a potential threat or activity that can cause harm or damage. For instance, a
natural disaster like recent earthquake in Nepal (April 2015) caused damage to both human
lives (and property) and their surrounding environment. Similarly, Chernobyl nuclear disaster
caused both immediate as well as lasting damages to human and environmental health.
Vulnerability is the susceptibility to risk. It indicates the extent to which an individual
organism, environment or a system is likely to be caused harm by a risk. The concepts of risk
and vulnerability apply to both ecosystems and human systems.
Sociologist Anthony Giddens(1999) categorised risk into two kinds – external risksand
manufactured risks:External risks are non-human such as earthquake, floods, hurricanes,
volcanoes etc, which always presented a risk to human society. Manufactured risks are
creations of humans themselves such as nuclear reactors, big dams, chemicals like pesticides,
and diseases like silicosis.These are products of the process of modernisation of human
society; resulting from increased human role in the production as well as mitigation of these
risks (ibid).
An Ecosystem’s vulnerability represents its sensitivity towards stresses that can disturb its
ecological equilibrium. It can be induced by natural stress for instance; within an intertidal
wetland salinity and tidal movements denote major natural stresses causing damage to plants,
mangroves etc. Or, it could be human induced stress such as the changes witnessed in
nutrient cycle resulting into eutrophication of lakes, damaging water quality. The
interconnected bio-physical components within ecosystems increase its vulnerability further;
also making it difficult to identify whether an environmental change was caused by human or
natural processes.
In terms of social systems, Pelling(2003:5) described vulnerability to be- Physical
vulnerability which related to the built environment, Social Vulnerability which
is“experienced by people and their social, economic and political systems”, and Human
Vulnerability resulting from physical and social vulnerability.How do we interpret
vulnerability in the context of dynamic, interacting natural and social systems – with
mutually constituted and embedded societies and destructive agents as unfolding processes
over time? Hilhorstand Bankoff(2004) explained vulnerability as a condition of deep seated
social relations and processes. It is not merely the occurrence, frequency and intensity of
environmental events; rather it also being a condition arising from historical and structural
factors (ibid). Due to the historical consequences of political, economic and social proeceses
some populations might be more vulnerable than others.For instance, population in Sahel
suffered famine which resulted from conditions of dependency created by colonialism and
cash-cropping, along with climate change (Copans1975, cited in Hilhorst and Bankoff 2004).

Vulnerability is about the timing of the event, location of people, and other social specificities
such as gender, age, poverty, power etc. It is also about public perceptions and knowledge as
they shape human behaviour. It is the product of past factors, but also a present condition that
changes a hazard into a disaster, and determines whether people can cope with effects or
succumb to its consequences (Benkoff et al 2004, also see Pelling 2003). For example,
consider the case of the 1984 Bhopal gas disaster. It was a result of several factors acting
together including technological failure at the Carbide pesticide plant, greedy and callous
management, and poor location of the factory next to a densely populated, but poor and
largely illiterate neighbourhood. The water contamination spreading from the factory to
neighbourhood in Bhopal provides another example of how a known risk could become a
disaster, affecting the already affected, due to the continued vulnerability of people and
continued failure of government to hold the polluter accountable in context of unequal world
polity/economy.

With processes of social transformations, continued expansion of human activities and

consequent impacts on nature, along with ongoing naturally occurring environmental change,
the nature of risks and vulnerability of people are changed too. Elaborating upon this, Ulrich
Beck(1992) stressed that we are faced with a Risk Society– a vastly transformed version of
pre-modernisation society.Globalising world has connected not just people, but also risks and
hazards; risks are no longer local in nature and vulnerabilities are difficult to anticipate;
hence, the growing difficulty in predicting or preventing disasters. Disasters, causing human
and environmental loss,are a function of both hazard events andchanging vulnerability and
resilience; these are found to both shape and are shaped by development (see, Collins 2009).

RESILIENCE THINKING – A STEP TOWARDS SUSTAINABILITY

To protect and rebuild communities and institutions on an increasingly coupled human–
environment system (Liu at al 2007), one needs to embrace ideas of resilience and
sustainability, concepts resulting from the realisation that these systems are inherently
dynamic and interlinked.
In 1987 Brundtland Commission stressed on the concept of Sustainability which denotes the
ability of a process or human activity to meet the needs of the present generation while also
protecting the environment and its resources for future generations. Therefore, sustainable
activities are those that do not deplete or damage natural environment or natural resources.
Sustainable development strives to meet people’s immediate interests without compromising
interests of future generations. High resilience and low vulnerability are measures of
sustainability. Vulnerability emerges when resilience is lost (Holling 1995).
Resilience refers to the ability of an organism to resist or recover from adverse conditions, as
well as to the ability of an ecosystem to absorb shocks/disturbance,while still retaining its
basic elements or relationships, and returning to its usual state after being disturbed (Walker
et al. 2004).Stability is a measure of the speed with which a system returns to equilibrium or
state of balance after absorbing disturbances. Systems with high resilience but low stability
may undergo deep and frequent changes but still continue to function while systems with
high stability but low resilience may show little change during disturbances but then collapse
suddenly.However, system recovery, not the speed of recovery is more important.
Over the time, humans have, especially after industrial revolution, reduced the capacity of
ecosystems to cope with change through a combination of factors (Folke et al 2003): removal
of functional groups of species and their response diversity, such as the loss of whole trophic
levels (top-down effects), impact on ecosystems via emissions of waste and pollutants
(bottom-up effects) and climate change, and alteration of the magnitude, frequency, and
duration of disturbance regimes to which the biota is adapted (ibid). This human-induced loss
of resilience increases the vulnerability of the ecosystems.
Resilience is understood in several terms. Physical resilience refers to hazard-resistant or
adaptive systems which when disturbed maintain their structure and processes. Ecological
resilience is understood as the amount of change an ecosystem can undergo and remain in the
same regime, retaining the same structure, function & feedbacks (see, Holling 1973);
According to Seixas and Berkes (2003: 272): “The resilience of an ecosystem is its capacity
to absorb disturbances while maintaining its behavioural processes and structure. It can be
defined as the capacity to buffer perturbations, to self-organize, and to learn and
adapt.”Broadly, resilience of a system is understood as its ability to resist and endure
turbulences, its capacity to restore original conditions, andits ability to adapt in changing
contexts.
These definitions can be extended to social systems to conceptualise Social resilience.
According to Adger(2000)social resilience is defined at the community level rather than
individuals; it is related to the social capital of societies and communities; is institutionally
determined; and can be examined through indicators like institutional change and economic
structure and through demographic change, and by observing positive and negative aspects of
social exclusion, marginalization and social capital. One example of social resilience could be
found in the commons dependent pastoral and nomadic communities. During the colonial
times, these communities and their practices were perceived with the social evolutionary lens
and were referred to as ‘vanishing tribes’. However, these communities have shown
remarkable ability to adapt in changing circumstances and absorb ecological stress (Kavoori
2005).
The linkages between social and ecological resilience are quite visible in resource-dependent
communities (communities relying majorly on their physical environment and resources for
livelihood) where they are exposed to external stresses and shocks, both in the form of
environmental changes and social, economic and political changes/disturbances (ibid). For
instance, Indian agriculture is reported to show different vulnerabilities in different regions
corresponding to climate change and economic globalisation (O’Brien et al 2004).
Overall, given the interlinked nature of socio-ecological systems, it would be useful to
examine measures that can reduce their vulnerability and increase resilience. Berkes et al
(2003: 354-355) explained four measures: a) learning to live with change and uncertainty; b)
Nurturing diversity for reorganization and renewal - nurturing ecological memory, sustaining
social memory; c) Combining different types of knowledge for learning; d) Creating
opportunity for self-organization - matching scales of ecosystems and governance - dealing
with cross-scale dynamics. Also, Folke(2006) considers resilience as processes of adaptation,
learning and innovation that in turn improve sustainability of social and ecological systems.
Indeed, understanding resilience as a capacity to learn from change; a capacity for renewal
andreformation, and role of individuals and institutions for it (see, Gunderson et al 1995)
needs to be examined further as an essential step towards sustainable development.
This brings one to re-evaluate efforts towards sustainability given that social-ecological
system have only certain mechanisms that allow it to persist, but which remain vulnerable to
human impact and environmental change. How to ensure sustainable development, which is
already noted to be a contradiction in terms (see, Redclift2005), without straining the limits
of human adaptive capacities and the resilience of nature remains an open question.
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Ostrom, E.“A General Framework for Analyzing Sustainability of Social-Ecological
Systems.” Science 325, no. 5939 (2009): 419–422
Ostrom, E. Governing the Commons: The Evolution of Institutions for Collective
Action. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1990.
Pelling, M. The Vulnerabilities of Cities: Natural Disasters and Social Resilience. London,
Sterling, VA: Earthscan, 2003.
Redclift, M.“Sustainable Development (1987-2005): An Oxymoron Comes of
Age.”Sustainable Development, Special Issue: Critical Perspectives on Sustainable
Development13, no. 4 (2005):212-227
Rhode, K.Nonequilibrium Ecology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005.
Rhode, K. ed.The Balance of Nature and Human Impact. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, 2013.
Ricklefs, R.The Economy of Nature. 5th Edn. New York: W.H. Freeman, 2001.
Roques, K.G.; O'Connor, T.G.; Watkinson, A.R.“Dynamics of shrub encroachment in an
African savanna: relative influences of fire, herbivory, rainfall and density dependence.”
Journal of Applied Ecology, no. 38 (2001): 268-280.
Sayre, N. F. “The Genesis, History, and Limits of Carrying Capacity.”Annals of the
Association of American Geographers no. 98 (2008): 120–134
Seixas, C. and Berkes, F.“Dynamics of socio-ecological changes in a lagoon fishery in
Southern Brazil.” inNavigating Social-Ecological Systems: Building Resilience for
Complexity and Change, edited by Berkes, F., Colding, J., Folke, C., Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 2003, pp. 271-298
Steward, Julian H. Theory of Culture Change: The Methodology of Multilinear
Evolution.Illinois: University of Illinois Press, 1972
Sutton, M. Q. & Anderson, E.N.Introduction to Cultural Ecology, 2ndedn.,AltaMira Press,
2010.
Wackernagel, M. and Rees, W.Our Ecological Footprint, New Society Press, 1996.
Walker, B.; Holling, C.S.; Carpenter, S.R.; Kinzig, A.“Resilience, adaptability and
transformability in social-ecological systems.”Ecology and Society 9, no. 2. (2004)

http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol9/iss2/art5/

Walker, B.; Gunderson, L., Kinzig, A.;Folke, C.; Carpenter, S.; Schultz, L. “A handful of
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http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol11/iss1/art13/
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Environmental History in India: Part I: Ecology and Society in Pre-Colonial
India
Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Environmental History, Indus civilisation, Agro-Pastoralism

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary This module looks at environmental history in India. It would introduce the
concept of ‘environmental history’ and would present the concerns that are
voiced in several anthologies that have appeared till date. In this first
module, we would discuss how has environmental historians looked at the
past during the phase prior to arrival of colonialism

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel Professor, University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR) Prof Savyasachi Professor, Jamia Milia Islamia, Delhi
Language Editor (LE) Prof Savyasachi Professor, Jamia Milia Islamia, Delhi
Environmental History in India Part I

This module looks at environmental history in India. It would introduce the concept of ‘environmental
history’ and would present the concerns that are voiced in several anthologies that have appeared till
date. In this first module, we would discuss how has environmental historians looked at the past during
the phase prior to arrival of colonialism. In second module, we would discuss the environmental history
writing during the period 1750 to 1947. Third module highlights concerns articulated by environmental
historians about the model of development embraced by post-colonial India. While much of the
environmental history writing has appeared in last three decades, the last module would discuss post-
colonial events till the moment of worst industrial disaster: Union Carbide gas leak in Bhopal in December
1984. The period 1985 to the present moment is looked at as contemporary social and environmental
movements in modules wherein we discuss contemporary social movements.

Ecology and Society in Pre-colonial India

An introduction to Environmental History Reader published recently by Centre for Science and
Environment (New Delhi) terms environmental history as a “relatively recent innovation, compared to
political history, economic history and the history of cultural institutions and practices”. This introduction
traces the origin of the term in the United States and attribute its first usage to historian Roderick Nash in
the early 1970s and view “the popularity of environmentalist movements in the 1960s” as “fostering
investigations into ecological aspects of the past”. It credits, “environmental historians like Alfred Crosby,
Donald Worster, Carolyn Merchant and William Cronon” as pioneers in the emerging discipline, who “gave
the new field of enquiry direction by asking key questions about relations between humans and nature,
while they tried to understand transformations of the world’s ecology through imperialism, exploration,
agricultural change, technological innovations and urban expansion”1.

Amongst several modes of writing history, emerged this stream ecological or environmental history. While
Rangrajan and Sivramkrishnan (2014: 01) considers Ramchandra Guha’s 1989 book, Unquiet Woods:
Ecological Change and Peasant Resistance in Himalayas as “the first full-length monograph on India’s
environmental history2”, Sivramkrishnan (2003) had pointed out that, in India, this mode of history writing
has been traced to “the critique of nationalized economic development that gathered momentum in the
aftermath of Jay Prakash Narayan’s ‘total revolution’ movement of the early 1970s” by David Arnold and
Ramchandra Guha3. In an introductory essay to a collection of essays on the environmental history of

1
It is curious that in 2015, a civil society organization that publish environmental fortnightly magazine, decided to
bring out an anthology and claimed that it was “the magazine’s endeavor to take environmental history beyond
rarefied circles” and shows “Down To Earth’s commitment to understand ecological matters from historical
perspective”. This collection shows “how environmental history of an age throws light on other aspects of that
era”. See, Dasgupta, Kaushik (2015) Environmental History Reader, Centre for Science and Environment, New
Delhi.
2
They also trace the career of this monograph in the footnote by drawing the attention of readers to an expanded
edition by University of California Press, Berkeley in the year 2000 and a new edition in the year 2009 by
Permanent Black, Ranikhet to celebrate twenty years of discourse on environmental history discipline in Indian
academic since then, with introductory essays that map the terrain of scholarship in environmental history since
then.
3
See, Sivramakrishnan, K. 2003. ‘Nationalisms and the Writing of Environmental Histories,’ Seminar, No 522,
http://www.india-seminar.com/2003/522/522%20k.%20sivaramakrishnan.htm
South Asia, Arnold and Guha (1995) situates the environmental history writing in the sub-continent within
the emerging discipline, which was believed to have come of age in regions such as United States and
France, having emerged in the wake of modern environmental movements there in 1970s. They suggested
to fellow environmental historians to pay adequate attention to “changes in the physical status of forests
and pastures, as well as changes in the social institutions governing their use”. They had lamented that
the great rivers of this sub-continent that “exercised such a definitive influence on the natural
environment” had not received scholarly treatment that they deserve4.

Irfan Habib in his book, Man and Environment: The Ecological History of India, discuss how during medieval
period, the ports in Gujarat showed the influence of the seashore changes, moderate as they might be.
Habib (2011: 76) states that “the earliest known port of Gujarat was Bhrigukachchha, the ‘Barygaza’ of
the Periplus (first century AD), medieval and modern Bharuch (Broach), situated near the mouth of
Narmada river. By the end of the fourteenth century, the passage of the sea seems to have silted up so
that the trade shifted to Khambayat (Cambay, modern day Khambhat), situated at the head of Gulf of
Cambay. In time the sea began to retreat from here too, and Gogha on the Saurashtra coast began to
serve as the anchorage from where the seaships’ cargo was ferried over to Khambaayat. Finally, in the
seventeenth century, Surat, near the mouth of Tapti (Tapi) river, decisively supplanted Khambaayat as the
major port of Gujarat. Its position was strengthened by the formation or discovery of a deep undersea
hollow (the Swally Hole), close to the coastal village of Suhali near Surat, where large ships could now
drop anchor”. In a similar fashion, Irfan Habib (2011: 76) cites the example of Kosi river in Bihar as an
illustration of how “the great expanse of northern alluvial plains, themselves created by millions of years
of silt deposition by rivers” and “myriad channels in which the rivers flow remaining subject to immense
changes”. Habib adds that “while the Kosi must have shifted its channels unchecked in medieval times,
the history of those events is not traceable in our records”. From the written sources, Irfarn Habib (2011:
77-78) traces changes in river course in respect of the Indus basin and points out the major river courses
in Punjab in 1400 and 1970. Irfan Habib also talks about “an example of the practical disappearance of a
river through a substantial change of course of its main feeder, in what happened to the Jamuna river in
Bengal, which carried the main waters of the present Tista as it entered the plains, and after a course
directly southward across northern and central Bengal, debauched into the Ganges”. Talking about the
dramatic changes, Habib narrates, “in 1787, the Tista abandoned the Jamuna altogether and, turning
southeastwards, ran into the Brahmaputra, reducing its own course in the plain down to a third of its
former length”.

Similarly, Dasgupta (2015: 120-124) recalls how “the death of the Indus valley civilization was not caused
by a single dramatic event” and elaborates the research by Shereen Ratnagar, who in 1986 proposed that
“lift irrigation may have resulted in an over-reaching of its ecological limits”. He also cites an opinion of M
H Raval, former director of Gujarat department of archaeology, who suggested in 1989 that “as animal
herding was an important form of subsistence in Harappa, large populations of goat and sheep would also
have led to overgrazing”5.

4
Probably no other scholar has kept writing on river ecosystems by documenting how riverine communities and
State interacted with them as consistently as Dr Dinesh Mishra, an engineer by academic training and an
environmental activist by conviction. Dr. Mishra is well known for his trenchant indictment of engineering of flood
control as illustrated by embankments over the river Kosi and other river systems in North Bihar.
5
Dasgupta, Kaushik (2015) Environmental History Reader, Centre for Science and Environment, New Delhi.
David Arnold and Ramchandra Guha had also outlined the urgent task for fellow travelers by appealing
them to “opening up the time-frame for the discussion of environmental change to take long-term
developments into account, rather than merely to concentrate upon the developments of the past
century or so”. In an initial attempt to undertake such a task, Madhav Gadgil and Ramchandra Guha, in
their pioneering work, This Fissured Land: An Ecological History of India, presents South Asia landscape as
not merely populated by settled villages, but as a treasure trove of biological diversity populated by
hunter-gatherers, jhumiyas or swidden agriculturists, nomadic pastoralists, sea-faring traders and
fisherfolks practicing both inland and coastal fishing. Not only had this work paid rigorous attention to
precolonial India, it also “drew on an array of archaeological and literary evidence to evolve a larger
framework to approach patterns of ecological change in the past”. However, it has also been claimed that
“most subsequent collections and anthologies on India’s environmental pasts barely take notice of the
era prior to 1800”6. Rangarajan and Sivramkrishnan (2012: 05) points out that such a situation arose since
“sources for pre-modern and early modern forest and environmental history are indeed scarce”. To
correct such an anomaly they presents an edited volume that consists of essays ranging from prehistoric
India right to the middle of the nineteenth century CE, with four of the 16 essays making an effort to blend
archaeology and ecology and another four drawing from literary texts to construct “imageries and states
of nature”7. In a subsequent anthology published in the year 2014, Rangarajan and Sivramakrishnan (2014:
07) stress upon a need to critically engage with the longer-range histories of the lands or people, when
they assert that there is a “need to promote more sustained and engaged dialogue that straddles different
eras (such as pre-historic, ancient, medieval, and modern), all the more so because many historians and
sociologists of modern India often view the past as a kind of tabula rasa”. They point out that “excellent
works such as Environment and Empire in 2007 and Imperial Encounters in 2012 accomplish much by way
of tracing the complex connections of British imperialism and ecological processes, but they hardly even
glance at, let alone critically engage with the longer-range histories of the lands or people, even in terms
of perspective, let alone rigorous treatment”.

Such a trend displayed by anthologies within environmental history must invoke a sense of disbelief in a
sub-continent with so much work by archaeologists. Was archeology to remain merely a discipline about
the excavations and fossil records? Wouldn’t environmental history draw upon the knowledge that it
offers us to re-construct contours of society and ecology in Neolithic and Mesolithic India as well as
climatic changes during Ancient and Mediaeval period in India? Wouldn’t the study of literary texts such
as Meghdootam or Abhigyaan Shakuntalam by Kalidas offer certain pathways with which to understand
the climatic function such as Indian monsoon or the different perspectives on forests 8? Wouldn’t the
ancient and medieval streams of writing history explore themes that would offer insights for those
pursuing environmental history? Wouldn’t explorations in disciplines such as Geology offer insights to be
incorporated into environmental history, for example changing flow regimes and historically and
geologically memorable floods in river basins of the sub-continent?

6
See, Rangarajan, Mahesh and K. Sivaramakrishnan 2012. India’s Environmental History: From Ancient Times to the
Colonial Period, Permanent Black, Ranikhet. P. 01.
7
Ibid.
8
For a sensitive reading of not merely Kalidas’ portrayal of Sakuntala, but myriad texts around the same character,
see Thapar, Romila (1999) Sakuntala: Texts, Readings, Histories. London: Anthem.
As Irfan Habib points out in his book, Man and Environment: The Ecological History of India, there is no
single published work on the ecological history of the whole period of ancient India or medieval India 9.
Habib points out that D. D. Kosambi’s An Introduction to the Study of India History (1956) is important for
a student of environmental history, since Kosambi has paid much attention to ecological factors while
analyzing historical developments. Sayan Bhattacharya (2014) looks at ancient Indian literary texts such
as Arthashastra, Satpath Brahmanas, Vedas, Manusmriti, Brihat Samhita, Ramayana, Mahabharata,
Rajtarangini and archaeological evidences to elaborate on how these texts reflected the concepts of
forest ecology and conservation in a sustainable manner10. Bhattacharya argues that “in the Indus valley
civilization, several characteristics of city planning and social structure showed environmental
awareness”. Irfan Habib (2011: 28) indicates that “wheat and barley began to be cultivated in the Indus
basin before 6000 BC, and rice in the Ganga basin some 3000 years later”, but makes a conjecture that
“the cultivated area in relation to the whole area must still have been extremely small. He also talks about
the findings from archaeological site at Mehrgarh, which suggest that “in Period II (5000 to 4000 BC) an
addition of bread wheat and shot wheat to the races of wheat cultivated”. Also at this site, we find signs
of the first act of domestication of a major fibre-plant in the Old World, in the domestication of cotton.
Side by side to these archaeological evidences suggesting cultivation were those which suggest
pastoralism as an important feature of the Neolithic revolution. Irfan Habib (2011: 22) talks about “the
earliest evidence of goat domestication at Levant (Syria and Palestine), datable to before 8000 BC; and
the domesticated sheep appearing there around 7000 BC” and similarly “in the Indian sub-continent, at
Mehrgarh in Period I (7000-5000 BC), both the wild goat and wild sheep, apparently captured from the
neighbouring hills, are represented in the bone remains; but so is domesticated goat as well”. Habib adds
that there is also a significant evidence suggesting that the sheep was domesticated here, as a gradual
reduction in its skeletal size is seen. However, the more crucial development turned out to be
domestication of cattle. Discussing the evidence at Mehrgarh in its Period I (7000 – 5000 BC), Habib (2011:
30) argues that “the remains of bones, in large proportion, are those of wild species only, and among
these the wild ox (bos primigenius) is also represented” and adds that “Yet, bones of the humped or zebu
cattle are also found; and there is, in succeeding phases, a growth in their number and a diminution in
their individual size – a characteristic mark of the process of domestication”. Talking about the other
bovine of India – the water buffalo – Habib (2011: 31) states that, “Curiously, the early archaeological
evidence for buffalo domestication does not come from the Gangetic basin, where from the conditions of
natural environment one would have expected it, but from northwestern India: from Kashmir neolithic,
2500-2000 BC, and from the Indus culture sites of Balakot (near Karachi) and Dholavira in Kachchh, of
about the same date”.

Talking about two Mesolithic sites (Adamgarh in the Narmada valley, c. 6000 BC and Bagor in the Aravallis
(Mewar), Phase I (5365-2650 BC)), Habib (2011: 31) argues that the bone remains of animals there suggest
a process of exclusive pastoral diffusion. Tracing how the exclusive pastoral diffusion would have come to
merge with cultivation creating a symbiosis, Habib (2011: 32) argues that a number of innovations around
3300 BC and 3000 BC – such as castration as a means of making the male ox, or bull, tractable enough to

9
This book by Irfan Habib, being volume 36 of the series A People’s History of India gives a comprehensive
understanding of the ecological history of the sub-continent in precolonial and colonial periods.
10
See, Bhattacharya, Sayan (2014) ‘Forest and Biodiversity Conservation in ancient Indian culture: A review based
on old texts and archaeological evidences’, International Letters of Social and Humanistic Sciences, No 19, pp. 35-
46.
be controlled by man, so that it could be made to carry loads and draw the plough, and the vertical cart
wheel, making the bullock driven transportation possible.

The next period (c. 1500 BC- AD 700) in the narration on our knowledge of environmental history of India
occurs around 1500 BC, because now we move from the exclusive dependence on archaeological evidence
to texts. Habib (2011: 48) states that “the increasing corpus of texts such as Rigveda, supplements the
findings of archaeology, and later reinforced by inscriptions, ultimately relegates archaeology to a
secondary, though not unimportant position”. So we find Irfan Habib citing extracts such as ode to
AraNyani from Rigveda, X 146; Ashoka’s Pillar Edict V: On Animals to be Protected; BaaNa’s Harshacharita
(Seventh Century): On Borders of the Vindhya forests.

Mediaeval Period (c. 700 – AD 1750)

Irfan Habib argues that during mediaeval times, considerable variations in rainfall started to have an
overwhelming impact, once cultivation became chief human endeavor, since “the seasonal crops could
simply be destroyed, if the rains arrived late, or fell at the wrong time”. Habib voices a view that “with the
aid of narrative histories, we can build a better famine record (however incomplete) for medieval times
than for the ancient period”. In his book, Agrarian System of Mughal India (p. 112-22) Irfan Habib draws
a detailed table of famines during the Seventeenth century. Narrative history of Mughal period also tells
us a great deal about the irrigation, wildlife and domesticated animals in India.

Irfan Habib (2011: 89) informs us that “in peninsular India, where natural undulations suit their
construction, stone and earthern dams were built to create irrigation tanks of different sizes, with sluices
and canals laid out to irrigate peasant fields in fairly large areas”. He also talks about “inscriptions
containing references to constructions and repairs of irrigation tanks from the times of Vijayanagara
emperors (fourteenth to sixteenth century)”. Describing the canal excavation during Mughal era, Habib
(2011: 89) tells us that “in northern India, canals were excavated Firoz Tughlaq (1351-88) from the Yamuna
and Sutlej rivers to irrigate waterless tracts in Haryana and eastern Punjab and later Shahjahan (1628-58)
laid out the great West Yamuna canal with a sophisticated system of distributaries to irrigate surrounding
lands.

David Arnold and Ramchandra Guha (2011: 07) notes that “South Asia has a long and developed history
of irrigation and urban settlement” and raises a question that “as yet we know relatively little about how
these modified the surrounding environment, or gave rise to adverse environmental effects”. They
suggest that “as a major consumer of fuel, fodder, building materials and foodstuffs; cities in South Asia
over time have produced a substantial modifications to the environment over a wide area”.

Amongst those who have explored the pre-colonial India within environmental history, the first set of
researchers have been those who try to engage with the narrative that often describes pre-agrarian
modes of resource utilization as cultures that were threatened to get wiped out in the face of agricultural
expansion. Rangrajan and Sivramakrishnan (2012: 01) cites Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyaya’s Bangla text,
Aranyak of the Forest as an illustration of a sensitive portrayal of the early twentieth century conquest of
the forest by the arable, of nature by culture. They also refer to D. D. Kosambi’s writings as assuming “that
pre-agricultural cultures and ways of life could not but be subjugated and absorbed into the wider, more
‘advanced’ milieu” adding that Kosambi would have imagined himself as “chronicler of the demise of the
older ways”. Similar values were shared by certain colonial experts who failed to understand the rhythms
of pastoral mobility and conflated it with vagrancy and tried to unleash a ‘modernising’ mission with a
typical law and order approach. While much of the focus has remained about the forests and agrarian
landscape within environmental history, there has been some writings that engage with pastoralism in
South Asia’s past from protohistoric times and gradually gets more and more scarce as we move into later
times. So, in 1991 Centre for History Studies at JNU Prof Shereen Ratnagar and her colleagues held a
workshop on exploring pastoralism as a theme in History 11. Historic moments such as permanent
settlement and the consolidation of colonial policies and control over forests have often been presented
in environmental history as representing a dramatic rupture. However, the discourse about diminishing
pastures, encroachment of settled cultivation over the pastoral resource use patterns and migrations
arising from catastrophic re-drawing of client-patron relationship would have to be imagined as pre-dating
colonialism.

Shereen Ratnagar in her introductory essay written for that workshop talks about “an inscription of about
AD 860 from the vicinity of Jodhpur, about a village hitherto ‘infested by Abhiras’ (a pastoral group) being
rehabilitated and rebuilt”. However, she also quickly reminds her readers that “occasionally, the reverse
process is documented: occupied lands are turned over to pastures” drawing our attention to a doctoral
thesis by N. Vairavel on History of Pastoral Communities of Ancient and Medieval Tamil Nadu, submitted
to Madurai Kamraj University in 1989. Similarly, in her paper, ‘Villages Abandoned: The Case for Mobile
Pastoralism in Post-Harappan Gujarat’, Supriya Verma talked about meagre possessions that herdsmen in
Gujarat carried around with them. Ratnagar (2004: 97) underlines that “interdigitation and
complementarity (between settled cultivators and pastoral people), however, do not mean that only
mixed farming prevailed” and pastoral modes slowly got phased out. She suggests that “we need to
consider pastoral nomadism as well as ‘agropastoralism’”, since the latter can “prevail in zones which
cannot support successful agriculture or pastoralism exclusively; those who depend more on herds for
their livelihood spend less time and labour on fields, and vice versa”12. Also it would be erroneous to
assume a perfectly harmonious symbiosis between mobile pastoralists and sedentary cultivators, as
Daniel Ballard’s paper ‘Nomadism and Politics: The Case of Afghan nomads in the Indian subcontinent’
illustrates there were frequent conflicts between these two groups and much earlier such conflicts were
being alluded to when Sumant Mehta delivered his speech at the first convention of Gujarat Kisan
Parishad and asserted that how he was consulted by Raikas as well as Kunbis13. Irfan Habib recommends
Sumit Guha’s book, Environment and Ethnicity in India (1200-1991), which has brought out the
intertwining of the settled and forest zones in pre-colonial times, with the social and political complexities
that resulted.

Rangarajan and Sivaramakrishnan (2012: 02-04) puts to scrutiny three premises about the pre-colonial
past in the subcontinent: “the first was the limited reach of states beyond the cultivable arable”, the
second which follows from the first “was the virtual eclipse of states as actors in the arena of landscape
change” and the third “was the tendency to overstate the self-governing nature of village societies at the
cost of ignoring the wider power relations within which village societies existed”.

11
For the papers presented at this three day workshop, see Studies in History, Vol 7, No 2, 1991.
12
Ratnagar, Shereen (2004) ‘Pastoralism as an Issue in Historical Research’, in The Other Indian: Essays on
Pastoralists and Prehistoric Tribal People. New Delhi: Three Essays Collective.
13
See, Ballard, Daniel (1991) ‘Nomadism and Politics: The Case of Afghan nomads in the Indian subcontinent’,
Studies I History, Vol 7, No 2, pp. 205-230. Also see, Mehta, Sumant (1939) Gujarat Kisan Parishad: Pahelu
Adhiveshan, Pramukh nu BhashaN, Gujarat Kisan Parishad, Mumbai.
They alert us to pay attention to how in recent decades, “the popular notion regarding this has moved
from one extreme – as in the nationalist histories of early India, where the power of states was seen as
omnipotent – to the other – of exaggerating the reach and role of local history”. The remind us about the
fervent plea, voiced by historian Neeladri Bhattacharya, at a conference titled Ecological History and
Traditions oprganised by Centre for Science and Environment in March 1997, where in Bhattacharya
“argues strongly against taking on board a view of the state as invisible or absent and of local elements
being the prime players”. Rangarajan and Sivaramakrishnan (2014: 08) also urge upon scholars of
environmental history to critical unpack, “the very notion of a primeval forest”, since “when, where, and
how it begins to exercise such a hold on imaginations does matter”.

In recent years, there have also emerged narratives that make an effort at imagining and painting a golden
past when the resource use didn’t go beyond natural limits 14. Recent studies of literary texts and myths,
however present accounts of the human and nature relationship which might not always have been
harmonious or ecologically sensitive. A Whitney Sanford (2012) presents the mythological story of
Krishna’s elder brother Balram to present how he related to the river Yamuna and the agro-pastoral
landscape around Mathura and Vrindavan.

14
Such a view gets articulated in works by Vandana Shiva and more importantly the late Dharampal.
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Environmental History in India: Part II: Ecology and Society in Colonial India

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Scientific Forests, Veterinary Science, Colonial Modernity

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary This module looks at environmental history in India during the colonial
times, a time period (1750-1947) that has been under much focus by
environmental historians

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof. Sujata Patel Professor, University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Asst Professor, Azim Premji University,

Bangalore
Content Writer/Author Himanshu Upadhyaya Asst Professor, Azim Premji University,
(CW) Bangalore
Content Reviewer (CR) Prof Savyasachi Professor, Jamia Milia Islamia, Delhi
Language Editor (LE) Prof Savyasachi Professor, Jamia Milia Islamia, Delhi
 In last module we discussed the mode of history writing that is called Environmental History and
examined relationship between nature and human beings in pre-colonial India. In this module we will
discuss 200 years period (1750-1947), when the sub-continent first witnessed East India Company
reconfiguring the natural resource use intensity and subsequently under the British Rule.

Rangrajan and Sivaramakrishnan (2014: 02) talks about how “the overarching perspective on
India’s environmental history sought to draw a sharp line in terms of the impact of colonial (or British
imperial) economic policies, legislation and executive measures”1. They voice an opinion that “partly due
to the context and conditions of its flowering, much of India’s environmental history – at least till the year
2000 or so – focused on forests”. They suggest that forests to an environmental historian “were and are
contested spaces, with different sets of humans crowding the stage or the forest floor, seeking to place
their imprint on the landscape in different, mutually contradictory ways”. To list a few, “the imperial ruler
and the aesthete interested in wildness as natural beauty or evidence of divine presence, the resource
gatherer or rentier, those who felled trees or trapped animals, grazed cattle or collected honey, gleaned
wood or set fire to create and cultivate swidden plots: these were conflicting, overlapping, intersecting
set of actors”.

Rangarajan and Sivaramkrishnan (2012: 05) brings under academic scrutiny “simple linear
narratives of landscape transformations in the face of growing demographic pressure or state demands
for resources and revenues”. They express surprise that “some of the most thoughtful synthetic histories”
such as Richards and Tucker (1983), Richards and Tucker (1988) and Ludden (1999) “find it difficult to
shake off such linear tendencies”. Environmental history anthologies that appeared in late 1980s mostly
brought under the spotlight, the 1870s and 1880s and after, in order to narrate the tales of “the enormity
of the shifts in landscape”. Environmental history scholars taking inspiration from Arnold and Guha (1995)
were taken in awe by “the ways in which forests, covering over half a million square km of land,” were
brought under governance “by 1904, and managed by foresters” as a magnificently unprecedented
moment. It has been argued by Rangarajan and Sivaramkrishnan (2014: 05) that “the first major
anthologies on nature and culture in the 1990s, drawing mostly on work done in the 1980s, had looked
mainly at the imperial impact on state-driven changes, or alternately at the multiple hues of the
encounters of nature, the Orient and colonialism”. They argue that anthologies that started to appear
since the mid-1990s had presented “a more nuanced treatment of the ways in which the colonial state
had engaged with varying degrees of success in making agrarian landscapes”.

We also find that environmental historians have often presented the Indian Forest Act, 1868 by
the British and their leaning towards German school of ‘scientific forestry’, as the reasons for effecting
restrictions on communities that accessed grazing in forests. They also point out at how colonial rulers
who couldn’t understand the rhythms of pastoral mobility and perceived these groups as threats of law
and order, had labeled them as Criminal and Denotified Tribes2. Irfan Habib suggests that even as the

1
They point out that “the first major anthologies on nature and culture in the 1990s, drawing mostly from the
work done in the 1980s”, had continued to remain preoccupied with “the imperial impact of state-driven changes,
or alternately at the multiple hues of the encounters of nature, the Orient, and colonialism”.
2
Such a view gets articulated in several writings within environmental history stream. For one instance of these,
see Purnendu Kavoori’s paper, ‘Environment, Development and the Crisis of Pastoral Legitimacy’, wherein he
describes how after the consolidation of the British rule, the colonial government and its policies on ‘scientific
forestry’ and organization for revenue extraction from peasants perceived pastoral mobility as a threat to law and
order and hence gave the sedentarisation process a distinct boost by applying a highly problematic social
available data don’t lead us to generate an exact forest map of the time around 1800, there is much
evidence that even in the upper Gangetic basin there were still forests. Quoting from 1837 text, Forests
in Southern Districts of AwadhI, Habib states that “such forests were situated within the agricultural zone
and generally served the neighbouring rural inhabitants, supplying them with fodder, firewood and
timber” and “similar was the case with pockets of forested country in the Peninsula where such isolated
jungle tracts bordered the cultivated zone.

Describing the fate of the Himalayan and sub-montane Terai forests, those from the north-eastern
parts and in Western Ghats as well as other dense forests in central India, Irfan Habib (2011: 131) talks
about how there arose “a brisk trade in timber that was logged by local communities and sold at
neighbouring marts”. He also refers to the practice of “floating down the logs thus obtained from the
Himalaya forests through Punjab rivers by middle men or merchants”. For environmental history centred
on forests, Irfan Habib recommends besides this Fissured Land and Nature, Culture, Imperialism; Sumit
Guha’s work, Environment and Ethnicity in India, 1200-1991, which gives a comprehensive account of
several forest connected communities from present day Maharashtra, southern Gujarat and central India.
He also underlines a work published by a colonial author William Wilson Hunter in 1897 titled, Annals of
Rural Bengal, which presents the study of Santhals in present day Jharkhand state.

Drawing upon the work of Sumit Guha (2001: 58-60), Rangarajan and Sivaramakrishnan (2012:
07) argues that “the larger landscape was the reverse of what exists today: islands of intensive cultivation
dotted a vast ocean of forest”. They propose that “on a closer look, forest as a single unified category was
in fact a mosaic of semi-natural landscapes with old growth and scrub jungle interspersed with tree-
covered savannah and secondary growth”. When the country passed under British occupation, the East
India Company’s officials framed no particular policy in regards to forests, and these were being looked
at as landscapes to be depopulated by wild animals – in the early years, company officials actually declared
rewards for hunting down the big cat – and to be cleared in order to facilitate colonization of them by
extensive cultivation. Irfan Habib (2011: 132) beings to our attention a prediction voiced by Donald Butter
that “once Awadh came fully under British control, all the minor forests would vanish there” and reminds
that this was found to be quite well founded.

Irfan Habib (2011:113) also alerts on the narrow understanding that consider ecology under
colonialism as a matter mainly of what happened to forests and its traditional users. He stress upon the
need to understand and study the colonial experience as impacting all manifestations of natural resources
and natural resource dependent lives ranging from soil, irrigation, pastoral resources, wildlife and public
health.

Next to forests, what has occupied the continued engagement from environmental history
scholarship on colonial India is riverine resources and perennial irrigation. As we discussed in first module
on environmental history, history of irrigation canals in India is a millennium old phenomenon, but canals
built during Mughal period were inundation canals that relied on monsoon floods. However, as
Rangarajan and Sivaramakrishnan (2011: 06) reminds us “canal construction on a vast scale gave British
India arguably more acreage than any other political entity on earth”. Irfan Habib (2011: 127) draws our

evolutionary yardstick that “conflated mobility with vagrancy and settlement with permanence”. See, Kavoori,
Purnendu (2005) ‘Environment, Development and the Crisis of Pastoral Legitimacy’, in Kazunobu Ikeya and Elliot
Fratkin (eds) Pastoralists and their Neighbours in Asia and Africa, Senri Ethnological Studies No 69, National
Museum of Ethnology, Osaka, Japan.
attention to late colonial period and specifically to years following 1858, when “the British government
began to show some interest in construction of canals, notably for growing crops required for export, such
as cotton and wheat, which especially needed to be watered by artificial means”. He adds that “by 1925-
’26, canal and other government-funded works served 11.8 percent of the entire net sown area of the
British India” and “of areas artificially irrigated, the canals served just over 51 percent, but wells generally
owned by peasants still accounted for nearly a quarter (24.2 percent) of the irrigated area, and tanks were
used to irrigate another 13.1 percent.

By mid-1990s, the environmental history scholarship had started to engage with the role of
perennial irrigation not merely as an input in cultivation, but as also an instrument of re-configuration of
social infrastructure through setting up of canal colonies in Punjab and Sindh 3. Environmental history
scholars also looked at how colonial experts viewed mighty rivers of eastern part of India and their
monsoonal floods and called the Koshi River, “sorrow of Bihar”. Rohan D’Souza looks at the emergence of
the idea of Multi-Purpose River Valley Development Projects in colonial Orissa4. While much of the
environmental history scholarship has also been alert to the negative impacts of perennial irrigation, such
as soil degradation, interruptions to natural drainage, giving rise to disease vectors such as malaria
spreading mosquitos5, and water logging, they appear to have ignored the impact of perennial irrigation
canals on the cattle breeding tracts. In 1907, writing about Montegomery and Sind breeds of cattle, J.
Mollison and L. French (1907:254-155) alerted:
“A vast extension of canal irrigation has taken place in neighbouring districts across the Ravi river,
and many good cows have been taken and sold by their owners into the new Chenab Canal
Colony…The breeding of Montegomery cattle is likely to suffer unless special precautions are
taken to maintain the purity of the breed, because the extraordinary prosperity of Chenab Canal
Colony across the Ravi, has diverted the attention of the nomadic “Bar” tribes to the profits
derived from agriculture when assisted by canal irrigation. It is also to be remembered that the
whole of the “Bar” tracts of the Montegomery district are destined within the next few years to
receive irrigation from the projected Lower Bari Doab Canal”6.
Similarly, presenting ‘A Note on Cattle Breeding’, W. Smith, Imperial Dairy Expert had described
to colleagues at a meeting of the Agriculture Committee of Bombay Presidency (Poona, 1927) how “the
quality of milch cattle available in India, including in Punjab, but excluding Sindh, had become much worse
than those available some 26 years ago”, when he had just arrived in British India to work with newly
opened Military Dairy Farms department. Amongst several reasons that Smith highlights in that note was
“the spread of irrigation canals”. Ten years after Smith voiced such an opinion on how extension of
irrigation with perennial canals had adversely affected the cattle breeds, N. C. Wright (1937: 60-61)
reiterated this views by stating:
“At present there is a very general impression that the introduction of irrigation rapidly leads to
the deterioration and even to the virtual extermination of good breeds of cattle. This, for example,

3
See Agnihotri, Indu (1996) ‘Ecology, Land Use, and Colonisaton: The Canal Colonies of Punjab’, Indian Economic
and Social History Review, No 33, pp. 37-58.
4
See D’Souza, Rohan (2006) Drowned and Dammed: Colonial Capitalism and Flood Control in Eastern India: 1803-
1946; Oxford University Press, Delhi.
5
See for an illustration of this, Whitcombe, Elizabeth (1995) ‘The Environmental Costs of Irrigation in British India:
Waterlogging, Salinity and Malaria’, in David Arnold and Ramchandra Guha (eds) Nature, Culture, Imperialism,
Oxford University Press, Delhi.
66
Molison, J. and L. French (1907) ‘Montegomery and Sindi Breeds’, Agricultural Journal of India, Vol II, No iii, pp.
251-256.
 is true of Sindh and of certain tracts of United Provinces. If full advantage is to be derived from
irrigation, I am convinced that farming in irrigated areas will have to be modified to allow the
inclusion of mixed farming system in which both crop and animal husbandries play their part”7.
Describing the impulse of “the mission of writing a nationalist environmental history”, and “the
clarity provided by a moral imperative”, Rangarajan and Sivaramakrishnan (2012: 08) states that this
impulse led environmental historians during the early phase to undertake the task of adding to “the record
of colonial infamy the evidence pertaining to the despoliation of nature and destruction of tribal culture
carried out by the British”. However, we need to underline fact that all colonial officers didn’t share the
High Modernism and condescending attitude towards natives. Some agriculture and animal husbandry
experts, such as James Mollison, E. J. Bruen, D. Clouston and W. Smith spoke and wrote with much
appreciation about the skills of nomadic cattle breeders. A survey that Fraser Darling penned while
heading Commonwealth Animal Genetic Bureau starts with an acknowledgement that “Throughout the
history of colonial development, and particularly in that of British colonisation, we find that settlers and
governments alike have attempted either to raise animals of the homeland in the new territories or to
improve the existing stocks and conditions to a state comparable with that of the mother country. Both
of these aims have been attended by some spectacular successes and some conspicuous failures. It would
seem that only too often has the appraising eye of the stockbreeder with his European standards of
excellence made him follow dangerous paths which a surer knowledge of the relations between
environment, structure, and function would have prevented. However, there is growing a new knowledge,
not only of animal's economic destiny, but of the varying nutritional conditions and the metabolic
responses of different animal types to these, and of the fundamental genetical knowledge lying behind
traditional breeding practices. As yet we can hardly measure the significance of the work of such men as
Rattray in West Africa and Evans Pitchard in Sudan, but their practical anthropological research must be
of considerable value”8. However, in India, as late as in 1991, Shereen Ratnagar pointed out that there
existed only a few ethnographies of the various animal-rearing groups in the country9.

These remarks by a scholar who went on, to remain not just in service of the empire being the
director of the Commonwealth Bureau of Animal Genetics, but had his moments of conflicting viewpoints
with British imperial powers, and carved out human ecology school of academic scholarship, suggest that
environment history of colonial India must also try and make a sense of how was that experience similar
to the experience that other colonies underwent and how different was it from the experience that other
Dominions landscapes underwent in last two centuries. Similarly, Rangarajan and Sivaramakrishnan
(2014: 13-16) argues out a case for viewing colonial India in a larger geographical frame.

7
Wright, N. C. (1937) Report on the Development of the Cattle and Dairy Industries of India, Government of India
Press, Simla.
8
Darling, F. Fraser (1934) ‘Animal Husbandry in the British Empire’, Journal of the Royal Society of the Arts, Vol 82,
No 4257, pp 816-837.
9
Madhav Gadgil had initiated some work in this direction, along with the anthropologist K. C. Malhotra, when they
published in the journal Human Ecology, a long essay titled, ‘Ecology of a Pastoral Caste: Gavil Dhangars of
Peninsular India’, in the year 1982. Also see, Ahmad, Akbar (1983) ‘Nomadism as Ideological Expression: The Case
of the Gomal Nomads’, Contributions to Indian Sociology, Vol 17, No 1 and Balland, D. (1991) ‘Nomadism and
Politics: The Case of Afghan Nomads in the Indian subcontinent,’ Studies in History, Vol 7, No 2. It was only two
decades after the publication of that essay by Madhv Gadgil and K. C. Malhotra that we come across an edited
volume on Nomadism in South Asia by Aparna Rao and Michael J. Casimir (OUP 2003).
 It is also somewhat surprising that while environmental history writing has dwelt upon the
colonial policies on ‘scientific forestry’ and wildlife, there aren’t as many writings in the early phase of
environmental history in India, on the domestic animals and how the colonial policies on ‘scientific
livestock management’ and interventions in the field of ‘veterinary medicines’ impacting peasant lives. In
1983, while reviewing Raymond Crotty’s book titled Cattle, Economics and Development, which remains
till date an important contribution to the discipline of Livestock Economics, Schneider (1983: 226) had
argued that “the special role played by livestock and their special relation to agricultural operations in
socio economic systems throughout the Third World has been neglected long enough”. Around the same
time as environmental history was taking a shape within Indian academia, Hanumantha Rao (1988: A-142)
had very candidly admitted – although speaking to his economist colleagues, and not historians – that
“agricultural economists in India have been interested essentially in the economics of crop production
and comparatively less in livestock economics, their interest in rural ecology has been negligible”. The
national seminar where he pronounced this opinion was annual conference of Agricultural Economics in
1987, where we witness for the first time a session titled ‘Impact of Agricultural Development on Ecology
and Environment’. Even after these reminders, pastoral concerns started to articulate in environmental
history only around mid-1990s10 and it took around 15 more years, for a study of political ecology of cattle
management in colonial central India to appear in print as books and as doctoral dissertations11.

Narrating the impact of colonialism on non-human world, Rangarajan and Sivramakrishnan (2014:
22) states that “in the early years of colonial rule, the growing British demand for horses and other draught
animals as well as animals used for military purposes was mainly met by adapting available Indian
practices”. They add that “over the course of nineteenth century, the British breeding activities for horses
and cattle expanded, and it was increasingly justified in the name of scientific management and
development of veterinary medicine”. Presenting the history of a colonial institution through Government
Cattle Farm, Hissar; Caton (2013) shows how this farm was started in response to failures to breed
adequate number of horses at the Bengal Stud, and the realization that bullocks had been effective as
draught animals in India for a long time12. Rangarajan and Sivaramakrishnan (2014: 19) also reminds us
that “the curbing of nomadism, of itinerant groups in general, the crackdown on swidden cultivators, the
harsh punitive measures against the small but prominent hunting communities as they were often
labelled have been investigated in various parts of British India”.

The arrival of railways and printing press in colonial India had far reaching consequences on the
role both played in re-configuration of the relation between village and town and the same has been
captured in the writings of thinkers such as Rabindranath Tagore, M. K. Gandhi and B. R. Ambedkar and
several others. However, even as these thinkers critiqued the relationship between village and town,
communities in some villages on river banks threatened to get displaced due to a hydropower dam were
organizing themselves to mount an anti-displacement – and to some extent anti-dam – protest. Rajendra
Vora in his book, The World’s First Anti-Dam Movement: Mulshi Satyagrah 1920-1924, trace the

10
See for example, Bhatacharya, Neeladri (1995) ‘Pastoralists in a Colonial World’, in David Arnold and
Ramchandra Guha (eds) Nature, Culture, Imperialism; Oxford University Press, Delhi.
11
See for example, Laxman, D Satya (2004) Ecology, Colonialism and Cattle: Central India in the 19th Century,
Oxford University Press, Delhi and Caton, Brian P. (2003) ‘Settling for the State: Pastoralists and Colonial Rule in
Southwestern Punjab, 1840-1900’, PhD diss., University of Pensylvania.
12
See Caton, Brian P. (2013) Writing History of a Colonial Institution: The Case of the Government Cattle Farm,
Hissar; NMML Occasional Paper, New Series, No 38, Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, New Delhi.
emergence of what to him and Madhav Gadgil appeared to be “Narmada Bachao Andolan’s forgotten
predecessor”. Early twentieth century was also a crucible within which arose the debates from those who
were part of colonial state and administration as well as those from Indian National Congress and anti-
colonial block, about what is nature and what is development. Reflecting on those moments, Rangarajan
and Sivaramakrishnan (2014: 25) states:

“Driving by a growing and overt commitment to what David Ludden identified as India’s
Development Regime, the colonial state in the early twentieth century had come to view its
legitimacy in India as derived in good measure from its ability to promote economic development
through mastery of natural resources like forests, agricultural lands, and productive domesticated
animals. But by the start of World War II a critique was brewing within the colonial state and its
civil society of Anglophile Indians. Most often they offered documentation of failed efforts to
contain the furies of natural calamities, and reminded the state of the disasters unleashed by
badly designed landscape engineering or land utilization, be it in the form of rivers turned or soils
eroded by increased extraction of the bounties they had to offer. Figures like Albert Howard and
Wiliam Wilcox became emblems of this skepticism that combined both a critique of colonial state
policy and the attitudes to nature they expressed.”

Talking about the need to pay careful attention to continuities as well as major breaks with the
past, Rangarajan and Sivaramakrishnan (2012: 14) reminds us that in their own work, they have fluctuated
between the two. They state that “ruptures did occur as when the imperial state was in the high gear,
mainly in the last decades of the nineteenth century” and that similar experience had underwritten much
of the thinking “when India’s developmental democratic state launched social engineering on a vast scale
in the Nehruvian era”. They remind us that both these experiences “constituted major shifts with
profound ecological consequences”.

In the third module on environmental history, we would discuss those years of last century
starting from Nehru’s speech ‘Tryst with Destiny’. The last module would try to trace what contemporary
– not in the sense of our decade or the past one, but a past that was not a century away – history writing
tells us about post-colonial India’s walk along the path of Development and what implications it had for
Indian environment and well as Indian version of environmentalism. In some sense, we would come back
to revisit the emergence of this mode of history writing – environmental history – as an effort to theorise
the environmental movements of our times and trying to trace their intellectual inspirations in past.
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Relationship between economics and ecology

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Prof Sujata Patel Professor, University of

Investigator Hyderabad, Hyderabad
Paper Coordinator Dr Himanshu Upadhyaya Asst Professor, Azim Premji
University, Bangalore
Content Prof. Milindo Chakrabarti Professor, Sharda University,
Writer/Author (CW) Greater Noida, UP
Content Reviewer Dr Himanshu Upadhyaya Asst Professor, Azim Premji
(CR) University, Bangalore
Language Editor Dr Himanshu Upadhyaya Asst Professor, Azim Premji
(LE) University, Bangalore
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ECONOMICS AND ECOLOGY

We don’t inherit the earth from our fathers, we borrow it from our children.

INTRODUCTION
Concerns for sustainable development are getting more and more evident over the last four decades
since the Stockholm Conference in 1972 followed by a host of others. Rio+ 20 in 2012 came out with a
document titled “The Future We Want” and called for ensuring the promotion of an economically,
socially and environmentally sustainable future for our planet and for present and future generations.
Such an effort also set the stage to plan for a detailed agenda for future course of actions that took the
form of preparing another important document “Transforming Our World” that is going to guide our
quest for Sustainable Development during the coming 15 years. It develops a list of 17 sustainable
development goals and 169 targets to achieve them. Five areas of critical importance for humanity and
the planet are identified in that draft 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development that was released on 3rd
August 2015. They are the 5Ps:

1. People: elimination “of poverty and hunger, in all their forms and dimensions, and to ensure
that all human beings can fulfil their potential in dignity and equality and in a healthy
environment”.
2. Planet: protecting “the planet from degradation, including through sustainable consumption
and production, sustainably managing its natural resources and taking urgent action on climate
change, so that it can support the needs of the present and future generations”.
3. Prosperity : ensuring that “all human beings can enjoy prosperous and fulfilling lives and that
economic, social and technological progress occurs in harmony with nature”.
4. Peace: fostering “peaceful, just and inclusive societies which are free from fear and violence (as
those who framed the document firmly believe that) there can be no sustainable development
without peace and no peace without sustainable development” and
5. Partnership: mobilizing “the means required to implement this Agenda through a revitalised
Global Partnership for Sustainable Development, based on a spirit of strengthened global
solidarity, focussed in particular on the needs of the poorest and most vulnerable and with the
participation of all countries, all stakeholders and all people”.
In a nut shell, the document calls for a strategy that ensures inclusive growth for humanity in the coming
days and simultaneously protects the planet from rapid degradation that, unless tackled sensibly from
now onwards, can threaten the very existence of human life in particular and the ecosystem in general,
in the foreseeable future. While the first concern falls traditionally in the domain of Economics, the
second concern is within the realm of Ecology. The present section looks into the apparent
contradictions between the two branches of knowledge in terms of their “conceptual framework” and
also tracks the recent efforts at an interdisciplinary approach to reduce the evident conflicts between
the two.

A Facebook meme, which went viral recently, reads:

“The earth is 4.6 billion years old. Let’s scale that to 46 years. We have been here for 4 hours. Our
industrial revolution began 1 minute ago. In that time we have destroyed more than 50% of the world’s
forests”.

A few stylized facts from Barbier (2014) will also be in order in this context.

 “Since 1970, the World Bank’s World Development Indicators have provided estimates for most
countries of the adjustments to national income, income growth and savings that arise from net
depletion of forests, energy resources and minerals. This rate of natural-capital depreciation as
a percentage of adjusted net national income over the past four decades is alarming”.
 “The decline in natural capital has been five times greater on average in developing economies
than in the eight richest countries”.
 “Natural capital depreciation in all countries has risen significantly since the 1990s. There was a
dip during the global recession of 2008–09, but as the world economy has recovered, so has the
rate of resource use”.
 “According to the worldwide Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, approximately 60% of major
global ecosystem services have been degraded or used unsustainably, including fresh water,
wild fisheries, air and water purification, and the regulation of regional and local climate, natural
hazards and pests”.

These facts underscore the conflict between quest for economic growth and maintaining the ecosystem
in its desired state that ensures sustainable livelihood for human beings for many years to come.
Thomas Malthus was perhaps the first to raise a concern about the possibility of such a conflict that
coincided with the height of Industrial Revolution in Europe. He argued that while the capacity of earth
to produce food had been growing in arithmetic progression, human population, aided by the
continuous growth in economic activities, had been growing at geometric progression, striking a
cautionary note about the possibility of limits to growth – an issue taken up in right earnest by the “Club
of Rome” during the early 1970s. It showed the possibility of exhaustion of finite resources – namely
mineral reserves – at its existing rate of use juxtaposed with the prevailing rate of growth of economy
and population, unless new reserves and sources were identified to enhance the supply of those
resources. In spite of severe criticisms hurled at the data and methods used and conclusions arrived at,
the believers in limits to growth soldiered on and produced its last sequel in 2011 when Ugo Bardi
asserted that "The warnings that we received in 1972 ... are becoming increasingly more worrisome as
reality seems to be following closely the curves that the ... scenario had generated."

ECONOMICS AND ECOLOGY: THE FUNDAMENTAL DIFFERENCES

What are the fundamental differences between the fundamental premises follows by an Economist and
an Ecologist?
 While an ecologist considers human beings to be a part of the ecosystem and linked to the
other natural resources – both living and non-living – in an integrated chain of relationships, an
economist considers the human beings as located away from the ecosystem with the capability
to use its components in ways that optimize human welfare in a material sense.
  Economists believe in optimizing human welfare by increasing its capacity to produce and
consequently consume goods and services that gets captured in steadily increased GDP and, of
late, Human Development Index. The different components of nature are to be utilized to
facilitate movement of the economy along such a desired pathway with earth being used both
as a source of resource and sink of “bads” produced in the process but not fit for consumption
by human beings. In so doing, economists do not distinguish between the resources that are
man-made and those produced by nature. There had also been a strong belief among
economists for years that technological developments will facilitate man-made production of
most of the natural resources as and when such necessity occurs. Ecologists, on the other hand,
do believe that most of the natural resources, if not all, can only be consumed by human beings
but may never be produced by them and hence should be used with restraint. Further, use of
nature as a sink for “bads” can jeopardize the functioning of the ecosystem in a manner that
can lead to ultimate collapse of the ecosystem threatening the survival of mankind as one
species of the thousands found on the Noah’s Ark.

The concern for “sustainable development” and the realization that neither economics nor ecology can
pursue their disciplinary pursuits oblivious of the contrasting leads emanating from each other, has led
to attempts at reconciling the “conceptual” conflicts. A recent article by Herman Daly captures the
diverging world view of economists and ecologists and a possible way of reconciliation in a very succinct
manner. According to him, such an integration is attempted through three distinct strategies:
 Economic imperialism
 Ecological reductionism and
 Steady state subsystem.
Economy is considered as a subsystem of the finite ecosystem in each of these three strategies.
However, the strategies differ in terms of their pathways.

ECONOMIC IMPERIALISM
The strategy of economic imperialism “seeks to expand the boundary of the economic subsystem until it
encompasses the entire ecosphere. The goal is one system, the macro-economy as the whole.” In a
typical neo-classical world view subjective individual preferences in the aggregate are taken as the
ultimate source of value. And the expansion is considered legitimate as long as the costs of such
expansion – cost of degradation of ecosystem – are internalized, i.e., all costs resulting out of
degradation of ecosystem will be identified and added to the value of the products or services. Only
those who are willing to and capable of paying such enhanced price will get to consume them with the
rest kept out of bounds1. With increased extent of ecosystem degradation and the consequent hike in
the prices of goods and services so produced, there will be an in-built control mechanism that will limit
the extent of degradation before it reaches a sustainable level. Following diagram explains the
perspective in detail. Consumption of goods and services produced out of an economic system provides
utility. Following the law of diminishing marginal utility, the utility derived from an incremental unit of a
good or services will decline as consumption increases. Internalization of costs of ecosystem
degradation – both in terms of use of natural resources beyond the limit of its natural growth and use of
nature as a sink of production wastes – will also add to disutility of consuming a product. And the
incremental disutility will increase with increased consumption of the goods or services in question. So
the marginal utility curve slopes downward to the right, while the marginal disutility curve moves in the
opposite direction. In a typical neo-classical framework, the point of intersection between these two
lines gives the economic limit to growth. If resources are still consumed to ensure increased level of
production and consumption, the nature may reach a tipping point of environmental catastrophe – akin
to a collapse of the ecosystem. Ideally, the point of economic limit to growth is expected to lie to the left
of the point of environmental catastrophe and hence provide some precious time to mankind to wake
up to the desired course of action. The futility limit marked at the far right corner of the diagram refers
to the point of complete satiation on the part of the consumer – one derives no increment in total
utility, beyond this point. It is felt that in case the costs of degradation of ecosystem are internalized in
the process of production and consumption, environmental catastrophe will strike well before the point
of complete satiation is reached.

This strategy gives rise to the specialized discipline in economics, referred to as Environmental
Economics. The approach, nevertheless, is unconvincing. Many of these costs are not foreseen, let alone
imagined, following the argument of bounded rationality put forward by Herbart Simon. Simon argued
that human beings are not capable of perfect prediction about all future events as is assumed under the
condition of rationality. Complete internalization of the cost of ecosystem degradation is thus difficult to
achieve in reality. Further, even if, some such external costs are visible, proper enforcement
mechanisms often take a long time and may be partial in effecting the desired level of internalization.
The still inconclusive debate on climate change is a case in point. Thus the effective internalization
process may not be perfect, either, leading us to a similar situation that characterizes the deviation from
an ideal market system posited by the neo classical school of economic thought in the form of lack of
complete set of perfect market. Here we end up with the lack of a mechanism to ensure complete and
perfect internalization of ecosystem degradation.

1
This is referred to as the polluter pays principle
It will be pertinent, at this juncture to refer to a question raised by Daly:
“Are we better off at the new larger scale with formerly free goods correctly priced, or at the old smaller
scale with free goods also correctly priced (at zero)? In both cases, the prices are right. This is the
suppressed question of optimal scale, not answered, indeed not even asked, by neoclassical economics”.

ECOLOGICAL REDUCTIONISM
Ecological reductionism believes that human behavior can also be explained by the same sets of natural
laws that explain the behavior of other components of nature and thus proposes to erase the boundary
of economic subsystem and subsume it within the natural system. Daly argues that it “begins with the
true insight that humans and markets are not exempt from the laws of nature. It then proceeds to the
false inference that human action is totally explainable by, reducible to, the laws of nature….. Taken to
the extreme, in this view all is explained by a materialist deterministic system (of nature) that has no
room for purpose or will (that distinguish men from other components of nature).”

The argument of ecological reductionism derives its strength from the Second Law of Thermodynamics.
It was N. Georgescu- Roegen, in his book “The Entropy Law and the Economic Process”, published in
1971, who argued that it was the phenomenon of free energy tending to disperse and getting lost in the
form of bound energy, that drives an economic process. He is thus considered one of the founding
fathers of Ecological Economics, even though he termed his new approach as bioeconomics. His
arguments centered around the fact that human beings, like all other living beings, depend on energy
available in usable form the natural resources – referred to in the literature as free energy. However,
once the resources are used and the fact they are not fully recyclable, with some portion being thrown
back to nature as wastage, we tend to generate energy that is no longer available for consumption. They
are called bound energy. Entropy, as per Georgescu- Roegen is the measure of the unavailable or bound
energy that is created within the natural system we live in. It is posited that “humankind has the
distinction of currently being the most significant contributor to entropic degradation by the increasing
 rates of extraction of natural resources and elimination of wastes into the environment”(Gowdy and
Mesner 1998, P 147). Other living beings also feed on low entropy sources of energy to build and
preserve their complex structures, and dissipate the energy in a higher entropic state. However, their
contribution to the rise in the entropy level is insignificant compared to that by the human beings.

The proof of human beings contributing to the alarmingly rising entropy in the ecosystem can be located
in plenty in the existing literature. Increased entropy manifests in several ways in influencing the human
life and welfare. Some of them are direct and some others are indirect. For the direct impacts, we have
already mentioned above the observation by Berbier (2014) who found that the share of natural
resource depletion in adjusted GNI of most of the countries was quite significant. As per a document
available on the website of National Geographic some impacts from increasing temperatures are already
happening.
 Ice is melting worldwide, especially at the Earth’s poles. This includes mountain glaciers, ice sheets
covering West Antarctica and Greenland, and Arctic sea ice.
 Researcher Bill Fraser has tracked the decline of the Adélie penguins on Antarctica, where their
numbers have fallen from 32,000 breeding pairs to 11,000 in 30 years.
 Sea level rise became faster over the last century.
 Some butterflies, foxes, and alpine plants have moved farther north or to higher, cooler areas.
 Precipitation (rain and snowfall) has increased across the globe, on average.
 Spruce bark beetles have boomed in Alaska thanks to 20 years of warm summers. The insects have
chewed up 4 million acres of spruce trees.
It also notes that if warming continues.
 Sea levels are expected to rise between 7 and 23 inches (18 and 59 centimeters) by the end of the
century, and continued melting at the poles could add between 4 and 8 inches (10 to 20 centimeters).
 Hurricanes and other storms are likely to become stronger.
 Species that depend on one another may become out of sync. For example, plants could bloom earlier
than their pollinating insects become active.
 Floods and droughts will become more common. Rainfall in Ethiopia, where droughts are already
common, could decline by 10 percent over the next 50 years.
 Less fresh water will be available. If the Quelccaya ice cap in Peru continues to melt at its current rate,
it will be gone by 2100, leaving thousands of people who rely on it for drinking water and electricity
without a source of either.
 Some diseases will spread, such as malaria carried by mosquitoes.
 Ecosystems will change—some species will move farther north or become more successful; others
won’t be able to move and could become extinct. Wildlife research scientist Martyn Obbard has
found that since the mid-1980s, with less ice on which to live and fish for food, polar bears have
gotten considerably skinnier. Polar bear biologist Ian Stirling has found a similar pattern in Hudson
Bay. He fears that if sea ice disappears, the polar bears will as well.
[see http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/gw-effects/]
Now for the indirect effects. Bartoloni (2003) argues that negative externalities generated in two forms
contribute to the economic growth process of human societies. They are positional externalities – desire
of human beings to acquire a higher relative position in the social ladder and environmental
externalities that reduce the extent of availability of free goods to human beings. For example,
economic growth ensures that pure drinking water is also getting priced today, which was freely
available all around the world even a few decades back. Thomas F. Homer-Dixon (1994) identified six
types of environmental change as plausible causes of violent intergroup conflict:
 greenhouse-induced climate change;
 stratospheric ozone depletion;
 degradation and loss of good agricultural land;
 degradation and removal of forests;
 depletion and pollution of fresh water supplies; and
 depletion of fisheries.

He tested three hypotheses to link these changes with violent conflict and them to be positive. “First,
decreasing supplies of physically controllable environmental resources, such as clean water and good
agricultural land, would provoke interstate "simple-scarcity" conflicts or resource wars. Secondly, large
population movements caused by environmental stress would induce "group-identity" conflicts,
especially ethnic clashes. And third, severe environmental scarcity would simultaneously increase
economic deprivation and disrupt key social institutions, which in turn would cause "deprivation"
conflicts such as civil strife and insurgency”.

The followers in Ecological reductionism firmly believe that like the “tragedy of commons” elaborated by
Garrett Hardin [1968], we are also in for “tragedy of entropy”. The process of increasing entropy cannot
be reversed. Daly disagrees and suggests that collective actions like those successfully avoided the
tragedy of commons [see Ostrom, 1992 for details] are necessary to overcome the “tragedy of entropy”.
One should not give up and profess a process that suggests erasing the boundary between ecosystem
and human economic system. The literature on linking social and ecological systems and the issue of
their resilience [Holling 2001, Berkes & Folke, 1998] also highlights the role of collective action and social
mechanisms for building resilience, in managing the rising entropy.

We may refer to some of the pertinent debates in India vis-à-vis conservation versus development. A
recent article in Economic and Political Weekly entitled “The Debate on Biodiversity Conservation in the
Western Ghats” by Nagarajan and others [ July 25, 2015, pp 49-56] can provide us with the point of
departure in extending our argument. The study contrasts between the findings by the Western Ghats
Ecology Experts Panel [WGEEP] headed by Madhav Gadgil and High Level Working Group [HLWG]
headed by K. Kasturirangan. In response to the same set of terms of reference the former proposed the
whole of the Western Ghats as ecologically sensitive – close to the philosophy of ecological
reductionism, while the latter declared only 37% of the area as sensitive from an ecological perspective
– akin to the ideas of economic imperialism. The two studies used methodologies and data that were
altogether different from one another, reflecting their respective worldviews. And interestingly, none of
them considered the ground level political situations that would set the contours of possible collective
actions in an effort to reach a mutually acceptable point of agreement.

The debate on the issue of conservation around the Western Ghats also raises a fundamental issue vis-à-
vis the entropy literature. Even though human activities on a macro level contribute to the rising
entropy in the ecosystem, there are communities who live in close harmony with nature and hardly add
any irritant to the process of upsetting the ecosystemic balance. Neither do they use natural resources
at a rate that goes beyond their natural growth rate, nor do they generate wastes that are highly bio-
non-degradable and hence beyond the capacity of nature to absorb on its own. However, these micro
entities are not powerful enough to influence the discourse on what measures are to taken to bring
about a balance between economics and ecology to maintain mother earth a livable planet on a
sustainable basis. Consequently, they are held hostages by both the groups professing economic
imperialism and ecological reductionism and often are severed from the intimate relationship they have
been maintaining with nature for time immemorial. Argument in terms of collective action calls for their
effective inclusion in the process of dialogue.

THE STEADY STATE SUBSYSTEM

The idea of a steady state subsystem owes its origin to John Stuart Mill (1857) who coined the concept
of a stationary state – when the population growth and growth rate of capital accumulation would both
be zero. A zero growth rate of population would mean equality between birth and death rates, whereas
a zero rate of growth in capital stock would imply production equal to depreciation. Such a state would,
however, require the rates to be equal at a lower level, indicating high human longevity and durability of
goods and services produced, subject to maintenance of sufficient stocks for a high quality of life.

Under such a steady state, the boundary of the economic subsystem is no longer required to be
eliminated through either expansion or contraction. Daly, argues that such a boundary must be
recognized and drawn at the right place. Such an exercise would also underscore the acceptance of the
qualitative difference between human economy and natural ecosystem. Daly maintains “The scale of the
human subsystem defined by the boundary has an optimum, and the throughput by which the
ecosphere physically maintains and replenishes the economic subsystem must be ecologically
sustainable. That throughput is indeed entropic, but rather than maximizing entropy the goal of the
economy is to minimize low entropy use needed for a sufficient standard of living–by sifting low entropy
slowly and carefully through efficient technologies aimed at important purposes. The economy should
not be viewed as an idiot machine dedicated to maximizing waste. Its final cause is not the maximization
of waste but the maintenance and enjoyment of life”.

BY WAY OF CONCLUSION
In an earlier section we identified the difference in the worldview between mainstream economics and
ecology. The discussion so far has clarified the need to build a working bridge to take care of such
fundamental differences. The difference in approach also feeds into the divergence in the
methodological toolkits available to the economists and ecologists to settle the issue of sustainable
development. Recent efforts at developing “green national accounts” are a move in the right direction.
“Inclusive Wealth Report 2014” prepared by a group of experts under the leadership of Partha Dagupta
also sought to fill some of the data gaps with a well-comprehended framework to conceptualize
inclusive wealth that would help us get into a path of sustainable development and simultaneously
thrive to ensure intra-generational equity coupled with an inter-generational one.

However, there are some methodological challenges to be overcome to identify the desired pathways in
settling reconciliation between economics and ecology. A conceptual framework that facilitates to
understand the linkages between humanity and nature at the micro level and is capable of being blown
up at the macro level is urgently required today. Otherwise we shall get trapped into arguments calling
for solutions that offer highest social and environmental returns in our quest for sustainable
development. Needless to add, such an approach will fail to distinguish the implications of the macro
policies on multitudes of species and human communities at the micro level. Further, a welfare
economics framework is needed that incorporates nature as a prominent stakeholder. Given the several
non-convexities and non-linearities found in the production and consumption behavior of nature and
the rest of her non-human species, the conceptual challenge will be pretty difficult.
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Environmental Economics

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Prof Sujata Patel Professor, University of

Investigator Hyderabad, Hyderabad
Paper Coordinator Dr Himanshu Upadhyaya Asst Professor, Azim Premji
University, Bangalore
Content Prof. Milindo Chakrabarti Professor, Sharda University,
Writer/Author (CW) Greater Noida, UP
Content Reviewer Dr Himanshu Upadhyaya Asst Professor, Azim Premji
(CR) University, Bangalore
Language Editor Dr Himanshu Upadhyaya Asst Professor, Azim Premji
(LE) University, Bangalore
ENVIRONMENTAL ECONOMICS

INTRODUCTION
Three specialized, distinct but related fields branched out of mainstream domain of economic theory
over the last six decades. They are: (i) Environmental Economics; (ii) Natural Resource Economics and
(iii) Ecological Economics. While the emergence of Environmental Economics can be traced back to the
1960s, Natural Resource Economics made its appearance even earlier in 1950s with the establishment of
Resources for Future (RFF) in 1952. Ecological Economics came to be concretized by the late 1980s. All
these branches started with the basic premise that the mainstream neo-classical model of market based
allocation system was not capable of incorporating the environmental restraints that were getting
increasingly manifest across the globe.

Even though concern about unrestrained consumption of nature and her resources emerged as the
initial motivation for the emergence of these three specialized branches of economics, the approach
followed by each of them has been characteristically different. Let us spell out such differences. Natural
Resource Economics is particularly concerned with unrestrained use of resources provided by nature
that are divisible in consumption among their users but are restricted in supply, in view of the fact they
are produced by nature and their availability is subject to their natural rate of growth. Some such
examples are: forestry, fisheries, mineral resources etc. However, being divisible, they are amenable to
be allocated at the margin. Further, natural resources are used as inputs in the production process and
serve the dynamics of the economic system. Environmental Economics, on the other hand, deals with
environmental resources that are not divisible across users in terms of consumption. Air, water bodies –
like river, ocean -- are some distinct examples of environmental resources. Unlike, natural resources
being used as inputs, environmental resources are affected by the activities of the economic system –
pollution. Ecological Economics – a relatively new entrant in the field of knowledge – was intended to
bring the economists and ecologists together to study interlinkages between socio-economic and
ecological systems. “Ecological economists are willing to explicitly consider ethical and philosophical
issues, such as intergenerational and intragenerational equity, and even, in some cases, to recognize
non-human values.” (Beder 2011, P 146)

A point is to be noted here. Even though all these branches developed to take care some of the
shortcomings of neo-classical model, Natural Resource Economics and Environmental Economics
adapted to the fundamental tenets of neo-classical economics. Ecological Economics – though claimed
to be an attempt to integrate economics and ecology and hence a departure from neo-classical
economics – is often alleged to be influenced heavily by the fundamental philosophy of mainstream
economic ideas centred around the concept of markets.

FUNDAMENTALS OF NEO CLASSICAL ECONOMICS

The fundamental structure of neo classical economics is characterized by the existence of a perfectly
competitive market for each commodity produced and exchanged therein. A market system consists of
a number of such perfectively competitive markets. Economic efficiency and progress is maximized if all
markets operate in a perfectly competitive manner. However, the existence of a perfectly competitive
market is predicated on a few assumptions. They are:

 Existence of a complete set of perfect markets: All goods and services exchanged through a
market system should be exchanged individually through a competitive market. The efficiency
argument in favour of a market system will be nullified in case market does not either exist even
for a product (service) or operates inefficiently (in a sense of being imperfect).
 Rationality: Every participant in a market, either as a producer or as a consumer, wants to
maximize her objective – satisfaction while consuming and profit while producing. This is
possible, because everyone prefers more of satisfaction or profit to less and none is satisfied
with what is available.
 Perfect knowledge: Both the producer and consumer have perfect knowledge while they make
an economic decision. Each of them not only knows prices of all goods and services procured
from market, but also everything about their qualitative features. Further, they are aware of the
behavior of other buyers and sellers operating in the market. They also know about the steps to
be taken by the government. So there is no risk or uncertainty about future and the predictions
about future outcome made by them are absolutely on spot.
 Property rights: Property right on the product or service exchanged through a market is well
defined and such a right shifts from the seller to the buyer immediately and in a costless manner
as and when the exchange happens in a market.
 Diminishing returns: Marginal satisfaction from an increased unit of a good or a service goes
down gradually as its consumption level increases.
 Equality of sale and purchases: This condition is necessary to ensure equilibrium. In case of a
seller running with an inventory, they are considered to have been sold or not to have been
produced. To ensure such equality, it is also assumed that transactions are instantaneous and
costless.
 Unique equilibrium: Equilibrium is reached when both the buyer and the seller are satisfied with
maximized objectives – satisfaction for the buyer and profit for the seller. Convexity in the
choice and production sets ensures that the equilibrium is unique with no possibilities of
multiple equilibrium.
 Many participants, with freedom to enter and leave the market: to ensure an optimal
equilibrium, it is imperative that neither the buyer nor the seller dominate the market process
and influence the price. This assumption takes care of such a requirement. Else the market
outcome may turn out to be an inefficient equilibrium.
 Independence of demand and supply: Buyers’ behavior is distinct from that of sellers, so that the act
of buying does not affect selling, and vice versa. They interact only through the mechanism of the market.
 Only “goods” are exchanged: All goods and services produced and sold give positive utility to
consumers and hence positive profit to the producers. There is no possibility of production of
“bads” that has the potential to yield negative utility to buyers if consumed.
 And finally, no externality: Externality refers to a situation where the act of exchange between a
buyer and a seller does not affect the wellbeing or interest of a third individual. This condition is
ensured by the assumption that all consumers are identical in terms of their choice pattern and
 so also are all the sellers in terms of their production behaviour. Further, one’s economic activity
does not affect that of another. Externality may thus be considered a consequence of an
economic activity which affects other parties without this being reflected in market prices.

BIRTH OF ENVIRONMENTAL ECONOMICS

Environmental Economics enters the arena as a newer discipline because instances are found when
many of these assumptions that are necessary to validate the market-centric arguments of efficiency are
found to be untenable in case of environmental resources. Let’s consider some of the assumptions once
again.

 Existence of a complete set of perfect markets: Markets do not exist for many of the effluents
generated out of a production process and thrown into air, land or water as pollutants. So their
economic prices are indeterminate.
 Perfect knowledge: Neither the producer nor the consumer have perfect knowledge about the
implications and impact of the pollutants. So they may not decide on their optimum choice.
 Property rights: Property right on these effluents are difficult to be defined unambiguously.
 Diminishing returns: This assumption may not be effective for a product – in fact, pollution --
that gives negative satisfaction on consumption.
 Equality of sale and purchases: Environmental economics is concerned with products that have
producers but no willing purchasers.
 Unique equilibrium: Production set of environmental pollutants may be non-convex leading to
possibilities of multiple equilibrium.
 Many participants, with freedom to enter and leave the market: the producers dominate the
exchange process as no market exists for environmental pollutants.
 There is only possibility of production of “bads” that has the potential to yield negative utility to
buyers if consumed.
 Environmental goods, being indivisible in consumption, are often subject to externalities.

ANALYTICAL APPROACH FOLLOWED IN ENVIRONMENTAL ECONOMICS

The fact that environmental goods evidently do not follow many of the fundamental premises of neo classical
economics led to the birth of a separate branch of knowledge christened as Environmental Economics. As we shall
observe, the analytical approach to this new branch of knowledge has been primarily to bring in ideas to make
environmental goods amenable to the fundamental premises of the neo classical market driven paradigm so that
rigorous analytical models to solve issues related to environmental goods can be meaningfully developed. The
emphasis has been creation of virtual markets for environmental goods on the one hand, so that the issue of their
efficient pricing can be resolved and , on the other hand, identification of the sources of market failure in allocating
resources efficiently between different uses and in designing policies to enable the government to intervene to
'correct' the market failure. Such an effort is composed of three steps.

Step 1: Make the environmental goods divisible and capable to be distributed among those who are willing to pay
relevant (equilibrating) prices to consume them. In other words, create a market for a specific environmental
good, construct supply and demand curves, let them interact with each other and hence determine the
equilibrium price and equilibrium quantity to be supplied.

Step 2: Determine the appropriate level of environmental protection using methods of valuation of different
environmental goods. Such valuation methods typically construct hypothetical or revealed demand curves for
environmental goods and compare them with the cost of supply that consists of the opportunity cost of the
environmental resource in question and the costs to be incurred to protect them. Several methods for valuation
are used. Some such widely used methods are: Travel cost method, contingent valuation method and hedonic
pricing. See Boxes below for brief overviews about these methods.

Step 3: Decide on the optimal level of environmental protection and achieve it in the most efficient way. Once the
most efficient level of environmental protection is identified with the use of theory and methods, the last stage
involves identification of measures to achieve such desired level of protection. Design of an effective
environmental policy paves the way for achieving such protection-linked targets. It argued that the best way to
achieve the desired level of environmental protection through internalizing the environmental externalities in a
market where they are generated. Such internalization can be effected either by taxing those who indulge in
environmental damage or by subsidizing efforts at improving environmental quality, based on the equilibrium
price derived from analysis of a virtual market created through the different evaluation methods developed in the
literature. The alternative is to create “real” markets for environmental goods and services.

BOX:1 – TRAVEL COST METHOD

The travel cost method is used to estimate economic use values associated with ecosystems or sites that are used for recreation. The basic
premise of the travel cost method is that the time and travel cost expenses that people incur to visit a site represent the “price” of access
to the site. Thus, peoples’ willingness to pay to visit the site can be estimated based on the number of trips that they make at different
travel costs. This is analogous to estimating peoples’ willingness to pay for a marketed good based on the quantity demanded at different
prices.
A Case Study
The Situation
Hell Canyon on the Snake River separating Oregon and Idaho offers spectacular vistas and outdoor amenities to visitors from around the
country and supports important fish and wildlife habitat. It also has economic potential as a site to develop hydropower. Generating
hydropower there would require building a dam behind which would form a large lake. The dam and the resulting lake would significantly
and permanently alter the ecological and aesthetic characteristics of Hell Canyon.
The Challenge
During the 1970’s, there were major controversies regarding the future of Hell Canyon. Environmental economists from Resources For The
Future in Washington, D.C. were asked to develop an economic analysis to justify preserving Hell Canyon in its natural state in the face of
its obvious economic potential as a source of hydropower.
The Analysis
Researchers estimated that the net economic value (cost savings) of producing hydropower at Hell Canyon was $80,000 higher than at the
"next best" site which was not environmentally sensitive. They then conducted a low-cost/low precision travel-cost survey to estimate the
recreational value of Hell Canyon and concluded that it was about $900,000. The researchers did not attempt to strongly defend the
"scientific" credibility of the valuation method they used or the results. However, at public hearings, they emphasized that, even if the
"true value" of recreation at Hell Canyon was ten times less than their estimate, it would still be greater than the $80,000 economic payoff
from generating power there as opposed to the other site. They also illustrated that overall demand for outdoor recreation, for which the
supply is limited, was going up, while many other sources of energy are available besides Hell Canyon hydropower.

The Results
Based largely on the results of this non-market valuation study, Congress voted to prohibit further development of Hell Canyon.

Source and for further reading see: http://www.ecosystemvaluation.org/travel_costs.htm

BOX: 2 -- CONTINGENT VALUATION

The contingent valuation method involves directly asking people, in a survey, how much they would be willing to pay for specific environmental services. In
some cases, people are asked for the amount of compensation they would be willing to accept to give up specific environmental services. It is called
“contingent” valuation, because people are asked to state their willingness to pay, contingent on a specific hypothetical scenario and description of the
environmental service.

The contingent valuation method is referred to as a “stated preference” method, because it asks people to directly state their values, rather than inferring
values from actual choices, as the “revealed preference” methods do. The fact that CV is based on what people say they would do, as opposed to what
people are observed to do, is the source of its greatest strengths and its greatest weaknesses.

Contingent valuation is one of the only ways to assign dollar values to non-use values of the environment—values that do not involve market purchases
and may not involve direct participation. These values are sometimes referred to as “passive use” values. They include everything from the basic life
support functions associated with ecosystem health or biodiversity, to the enjoyment of a scenic vista or a wilderness experience, to appreciating the
option to fish or bird watch in the future, or the right to bequest those options to your grandchildren. It also includes the value people place on simply
knowing that giant pandas or whales exist.

Case Study– Economic Value of Noncommercial Fish

Situation
Rivers in the Four Corners Region provide 2,465 river miles of critical habitat for nine species of fish that are listed as threatened or endangered. Continued
protection of these areas required habitat improvements, such as fish passageways, as well as bypass releases of water from dams to imitate natural water
flows needed by fish. A contingent valuation survey was used to estimate the economic value for preserving the critical habitat.

Application
Survey respondents were provided detailed maps that highlighted the areas designated as critical habitat units for the fish. They were told that some State
and Federal officials thought the combined costs of the habitat improvements and the restrictions on hydropower were too costly and had put forward a
proposal to eliminate the critical habitat unit designation. They were asked if they would contribute to the Four Corners Region Threatened and
Endangered Fish Trust Fund.

Respondents were also told that efforts to raise funds would involve contributions from all U.S. taxpayers. If a majority of households voted in favor of the
fund, the fish species would be protected from extinction. This would be accomplished through water releases from Federal dams timed to benefit fish,
and through the purchase of water rights to maintain instream flows. Also, within the next 15 years, three fish species would increase in population to the
point that they would no longer be listed as threatened species.

On the other hand, if a majority of households in the U.S. voted not to approve the fund, the critical habitats shown on the map would be eliminated. This
would mean that water diversion activity and maximum power production would reduce the amount of habitat for these nine fish species. Respondents
were told that if this occurred, biologists expected that four of the nine fish species would likely become extinct in 15 years.
Results
The questionnaire was sent to a random sample of 800 households in the Four Corners states of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah (with the
proportions based on the states’ relative populations). An additional 800 households were sampled from the rest of the U.S. The average willingness to pay
was estimated to be $195 per household. When extrapolated to the general population, the value of preserving the habitat areas was determined to be far
in excess of the costs.

Source and for further reading see : http://www.ecosystemvaluation.org/contingent_valuation.htm

BOX: 3 -- HEDONIC PRICING

The hedonic pricing method is used to estimate economic values for ecosystem or environmental services that directly affect market prices. It is
most commonly applied to variations in housing prices that reflect the value of local environmental attributes.

It can be used to estimate economic benefits or costs associated with:

 environmental quality, including air pollution, water pollution, or noise

 environmental amenities, such as aesthetic views or proximity to recreational sites

The basic premise of the hedonic pricing method is that the price of a marketed good is related to its characteristics, or the services it
provides. For example, the price of a car reflects the characteristics of that car—transportation, comfort, style, luxury, fuel economy,
etc. Therefore, we can value the individual characteristics of a car or other good by looking at how the price people are willing to pay for it
changes when the characteristics change. The hedonic pricing method is most often used to value environmental amenities that affect the price
of residential properties.

A CASE:

The Peconic Estuary Program is considering various management actions for the Estuary and surrounding land areas. In order to assess some of
the values that may result from these management actions, a hedonic valuation study was conducted, using 1996 housing transactions.

The Analysis
The study found that the following variables that are relevant for local environmental management were had significant effects on property
values in Southold:

 Open Space: Properties adjacent to open space had, on average, 12.8% higher per-acre value than similar properties located
elsewhere.
 Farmland: Properties located adjacent to farmland had, on average, 13.3% lower per-acre value. Property values increased very
slightly with greater distance from farmland.
 Major Roads: Properties located within 20 meters of a major road had, on average, 16.2% lower per-acre value.
 Zoning: Properties located within an area with two- or three-acre zoning had, on average, 16.7% higher per-acre value.
 Wetlands: For every percentage point increase in the percent of a parcel classified as a wetland, the average per-acre value increased
by .3%.

The Results
Based on the results of this study, managers could, for example, calculate the value of preserving a parcel of open space, by calculating the
effects on property values adjacent to the parcel. For a hypothetical simple case, the value of preserving a 10 acre parcel of open space,
surrounded by 15 “average” properties, was calculated as $410,907.

Source and for further reading see: http://www.ecosystemvaluation.org/hedonic_pricing.htm

INTERNALIZING THE EXTERNALITIES

As we observe the fundamental focus of environmental economics is developing a theoretical foundation that
helps internalization of the externalities created due to market failure. To reiterate, externalities are said to be
present when the activities of an economic agent have external consequences for other agents by affecting prices,
and these external effects are not compensated for. Such externalities are thus internalized if either those
consequences are removed or those affected are compensated for their sufferings and even in a combination of
both of them. See Box below for a graphical exposition on externalities and the possible measures to internalize
them in tackling environmental issues.
Existing literature on externalities identifies three possible reasons behind emergence of externalities in respect of
environmental goods and services and the corresponding remedial measures.
 Incorrect prices and possible ways to adjust them by using taxes or subsidies, pollution cess on
automobiles or fuel surcharge are examples of taxes, while subsidies to locals through
developmental support for protecting forests are some such examples.
 Missing markets and possible solution in creating a market for pollution, use of tradable permits
for carbon emission, fishing efforts are some such examples.
 Imperfect property rights which may be rectified through defining unambiguous property rights,
like Forest Rights Act, in India or increasing demands for community management of
environmental resources.
“These three solutions are the mainstay of neoclassical solutions for most environmental problems. The latter
solution is a laissez-faire approach of leaving the outcome to the market, while the first two approaches are more
interventionist approaches while still harnessing the power of the market. In fact, most environmental problems
are externality problems like traffic congestion, dumping of toxic wastes, emission of greenhouse gases, pesticides
in food chains, acid rain, and ozone depletion.” ( see http://www.soas.ac.uk/cedep-demos/000_P542_EP_K3736-
Demo/unit1/page_14.htm)

The to-do list is fairly big and the consequent scope of environmental economics to ensure the required
internalization of externalities arising out of the present practices vis-à-vis use of environmental goods and
services.
 [This figure has to go inside the box]

BOX: 4 -- Negative externalities

A negative externality is a cost that is suffered by a third partyas a result of an economic transaction. In a transaction, the producer and consumer are the
first and second parties, and third parties include any individual, organisation, property owner, or resource that is indirectly affected. Externalities are also
referred to as spillover effects, and a negative externality is also referred to as an external cost. An external cost, such as the cost of pollution from
industrial production, makes the marginal social cost (MSC) curve higher than the private marginal cost (MPC).

The socially efficient output is where MSC = MSB, at Q1, which is a lower output than the market equilibrium output, at Q. Negative externalities can lead
to social welfare loss by inducing the market (which usually do not consider external costs) to produce too more or too little. For example, If we consider a
manufacturer of computers which emits pollutants into the atmosphere, the free market equilibrium will occur when marginal private benefit = marginal
private costs, at output Q and price P. The market equilibrium is at point A. However, if we add external costs, the socially efficient output is Q1, at point B.
At Q marginal social costs (at C) are greater than marginal social benefits (at A) so there is a net loss. For example, if the marginal social benefit at A is £5m,
and the marginal social cost at C is £10m, then the net welfare loss of this output is £10m - £5m = £5m. In fact, any output between Q1 and Q creates a net
welfare loss, and the area for all the welfare loss is the area ABC. Therefore, in terms of welfare, markets over-produce goods that generate external costs.
Negative externalities can be caused from consumption also. Side effect of smoking on non-smokers, playing loud music, traffic congestion in the road is
some examples of negative consumption externalities.

Externalities can be addressed through market by assigning property rights. British economist and Nobel Prize winner, Ronald Coase argued that the
establishment of property rights would provide an efficient solution to the problem of externalities. As long as one party can establish a property right,
there will be a bargaining process leading to an agreement in which externalities are taken into account. In absence of property rights, Government may
need to intervene to address externalities.

Source and for further reading see http://www.economicsonline.co.uk/Market_failures/Externalities.html.

BY WAY OF CONCLUSION

Environmental Economics, as we found is a market centred approach to arrive at solutions to their

excessive use as a sink of wastes. The fundamental approach of this specialized branch is to take care of
non-existence of markets through creating market or market like structures to facilitate exchange of
environmental goods and services. “Market failures” as they may creep in, are to be corrected through
effective interventions by state incorporating necessary public policy tools. One fundamental
requirement also runs in terms of devising policies to make such environmental goods and services
divisible in use by designing appropriate, unambiguous and effective property rights structure around
them so that they may be amenable to be transacted in a perfect that responds to price incentives.
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Ecological Economics and De-Growth Debate

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Degrowth, Sustainable Development, Ecological Economics, Social

Movements

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary Ecological Economics attempts a more holistic analysis in terms of flows of

energy and materials (‘natural wealth’), giving non-measurable factors
proper recognition, such as health of an eco-system or water resource. It
analyses resource flows in terms of social metabolism, and tends to
consider economy as a sub-set of ecology. In this module, we will discuss
this concept and debates around the concept of De-Growth

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Shambhu Ghatak Fellow, Inclusive Media for Change,

(CW) CSDS, Delhi
Content Reviewer (CR) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Language Editor (LE) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Module: Ecological Economics and De-Growth Debate

Economic Growth: Economic growth means the annual rate of increase in nominal or real
GDP. GDP (or gross domestic products) measures the monetary value of final goods and
services, which are produced in a country in a given period of time (say a quarter or a year),
and are purchased by the final user. GDP counts all of the output generated within the borders
of a country. GDP comprises goods and services produced for sale in the market and also
includes some non-market production, such as defence or education services, which are
provided by the governmenti. The GDP figures are adjusted for inflation (or deflation) by using
the prices that prevailed in some chosen base year so as to get "real" GDPii. A statistical tool
called the price deflator is used to adjust GDP from nominal to constant prices.

Ecological Economics: Ecological Economics attempts a more holistic analysis in terms of

flows of energy and materials (‘natural wealth’), giving non-measurable factors proper
recognition, such as health of an eco-system or water resource. It analyses resource flows in
terms of social metabolism, and tends to consider economy as a sub-set of ecology. As such, it
is distinct from Environmental Economics, which has evolved as a discipline within economics
focused on trying to work out the financial costs of forests and other environmental assets, in
order to facilitate financial compensation for their loss due to mining or damming. In their
book, Ecology Economy: Quest for a Socially Informed Connection, Felix Padel and his co-
authors, Jeemol Unni and Ajay Dandekar underlines “how more radical environmentalists refer
to concepts such as green accounting and eco-innovations as efforts to justify new ‘greenfield’
industries on spurious grounds of reforestation or reduced pollution”. They also cite an example
of the brilliant book, Greenwash: The Reality behind Corporate Environmentalism by Jed
Greer and Kenny Bruno that exposes the use of public relations (PR) to create a false image of
ecologically benign policies by companies notorious for harming ecosystems.

In the book entitled The Environmentalism of the Poor: A Study of Ecological Conflicts and
Valuation, Joan Martinez-Alier (2005) informs that as per ecological economics, economy is
embedded in a larger finite global ecosystem, drawing resources from and emitting waste into
it. Ecological economists are engaged in developing several material indicators of
sustainability. They examine how changes in property rights and use of new instruments of
environmental policy can help achieve sustainability. Ecological economists do not believe that
there exists a set of ‘ecologically correct prices.’ Unlike economists who just stick to one
criterion to evaluate the value of something, ecological economists argue for multi-criteria
approach to develop a matrix of social interests and values during conflict situations.

De-Growth: Degrowth provides a critique of the current development hegemony. Degrowth

challenges the dominant paradigms of neo-classical economics and also Keynesian
economicsiii. It challenges the centrality of GDP as the most important policy objective and
asks for a transformation of production and consumption so as to improve human well-being
and enhance ecological conditions and equity on the planet. Degrowth proposes an alternative
framework for downscaling to a lower and sustainable level of production and consumption,
giving lesser primacy to the economic system so that more space is available for human
cooperation and ecosystemsiv. Instead of efficiency, degrowth gives importance to sufficiency.
The focus of degrowth is not on technology but on socio-ecologically desirable arrangements
such as sharing, simplicity, care, commons etc. According to Barbara Muraca (2013)v,
degrowth is not merely the critique of GDP as a measure for well-being. It radically questions
the way "social reproduction is intended and frames a multifaceted vision for a post-growth
society".

Short history of degrowth: Breaking away from the much touted dogma of economic growth,
propagated by mainstream economists, politicians and corporate honchos, the use of the term
degrowth as a socio-political movement sharpened during the 21st century, particularly in the
recession afflicted Europe after 2008. Western scholars argue that degrowth originated from
the French term décroissance, which was used during mid-to late-1970s by writers such as
André Gorz and Nicholas Georgescu-Roegen in the follow-up of the Meadows report to the
Club of Rome entitled ‘The limits to growth’. That report warned about the limits of
exponential population and economic growth in a planet of finite resourcesvi.

In a concept note prepared for the Symposium entitled "Growth, green growth or degrowth"
held in New Delhi during September, 2014, Rajeswari S Raina and Julien-François Gerber say
that certain strands of degrowth could be located in J C Kumarappa's model of "economy of
permanence", which was developed in the 1940s and 1950svii.

During a conference in Montreal in 1982 entitled Les enjeux de la décroissance (the challenges
of degrowth), the French term was used to signify economic recession. Décroissance as a social
movement originated in Lyon (France) in 2001 and spread to other parts of Europe thanks to
degrowth conferences held in Paris, Bercelona, Montreal and Venice between 2008 and 2012,
and a series of international publications. The English term “degrowth” was accepted at the
first Degrowth Conference in Paris in 2008.

Martinez-Alier et al (2013) inform that décroissance became an activist slogan in France in

2001, Italy in 2004 (as decrescita) and Catalonia and Spain in 2006 (as decreixement and
decrecimiento).

Basic tenets of Degrowth: Barbara Muraca (2013)viii states that the French term décroissance
is in its core anti-systemic because apart from questioning some of the basic functioning
structure of the capitalist economy (like accumulation, maximisation, technological
innovation), it critiques the imaginary fundamentals such as instrumental rationality,
consumerism, productivity, utilitarianism, efficiency etc.

Degrowth as a concept lies at the juncture of mainly 6 different stream of thoughts, each
without contradicting or competing the other. It is suggested by Martinez-Alier et al (2013) that
one should not consider the various stream of thoughts on degrowth (as done below) as airtight
compartments.

Ecology

Ecosystems have intrinsic value and cannot be seen only as suppliers of raw material for
industrial needs. Degrowth proposes to reduce human pressure on ecosystems so that
decoupling of ecological impacts from economic growth could be made possible. Communal
rights over environmental goods is seen as a strategy for ecosystems regeneration.

Critiques of development and praise for anti-utilitarianism

Drawing lessons from anthropology and various critics of development, ranging from Arturo
Escobar to Ashish Nandy, degrowth considers 'sustainable development' an oxymoron.
Degrowth movement critiques utility maximization, which is propagated by mainstream
economic theories on market fundamentalism. The social movement on degrowth is about
changing the value systems that is based on self-interest and utility maximization.

Meaning of life and well-being

Degrowth critiques daily consumerist lifestyle, which is followed in all modern societies.
Proponents of degrowth find that the rise in income has nothing to do with life satisfaction,
which is also termed as Easterlin Paradox (Easterlin 1974). Degrowth also draws lesson from
the association between material gains and emotional disorders (Kasser 2002). A move away
from individual consumption and towards a simpler life is considered as liberating and
profound.

Bioeconomics

Basing itself on ecological economics and industrial ecology, degrowth questions the reliability
of technological innovation to overcome biophysical limits and sustain economic growth.
Contrary to common intuition, technological progress often increases the usage/ exploitation
of natural resources (also called Jevons paradox). This idea forms the bedrock of ecological
economics. Degrowth sees possibility of 'non-technical' solutions for reducing material and
energy flow that lie outside the modernisation approach.

As per the laws (not theories) of thermodynamics, perpetual material growth on a finite planet
is biophysically unsustainable. Ecologists term economic system processes as 'material
throughput' (intake of natural resources and output of wastes)ix. Instead of creating just human
wealth and well-being, economic growth leads to rise in entropy, which actually implies loss
of useful resourcesx.

Democracy

Degrowth calls for deepening of democracy for debating economic development, growth,
technological innovation and advancement. There are two opposing camps in this stream: the
reformist strand defends the present democratic set up by taking into account the risks of losing
whatever has already been achieved; however, the post-capitalist or alternative vision
advocates for completely new institutions based on direct and participatory democracy.

Justice

Degrowth is about ending inequality and, therefore, it critiques the concept of trickle downxi,
which says that economic benefits provided to upper income level earners will help society as
a whole. There are mainly two philosophical camps in the justice stream. The consequentialist
approach to justice calls for setting a maximum living standard to be attained (or opening
borders between rich and poor nations) so that analyses of social classes based on well-being
or inequality indicators do not give rise to envy or social conflicts. If lifestyles of rich classes
becomes the norm, which the 'have-nots' need to achieve for ending inequality, then it will lead
to social and environmental crises. However, if some "maximum wealth" or "maximum
income" to be earned or owned by someone in the society becomes the norm, then it will
weaken envy as a motor of consumerism. The deontological perspective asks for changing the
culture of high-consumption lifestyles.

Another vision within the justice stream is to end historical injustices done by one community
or country to another. Degrowth asks for intra-generational and inter-generational distribution
of economic, social and environmental goods including basic access to ecosystems. Degrowth
advocates argue that the Global South should completely give up the current economic system,
thereby abandoning the global economy. This will allow people in the Global South to become
self-sufficient and hence end overconsumption and exploitation of the Third World resources
by the Northxii.

Degrowth strategies and actors

As suggested by Martinez-Alier et al (2012), there are various action strategies undertaken

ranging from opposition, building alternatives (new institutions) and reformism (actions within
existing institutions for societal transformations) at global and local levels.

Oppositional activism

There are various modes of opposition and protests undertaken by activists such as:
demonstrations, boycotts, civil disobedience, direct action and protest songs.

Building alternatives

Instead of taking direct part in protests and activism, western practitioners promote local,
decentralized, small scale and participatory alternatives such as cycling, reuse, vegetarianism,
co-housing etc. Some actors argue that degrowth should be about changing individual values,
tastes and behaviour.

Reformism

Some actors believe that instead of outrightly rejecting, existing democratic institutions should
be defended. Based on the works of André Gorz, Barbara Muraca (2013) concludes that "while
a reformist reform subordinates its objective to the criteria of rationality and practicability of a
given system, a non-reformist reform implies a modification of the relations of power and
implies structural reforms"xiii.

Research

Research is important to degrowth movement. Experiences gathered from activism can be

refined further by academicians. On the contrary, academic concepts can be taken up by the
civil society. Various conferences on degrowth, held in Paris (2008), Barcelona (2010),
Montreal and Venice (2012), have deviated from the standard model of academic conference
organisation and used practical direct democracy techniques to discuss and develop policy
proposals and research priorities in diverse areas.

Scale of operation

Most degrowth activities are taken up at the local level. Networking at the national and regional
levels is an important part of degrowth.
Debates surrounding degrowth strategies

The website Research & Growth, www.degrowth.org informs that due to complex societies,
multiple strategies are adopted by degrowth movement.

In the first place, there are debates between activist movements, which gives importance to
opposition, for example movements against infrastructures (i.e. land grabs for big industrial
complexes, big dams, nuclear plants etc.), and ones promoting alternatives (i.e. separate lanes
for bicycles, use of public transport, rights of pedestrians, use of solar panels, job sharing etc.).

There is ongoing contention whether individual action is more important as compared to

collective action. There is argument whether action should be taken at local level for national
or global issues.

A big debate is taking place presently, which is about degrowth supporters who focus on
replacing existing institutions (e.g. financial institutions) and the ones who consider that certain
democratic institutions should undergo suitable adjustments and on the contrary be defended
(such as social security).

There is debate whether practical action in a social movement is more important vis-à-vis
theoretical analysis.

Despite these debates and arguments, degrowth perspective is open to diversity and
complementarity of strategies.

Failure of Sustainable Development paradigm

The Brundtland Commission defined sustainable development as "development that meets the
needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own
needs". Sharachchandra Lele (2013) says that although the original definition of sustainable
development focussed on meeting needs, the operational part refocused on growth that suggests
that growth can trickle down to reduce poverty. With the passage of time, the meaning of
development has been reduced to growth, sustainability has been equated with non-declining
well-being and equity has been considered as participation in development decision-making.
One argument that supports the continuation of economic growth is the idea of Environmental
Kuznets curve, the hypothesis that with the rise in incomes, initially the environment may
deteriorate but later it will improvexiv.

Critique of Ecological Economics and zero growth

With capitalism doing enormous damage to the environment, in an interview given to Scott
Bochert of Monthly Review Press during August 2011, Marxist thinker Fred Magdoff
expresses that environmentalists should understand the need for an alternative economic
systemxv. Although there are many ideas floating around to avert environmental degradation,
one needs to confront capitalism first, argues Magdoff in the interview. This is because
capitalism calls for more and more profits, even at the cost of environment. Without critiquing
capitalism, one cannot get the answers that why are global warming, chemical pollution, soil
degradation etc. taking placexvi. Marxists tends to argue that ecological economics does not
provide a real critique of the existing economic system and there is no alternative explanation
provided on how to organize and run an economy in a different manner. In short, it is essential
to understand that environmental problems are deeply embedded in the economy. Fred
Magdoff says that zero economic growth in a capitalist economy is an economic disaster since
it will lead to massive unemployment and underemployment of the people, as could be noticed
during the recent recession in the United States. Zero economic growth can, however, be
compatible with improved satisfaction of people's basic physical and non-physical needs in an
alternative economic/ social system. In such a system, production is done only for the purpose
of meeting the needs of the population instead of maximising revenue / profits.

Proponents of degrowth argue that uncontrolled global contraction in the future (due to rapid
depletion of natural resources) will result in much more discomfort and human suffering than
what degrowth would doxvii. Economic growth, which is built on depletion, obsolescence,
inequality, and waste can further deepen poverty rather than alleviating it, says Dirk Philipsen
(2015)xviii.

There are other voices among degrowth movement who argue in favour of attaining acceptable
level of well-being in the Third World nations, independent of growth. However, it is still a
matter of debate and discussion that by how much the North should degrow and by how much
the South should growxix.

Market fundamentalists criticise degrowth because it can create unemployment and poverty in
the society. They argue that if non-renewable natural resources deplete at a faster rate, then
their relative prices will go up. This will compel lesser exploitation and wastage of scarce
natural resources. When profits accrued from economic growth is spent on research and
development (R&D), new technologies will be invented. New technological innovations will
lessen use of precious resources. Newly emerging firms that employ innovative technologies
(or ideas) to reduce wastage and more efficiency, will come into being, thus, creatively
destructing/ replacing the old and inefficient firms that use redundant technologies.

Has economic growth been of help to India?

Growth scenario in India

As per the 12th Five Year Plan documents, India experienced 8 percent annual growth in real
GDP during the Eleventh Plan (spanning 2007-08 to 2011-12) as compared to 7.6 percent
annual growth in the Tenth Plan (2002–03 to 2006–07)xx. With 2011-12 as the base year, real
GDP grew by 5.1 percent during 2012-13, 6.9 percent during 2013-14 and 7.4 percent during
2014-15. Most economists, journalists and politicians in the country today believe that
economic reforms carried out during last two and half decades helped in pushing up economic
growthxxi.

The foodgrain production of the country has increased by five folds from 50.8 million tonnes
in 1950-51 to 264.8 million tonnes in 2013-14, as shown by various issues of the Economic
Surveyxxii.

Food insecurity

Despite economic growth and improvements in food production, hunger and malnutrition still
linger on this part of the planet. The report entitled ‘State of Food Insecurity in the World
2015’xxiii informs that the highest number of undernourished people (who are in a state, lasting
for at least one year, of inability to acquire enough food, defined as a level of food intake
insufficient to meet dietary energy requirements) in the entire South Asia is found in India i.e.
194.6 million in 2014-16. From the same report, one can calculate that around 69.2 percent of
undernourished persons in South India lives in India. Every fourth undernourished person in
the world is an Indian. The ‘State of Food Insecurity in the World 2015’ report predicts that
the number of undernourished people in the country is going to rise from 189.9 million in 2010-
12 to 194.6 million in 2014-16.

The daily calorie norm in India for rural areas is 2400 Kcal per capita and urban areas is 2100
Kcal per capita. From the National Sample Survey report entitled Nutritional Intake in India
2011-12xxiv it has been found that the bottom 80 percent of the rural population in terms of
monthly per capita expenditure consumed less than 2400 Kcal per capita per day. Similarly,
the bottom 40% of the urban population in terms of monthly per capita expenditure consumed
less than 2100 Kcal per capita per day.

Inequality

Despite some improvements on the food security front, growing inequality is a major concern.
The National Sample Survey report entitled ‘Nutritional Intake in India 2011-12’ shows that a
person belonging to the top 5% of the rural population (in terms of monthly per capita
expenditure) daily consumed twice the calorie as compared to a person from the bottom 5% in
2011-12. Almost the same level of inequality could be noticed in urban areas tooxxv.

The World Bank report titled ‘Addressing Inequality in South Asia’ informs that for a typical
Indian household among the top 10 percent, the net worth could support consumption for more
than 23 years. For a typical Indian household in the bottom 10 percent, however, the net worth
was sufficient to support consumption for less than three months. The concentration of
billionaire wealth appears to be unusually large in India. According to Forbes magazine (2014),
total billionaire wealth amounts to 12 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2012. As
such, India is an outlier in the ratio of billionaire wealth to GDP among economies at a similar
development levelxxvi.

Land degradation

It has been mentioned by the ‘State of Indian Agriculture 2011-12’ reportxxvii that about 120
million hectare land is degraded in India, and about 5334 million tonnes of soil is lost annually
through soil erosion. Out of 120 million hectare degraded area, water erosion accounts for 68
percent, chemical degradation 21 percent, wind erosion 10 percent and the rest physical
degradation. As per the ‘State of Environment 2009’ reportxxviii, excessive soil erosion with
consequent high rate of sedimentation in the reservoirs and decreased fertility has created
serious environmental problems with disastrous economic consequences.

The report entitled ‘State of Indian Agriculture 2012-13’xxix, by using estimates provided by
Indian Council of Agricultural Research (2010), shows that out of the total geographical area
of 328.73 million hectare, about 120.40 million hectare is affected by various kind of land
degradation resulting in annual soil loss of about 5.3 billion tonnes through erosion. This
includes water and wind erosion (94.87 million hectare), water logging (0.91 million hectare),
soil alkalinity/ sodicity (3.71 million hectare), soil acidity (17.93 million hectare), soil salinity
(2.73 million hectare) and mining and industrial waste (0.26 million hectare). Besides, water
and wind erosions are widespread across the country. Nearly 5.3 billion tonnes of soil gets
eroded every year. Of the soil so eroded, 29 per cent is permanently lost to sea, 10 per cent is
deposited in reservoirs reducing their storage capacity and rest 61 per cent gets shifted from
one place to another.

Environmental damages

The ‘State of Environment 2009’ reportxxx finds that in India soil pollution from heavy metals
due to improper disposal of industrial effluents, along with excessive use of pesticides and
mismanagement of domestic and municipal wastes, is a matter of concern. The Twelfth Five
Year Plan (Volume 1) documentxxxi has noted that subsidies given by the Centre and states
actually led to excessive use of nitrogenous fertilizers and over-drawing of water, thus,
affecting sustainability of soil and water ecosystem.

Based on a survey of literature, the book 'Coping with Climate Change' (2014), edited by Dr.
Suman Sahaixxxii, has noted that at the national level, an increase of 0.4 degree C has been
observed in surface air temperatures over the past century. A warming trend has been observed
along the west coast, in Central India, the interior peninsula and North-eastern India. A trend
of increasing monsoon seasonal rainfall has been found along the west coast, northern Andhra
Pradesh, and North-Western India (+10% to +12% of the normal over last 100 years) while a
trend of decreasing monsoon seasonal rainfall has been observed over eastern Madhya Pradesh,
North-Eastern India, some parts of Gujarat and Kerala (-6% to -8% of the normal over the last
100 years). The Government of India has predicted that by the end of the century, average
surface temperatures in India will be 3 to 6 degree C higher. The World Bank considers India
to be one of the 12 countries most vulnerable to floods, droughts, and agricultural changes
caused by climate change. It has been predicted that sea level rise would submerge vast areas
of Sunderbans apart from the delta regions of Krishna, Mahanadi, Godavari and Cauvery.
Indian coastline is densely populated, and the communities on the coast are particularly
vulnerable to sea-level rise.

Groundwater depletion

Since nearly 70 per cent of irrigation is dependent on groundwater, declining water level is a
major impediment concerning agricultural production in the country. The ‘State of Indian
Agriculture 2012-13’ reportxxxiii informs that decline in water level is noticed mostly in
northern, north western and eastern parts of India in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan,
Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Punjab and Haryana. Decline in water level has also been
observed in parts of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. Significant decline in water level of
more than 2m is seen in parts of Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab, and western Uttar Pradesh,
western Andhra Pradesh and North West part of Tamil Nadu. Out of 5842 numbers of assessed
administrative units (Blocks/ Taluks/ Mandals/ Districts), 802 units are Over-exploited, 169
units are Critical, 523 units are Semi-critical.

Social movements as degrowth movements in India

Knowingly or unknowingly, many of the social movements in India against big dams,
displacement, deforestation, hydroelectric projects, demolition of slums, manufacturing of soft
drinks/ mineral water by depleting groundwater, land acquisition for nuclear power
generation/establishment of Special Economic Zones or industrial hubs etc. resemble the
degrowth movement of Europe. One also comes across unique ways in which activists protest
against the dominant system, which ranges from peaceful protestsxxxiv like Jal Satyagraha,
hunger strikes, gherao etc. to violent protests that includes suicide committed in full public
viewxxxv.

In the book entitled ‘The Environmentalism of the Poor: A Study of Ecological Conflicts and
Valuation’, Joan Martinez-Alier (2005) says that there are chiefly three currents of
environmental activism. The cult of wilderness, which is the first one, is focused on
preservation of wild nature. The second current, which is confined to the importance of
economic-efficiency, is concerned with the wise use of resources. The third current, which is
basically environmentalism of the poor, arises due to economic growth and social inequalities.
Poor people who live on the fringes of the economy, considers environment as a source of
livelihood. Conflicting situations arise when the expansive forces of capitalism convert hitherto
held 'commons' into private 'enclosures' of corporates or when ecosystems are irreversibly
damaged due to overexploitation or ceaseless extraction.

In the book entitled 'Coping with Climate Change'xxxvi, various practices to cope or mitigate the
adverse impacts of climate change (particularly on agriculture in India) have been discussed,
such as:

1. Replacing nitrogenous fertilizers with organic compost, manure, legume cultivation

2. Promotion of agroforestry
3. Rainwater harvesting and re-using & cycling of water
4. Shifting from non-renewable to renewable sources of energy
5. Mulching/ vermicomposting
6. Promotion of seed banks in the villages
7. Crop rotation, intercropping, system of rice intensification, organic farming
8. Maintaining biodiversity by preserving indigenous varieties of seeds
9. Use of bio-pesticides/ Integrated Pest Management
10. Encouraging kitchen gardens, backyard poultry, pasture management
11. Mangrove rehabilitation
12. Move towards drip irrigation, deficit irrigation, furrow conservation and irrigation

Some of these practices are also being used under the degrowth movement of Europe.

Indian scholars one must read

Some of the noted contemporary scholars/ columnists in India on degrowth and environment
are: Ashish Kotharixxxvii, Darryl D’Montexxxviii and Kanchi Kohlixxxix. However, this list is not
exhaustive in itself. India Together (www.indiatogether.org) and Economic and Political
Weekly (www.epw.in) can be accessed by students for contemporary research on
environmental and ecological issues.

Endnotes and References Cited

i
Gross Domestic Product: An Economy’s All -Tim Callen, Finance and Development, International Monetary
Fund, 28 March, 2015, http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/basics/gdp.htm

ii
Why do we need economic growth? -John Sloman, BBC, 16 October, 2008,
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/7674841.stm
iii
What is Degrowth? From an Activist Slogan to a Social Movement -Federico Demaria, François Schneider, Filka
Sekulova and Joan Martinez-Alier, Environmental Values 22 (2013): 191–215 © 2013 The White Horse Press.
doi: 10.3197/096327113X13581561725194, Submitted 3 August 2012, accepted 29 November 2012,
http://www.degrowth.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/What-is-degrowth.pdf

iv
It is worth looking at the declaration made in the Economic De-Growth For Ecological Sustainability And Social
Equity Conference held in Paris on April 18-19, 2008, http://events.it-
sudparis.eu/degrowthconference/en/Declaration%20on%20Degrowth%20EN.pdf

v
Décroissance: A Project for a Radical Transformation of Society -Barbara Muraca (2013), Environmental Values
22 (2013): 147–169, © 2013 The White Horse Press. doi: 10.3197/096327113X13581561725112
Submitted 30 November 2011, accepted 6 June, 2012

vi
Introduction: Degrowth futures and democracy -C Cattaneo, G D’Alisa, G Kallis and C Zografos, Futures 44
(2012), 515-523, http://degrowth.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Introduction-Degrowth-futures-and-
democracy.pdf

vii
Concept Note: Growth, green growth or degrowth? New critical directions for India's sustainability -Rajeswari
S Raina and Julien-François Gerber, Symposium: "Growth, green growth or degrowth?", 12-13 September, 2014,
India Habitat Centre, New Delhi

viii
Décroissance: A Project for a Radical Transformation of Society -Barbara Muraca (2013), Environmental Values
22 (2013): 147–169, © 2013 The White Horse Press. doi: 10.3197/096327113X13581561725112
Submitted 30 November 2011, accepted 6 June, 2012

ix
Is Sustainable Growth an Oxymoron? -John Fullerton, Capital Institute, 28 June, 2010,
https://capitalinstitute.org/blog/sustainable-growth-oxymoron/

x
https://en.wikipedia.org/?title=Degrowth

xi
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trickle-down_economics

xii
Degrowth Economics: Why less should be so much more -Serge Latouche (2004), Le Monde Diplomatique,
http://mondediplo.com/2004/11/14latouche

xiii
Décroissance: A Project for a Radical Transformation of Society -Barbara Muraca (2013), Environmental Values
22 (2013): 147–169, © 2013 The White Horse Press. doi: 10.3197/096327113X13581561725112
Submitted 30 November 2011, accepted 6 June, 2012

xiv
Rethinking Sustainable Development -Sharachchandra Lele, Current History, November, 2013

xv
Interview: Fred Magdoff on What Every Environmentalist Needs to Know about Capitalism, Monthly Review
Press, 24 August, 2011, http://climateandcapitalism.com/2011/08/24/interview-fred-magdoff-on-what-every-
environmentalist-needs-to-know-about-capitalism/

xvi
Please check: The Problem Is Capitalism -Fred Magdoff, Monthly Review, 26 September, 2014,
http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/2014/magdoff260914.html

xvii
For Champions of Degrowth, Less Is Much More -Malgorzata Stawecka, IPS News, 7 November, 2012,
http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/for-champions-of-degrowth-less-is-much-more/

xviii
GDP's Wicked Spell -Dirk Philipsen, The Chronicle of Higher Education, 15 June, 2015,
http://chronicle.com/article/GDPs-Wicked-Spell/230881/

xix
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Degrowth
xx
Faster, More Inclusive and Sustainable Growth, 12th Five Year Plan document (2012-17) Volume-1, Planning
Commission, http://planningcommission.gov.in/plans/planrel/12thplan/pdf/12fyp_vol1.pdf

xxi
Economic Survey 2014-15, Volume-II, Ministry of Finance, http://indiabudget.nic.in/es2014-15/echapvol2-
01.pdf

xxii
Economic Survey 2012-13 (Statistical Appendix), http://indiabudget.nic.in/budget2013-2014/es2012-
13/estat1.pdf
Economic Survey 2014-15 (Statistical Appendix), http://indiabudget.nic.in/es2014-15/estat1.pdf

xxiii
State of Food Insecurity in the World 2015, FAO, IFAD & WFP,
http://www.im4change.org/siteadmin/tinymce//uploaded/State%20of%20Food%20Insecurity%20in%20the%
20World%202015.pdf

xxiv
National Sample Survey Report no. 560: Nutritional Intake in India 2011-12, 68th Round,
http://mospi.nic.in/Mospi_New/upload/nss_report_560_19dec14.pdf

xxv
Food intake dynamics undergo changes: NSSO, http://www.im4change.org/news-alerts/food-intake-
dynamics-undergo-changes-nsso-4676419.html

xxvi
Addressing Inequality in South Asia, World Bank, January, 2015,
https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/20395

xxvii
State of Indian Agriculture 2011-12, Ministry of Agriculture, http://agricoop.nic.in/SIA111213312.pdf

xxviii
State of Environment Report 2009, Ministry of Environment and Forests,
http://envfor.nic.in/soer/2009/SoE%20Report_2009.pdf

xxix
State of Indian Agriculture 2012-13, Ministry of Agriculture
http://www.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/files/file/State%20of%20Indian%20Agriculture%202012-13.pdf

xxx
State of Environment Report 2009, Ministry of Environment and Forests,
http://envfor.nic.in/soer/2009/SoE%20Report_2009.pdf

xxxi
Faster, More Inclusive and Sustainable Growth, 12th Five Year Plan document (2012-17) Volume-1, Planning
Commission, http://planningcommission.gov.in/plans/planrel/12thplan/pdf/12fyp_vol1.pdf

xxxii
Coping with Climate Change (2014), edited by Suman Sahai, Heinrich Böll Stiftung
http://in.boell.org/sites/default/files/climate_change_web.pdf

xxxiii
State of Indian Agriculture 2012-13, Ministry of Agriculture
http://www.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/files/file/State%20of%20Indian%20Agriculture%202012-13.pdf

xxxiv
A platform of, by and for the connected -Rahul Verma and Pradeep Chhibber, The Indian Express, 14 January,
2013, http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/a-platform-of-by-and-for-the-connected/1058921/0

xxxv
Farmer suicide during AAP rally kicks up political storm, AAP says police didn't try to save man - Mallica Joshi,
Hindustan Times, 22 April, 2015, http://www.hindustantimes.com/newdelhi/farmer-attempts-suicide-at-aap-
rally-protesting-land-bill/article1-1339803.aspx

xxxvi
Coping with Climate Change (2014), edited by Suman Sahai, Heinrich Böll Stiftung
http://in.boell.org/sites/default/files/climate_change_web.pdf

xxxvii
Is Europe staring at a second Renaissance? - Ashish Kothari, India Together, 22 June, 2015,
http://indiatogether.org/second-renaissance-in-europe-op-ed
Radical Ecological Democracy: A Path Forward for India and Beyond -Ashish Kothari, July 2014,
http://www.greattransition.org/publication/radical-ecological-democracy-a-path-forward-for-india-and-
beyond
Have you overstepped the Sustainable Consumption Line? -Ashish Kothari, India Together, 29 October, 2013,
http://indiatogether.org/consumptn-environment

xxxviii
A price tag on nature -Darryl D'Monte, InfoChange, May, 2012,
http://infochangeindia.org/environment/eco-logic/a-price-tag-on-nature.html
To be counted during Paris summit, India must cut its carbon footprint -Darryl D'Monte, 8 September, 2014,
http://www.hindustantimes.com/comment/analysis/making-heavy-weather-of-it/article1-1261348.aspx
Felling laws for environment, from Manmohan's govt to Modi's -Darryl D’Monte, The Hindustan Times, 21
August, 2014, http://www.hindustantimes.com/comment/analysis/centre-s-rush-to-clear-industrial-projects-
will-imapct-environment/article1-1254342.aspx

xxxix
Executive's Environmental Dilemmas: Unpacking a Committee’s Report -Manju Menon and Kanchi Kohli,
Economic and Political Weekly, Vol-XLIX, No. 50, December 13, 2014, http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-
updates/executive039s-environmental-dilemmas-unpacking-a-committees-report-manju-menon-and-kanchi-
kohli-4674788.html
Flawed EIAs sail through -Kanchi Kohli, Civil Society Online, April, 2013,
http://www.civilsocietyonline.com/pages/Details.aspx?304
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Agrarian Ecology Part I: Green Revolution

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords HYV Seeds, IADP, Monoculture, Modernisation, Food Security

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary This module seeks to understand the idea of the Green

Revolution in Independent India. In doing so, it will deal with the
debates surrounding Food Security and the need for the Green
Revolution within the first two decades of independence.
Beginning with the food shortage crisis that India faced in the
decade following independence to necessitating the Green
Revolution in conjunction with other schemes to improve
agriculture in India, this module will move on to decoding what
the Green Revolution symbolizes and means. It will also pursue
one of the broader narratives of the entire course – namely the
ecological costs of human experimentation. The module will
conclude with considering the environmental and the social
costs of the Green Revolution and briefly deal with the current
debates around Food Security in post-Green Revolution India.
Role Name Affiliation

Principal Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Investigator
Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Ashwin V. S. Independent Researcher

Writer/Author (CW)
Content Reviewer Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
(CR)
Language Editor Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
(LE)
 INTRODUCTION:

This module seeks to understand the idea of the Green Revolution in Independent India. In
doing so, it will deal with the debates surrounding Food Security and the need for the Green
Revolution within the first two decades of independence. Beginning with the food shortage
crisis that India faced in the decade following independence to necessitating the Green
Revolution in conjunction with other schemes to improve agriculture in India, this module
will move on to decoding what the Green Revolution symbolizes and means. It will also
pursue one of the broader narratives of the entire course – namely the ecological costs of
human experimentation. The module will conclude with considering the environmental and
the social costs of the Green Revolution and briefly deal with the current debates around
Food Security in post-Green Revolution India.

Thomas Malthus was one of the first scholars to propose an elaborate theory on population
growth. In his book ‘An Essay on the Principle of Population’ (1798), Malthus proposed that
populations grow exponentially i.e. at a geometric rate while food production increased only
at an arithmetic rate leading inevitably to a shortage in food supply to the rising population.
The conclusion Malthus draws therefore predicts a catastrophic scenario in the future where
human beings would have no resources to survive upon. In remedying or averting this
catastrophe, Malthus suggests checks on population growth categorizing them as ‘preventive’
or ‘positive’ checks.1 The Malthusian proposition became a stark reality with the birth of
Independent India. Burdened not only with considerable economic, social and military
turmoil, the newly independent nation also had a mammoth task in providing basic welfare
measures to its population. This task also drew its importance from the fact that India had
suffered a food disaster only 4 years prior to independence during the ‘Bengal Famine’. It
was estimated that nearly 3-4 million people died of hunger alone in the Bengal province of
then British India (which also included Bangladesh).2 While it is argued that this was a man-
made disaster made possible by British colonial rule, it did leave its mark as regards the
potential danger of apathetic policy making and execution. It was but an obvious policy step
that prompted the independent nation’s policy-makers to focus on food supply and in fact to
do so to increase productivity in food grain production.

1
Malthus, Thomas Robert. An essay on the principle of population. Courier Corporation, 2007
2
Biswas, Soutik. “How Churchill ‘starved’ India”. BBC, October 28, 2010.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/soutikbiswas/2010/10/how_churchill_starved_india.html
GREEN REVOLUTION IN INDIA:

Primary to the concern of welfare was the provision of food security to India’s burgeoning
population; essentially a task of feeding the millions. In terms of policy, this task began with
a focus initially on land reforms in the immediate years of independence and stretched well
into the 1950s. Focus on agriculture, minor irrigation and a decentralised approach in
implementing the schemes saw its culmination in the First Five Year Plan (1951- 56) which
was deemed a success by the Government. However, the ideas of modernity and emphasis on
large scale development saw the Second Five Year Plan (1956 – 61) stress on Industry rather
than Agriculture, leading to a disaster in Food Grain Production. The food grain deficiency in
the country however came to be understood in simple economic terms as “market deficits”
which translated to the increasing food grain production through areas which were deemed to
be capable of producing ‘surplus’.3 In other words, better endowed areas would produce more
which would then be procured for the market to compensate for areas with low food
production. Changes in agricultural practices such as better irrigation facilities, use of
advanced fertilizers and pesticides to increased crop yield and making way for high yielding
varieties of crops (mainly rice and wheat) were seen as key to addressing the crisis of food
supply. It is in this context that the Green Revolution transformation in agriculture occurred
in India.

The Green Revolution period roughly began around 1967 and went on to last a decade. It was
prompted by the development of a new variety of High Yielding Variety (HYV) seed
developed by the American scientist Dr. Norman Borlaug. Following research work in
Mexico where he developed the HYV seeds, Dr. Borlaug helped in the advancement of these
seeds to the Third World in the mid-20th Century. Dr. MS Swaminathan, an Indian geneticist
worked closely with Dr. Borlaug in developing these seeds to suit the conditions in India and
this led to the era of the Green Revolution. This period witnessed a spectacular growth in
food grains production supported by an increase in irrigation facilities, use of machinery,
cheap credit, procurement of credit etc.4 Considered a supremely advanced technological
development, the Green Revolution was particularly hailed in India for transforming a

3
Dharmadhikary, Shripad; Swathi Sheshadri and Rehmat. 2005." Unravelling Bhakra: Assessing the Temple of
Resurgent India: Report of a study of the Bhakra Nangal Project. Manthan Adhyayan Kendra, Badwani Madhya
Pradesh
4
Ibid, xx-xxi
position of food shortage to food surplus and increasing food grain production to a record 131
million tonnes in 1978/79. Encouragingly promoted under the Intensive Agriculture
Development Programme (IADP), the HYV seeds programme covered 5 crops – wheat,
bajra, paddy, maize and jowar of which the wheat crop saw record yields of 5 tonnes per
hectare against the normal yield of about 2 tonnes.5

The above paragraphs present a one sided narrative of the Green Revolution which present it
as a terrific success story, a story that is without flaws and impact in the decades following it.
The Green Revolution did cause significant transformation in agricultural practices in India
and initially did bring success to food grain production as well. However, these
transformations have led to changes in the environment and society as well. Prior to dealing
with these changes, this module will also seek to understand the Green Revolution as a
marker of modern practices during an age in which modernization as such was the dominant
development paradigm of the world. In considering this, the module will also bring into light
the question of power and seek to understand if the Green Revolution was another discourse
seeking to uphold the dominant power structures in the world.

GREEN REVOLUTION and the price of Modern practices:

The emergence of the modern State saw the rise of various practices to make the population
and the environment ‘legible’. Legibility, writes James Scott is “a central problem in
statecraft”. He understands the problem of legibility by drawing a comparison between the
pre-modern State which he terms was “partially blind” which knew very little of its subjects
in contrast to the modern State which is highly focused on making everything known.6 The
modern State apparatus therefore operates through “rationalizing and standardizing what was
a social hieroglyph into a legible and administratively more convenient format”, making
possible the regulation of society an administrative task. The lens through which the modern
State looked at its population is also precisely how it looked at the environment. Nature as
such began to be organized based primarily on a utilitarian principle suited to maximize
economic benefit. Scott writes “plants that are valued become “crops”, species that compete
with them are stigmatized as “pests.” Thus, trees that are valued become “timber” while
species that compete with them become “trash” trees or “underbrush”.7 While these

5
Ibid, 92
6
Scott, James. Seeing like a State: How certain schemes to improve the human condition have failed. Yale
University Press, 1998
7
Ibid, 13
quotations describe Scott’s efforts at understanding scientific forestry, the same parallel can
be drawn to understand the process of the Green Revolution in India.

India awoke to dreams of modernity; Nehru was its archetype model. Technological
innovation and scientific temper coupled with high levels of industrial growth were seen as
key indicators of progress towards embracing science and the modern way of life in a nation
riddled with superstitious beliefs. It was lure of the modern that prompted Nehru to once
proclaim that factories, research laboratories, irrigation dams and power stations as the
“temples of modern India”. In the face of these transforming changes, agriculture was
evidently the key indicator of the backwardness of Indian society. This very backwardness in
agricultural practice was also understood as a reason for low productivity. The Green
Revolution model therefore appeared as a miracle, a harbinger of progress, scientific and
technological advancement and most importantly its application in a relatively primitive
enterprise – agriculture. Legibility played a key administrative tool here in identifying select
areas and crops for implementing the programme for a very fulfilling utilitarian purpose –
surplus in food grain production.

New practices or systems of knowledge however do not often function alongside existing
systems. More often than not, they replace them, creating an erasure of knowledge systems.
Scientific forestry as James Scott describes did not merely provide the State apparatus means
to understand the ecological systems of a forest in a given territory but made it the only
legitimate means to understand forests as such. Traditional systems of knowledge which
focused on man’s intimate relation to the surrounding flora and fauna came to be replaced by
a legitimate and dominant State articulated way of knowing the same environment.8 In the
Third World, the disappearance of such traditional knowledge systems took place through its
interaction with the West, in other words as a result of colonialism. Vandana Shiva argues
that the impact of colonialism in the Third World generally leads to the emergence of a
“dominating and colonising culture” which is promoted as universal.9 These arise out of an
incredible interplay between power and knowledge which seek to preserve established social
hierarchies to maintain structures of dominance.10 The existing knowledge systems within a
society are dismissed as being “unscientific” and “primitive” which have to be replaced to

8
Ibid, 81-82
9
Shiva, Vandana. Monocultures of the mind: Perspectives on biodiversity and biotechnology. Palgrave
Macmillan, 1993
10
Ibid, 10-11
benefit society. Indian agricultural practices were subject to the same tones of condemnation
and the Green Revolution was therefore looked at as a truly modern innovation.

The Green Revolution replaced the “symbiotic relationship between soil, water, farm animals
and plants” with a new variety of seeds, chemicals and machines. Traditional patterns of crop
growing included rotational crop patterns; however the single most significant impact of the
Green Revolution was the introduction of ‘monocultures’. In other words multiple cropping
patterns were replaced by the growth of genetically modified uniform crop patters.11 This
reduced the diversity of crops grown in a field to only commercially viable cash crops. The
Green Revolution therefore in a fell swoop eliminated entire varieties of seeds and crops in
the world; by terming some ‘unscientific’ or ‘primitive’ to replacing them with the HYV
variety which definitely fetched a better price in a globally integrated capitalist market. It led
to the significant loss of nutritious crops such as ragi and jowar which were termed ‘inferior’
and also eliminated the growth of ‘marginal crops’ (which grew alongside the major seeds
such as wheat). Most of these were also a source of livelihood for the peasants of the country
who used reeds and grasses (which were declared as harmful to the growth of the major crop
and termed as ‘weeds’) for basket and mat making, thus fetching a subsidiary source of
income.12 The Green Revolution was thus another knowledge system institutionalized
effectively to maintain the dominance of western scientific models, shaped to consolidate and
promote commercial viability to the needs of global capital.

The ill impacts of green revolution are not merely environmental but are in fact interlinked.
The immediate impact on the soil and water has led to long term effects on the health of the
farmers/peasants and has at the turn of the century most significantly led to deep fissures in
the Indian social.

Ecological costs of the Green Revolution:

Agriculture is nothing but a modification of natural processes in order to serve human needs,
by using agro ecosystem of soil, water, and ecological services provided by other members of
biota. So whenever mankind has tried to modify agriculture he has basically modified natural
processes or altered it altogether i.e. in case of green revolution. So green revolution has
resulted in degradation of soil systems, contamination of water, and decreased biodiversity.
This has resulted in un-sustainability of agro-ecosystems and many of those areas are now no

11
Ibid, 50-59
12
Ibid, 22-27
more cultivable due to high toxicity and salinity of soil and water. The success of the Green
Revolution came with significant ecological costs. Aside from displacing traditional systems
of knowledge and even eliminating subsidiary means to livelihood to peasant families, the
changes to agricultural practice during this period saw a transformation in the soil and air
quality – in other words in the eco-system itself. The initial success and popularity of the
HYV seeds prompted the term “miracle seeds” to refer to the same. However, they may be
more appropriately described as ‘High Response Seeds’. These seeds unlike their traditional
counterparts responded quickly to the high dosage of fertilized sprayed and produced a higher
yield. So rapid was the success of these seeds that Ludhiana witnessed a tremendous increase
in the usage of the Mexican variety of wheat within one year of the Green Revolution (from
1967 to 68) from 18,000 acres to 245,000 acres.13 These seeds were high maintenance and
needed a constant supply of fertilizers, pesticides and water apart from high amounts of credit
for its upkeep. While these HYV seeds did not prove much of a success with non-wheat
crops, the crop outputs in wheat managed to keep its drawbacks cloaked.

The ecological costs on the other hand weren’t latent and have led to further agrarian crisis
not only in India but across the world. JR McNeill notes that the increased pesticide usage led
to the rise of resistant pests, which in fact absorbed these doses. Pesticide usage was often
also not accurate and ended up in the surrounding water systems or most effectively in the
human tissues itself, thus contaminating both.14 The heavy fertilizer usage has also led to the
eutrophication of lakes and rivers and altered the genetic diversity of agriculture. In India in
particular where crops serve a multi-purpose use apart from food as fodder to animals,
organic fertilisers to soils and also as mentioned earlier to help in providing subsidiary
income to the peasant family, the agricultural changes brought forth by the Green Revolution
systematically altered the balance in the ecosystem itself. As Vandana Shiva notes, “the
destruction of diversity and the creation of uniformity simultaneously involves the
destruction of stability and the creation of vulnerability”.15

Most crucially; the monocultures that the Green Revolution led to are practically
unsustainable. They cannot as mentioned earlier exist alongside indigenous or traditional crop
varieties but can only survive by replacing them completely. In a narrow minded, utilitarian
outlook, commercially viable crops which fetch a higher price in the market and can also be

13
Dharmdhikary et al. Unravelling Bhakra, 92
14
McNeill, JR. “The Green Revolution”. In Rangarajan, Mahesh edited Environmental issues in India: a reader.
184-194. Pearson Education India, 2009
15
Shiva, Monocultures of the Mind. 48
shown off as trophies, there is no consideration to the harmful effects on the ecosystem.
Motivated by an anthropocentric view of nature, the ecosystem primarily appears as
‘transformable’ or is considered to be easily moulded according to human needs. While this
view of scientific transformations appear as necessary and in fact normal at times, it must be
kept in mind that this ‘normal’ in fact represents the ‘abnormal’. These transformations have
led to problems of deficiencies in the nutrition capacity of the soil, problems in waterlogging
and ground mining.

Water is an essential requirement for life which also plays an important role in agriculture.
The green revolution was greatly dependent on water and has neither looked it as a limiting
factor nor considered that the contamination would have a boomerang effect. Chemical
intensive farming requires high amount of water to not only to dissolve fertilizers and
pesticides nut also high yielding variety which were alien to local environment has required
high amount of water. It has resulted overexploitation of water resources one hand due to
high requirement on one hand and polluted fresh water resources on other hand due to mixing
of fertilizers and pesticides.

Increased water requirement due to green revolution has resulted into digging millions of
tube wells to exploit groundwater. The overexploitation of groundwater across country
resulted into falling groundwater levels across country. This has resulted deeper and deeper
wells to fetch water from ground which has multiple environmental implication. Successive
governments have also taken up intensive dam building across the country to divert water to
un-irrigated areas. The dam building has resulted in the fraction of major river systems in
India and has had huge environmental impacts.

Another related aspect as a consequence of the pollution in the water area is the runoff from
fields which contain high amount of fertilizers and chemical pesticides. This runoff water
mixes with nearby river streams and other freshwater bodies resulting in the eutrophication of
surface water bodies. This has also led to the loss of biodiversity, change in composition of
biodiversity, invasion of alien species and increased level of toxicity in water. It generally
leads to algal blooms which reduce oxygen in water and sometime results into bloom of toxic
algal species which destroys animals, vegetative species and other biota of water. Another
aspect of water system is contamination of groundwater systems due to injection of fertilizers
and pesticides into soil which remain there for many years. Fertilizers like urea, phosphates
and nitrate remains inside soil which seeps into groundwater through soil over the years
which results into contamination of groundwater systems. The problems aggravated with the
fact that water is being continuously exploited which increases concentration of chemicals
inside groundwater. The use of fertilizers is destroying water resources quantitatively as well
as qualitatively.

The soil systems form the base and are the most important constituent of agriculture in which
a plant get its birth, takes nutrient from it to produce food and release them again to soil so
that it can support crops. Green revolution has transformed soil by infusing artificial
chemical nutrients like urea, phosphorus and potassium in order to ensure survival of high
yield varieties. Urea which is a way to fix nitrogen breaks down into nitrates which is water
soluble and remains in soil and water systems for long time. It contaminates the soil and
resulted into depletion of soil productivity in long run. The application of fertilizer may have
increased nitrates and phosphates in the soil but has had a reverse impact on micro nutrients
of soil which are necessary to ensure not only yields but also the nutrient contents in crops.
The fact that the green revolution largely remained focused on wheat and rice which do not
have natural capacity to fix atmospheric nitrogen unlike other crops such as Dal and chana
which do.

The environmental impacts of the Green Revolution are having its most damaging
consequences at the turn of the century. At the forefront of these damaging consequences are
the two states of Punjab and Haryana which were touted as the success stories during the
Green Revolution period. These states face significant agrarian crisis today with damaged
soil quality, water shortage and a good section of the farmers looking for opportunities away
from agriculture. The decreased yields from the agricultural farms are subject to further and
higher dosage of fertilizer and chemical usage in a desperate bid to increase productivity but
to no avail. The wheat-paddy monoculture systems have eliminated other crop varieties, most
significantly, cotton in the Sirsa and Fatehabad regions of Haryana.16 The high growing
species have started dominating the fields and resulted into extinction of low growing species
which were an important part of web sphere and resulted into loss of essential ecosystems
services. It has created own need of herbicides to control unwanted growth of high yielding
plants. The variety of crops in one field plays an important role in controlling various pests
and avoided loss created by them but due to decreasing varieties of crops traditional system
of pest management also got abolished. It has increased demands of chemical pesticides

16
Dharmdhikary et al. Unravelling Bhakra, 155
which have further killed many associating bacteria which were helpful in many ecological
processes.

Social Costs of the Green Revolution:

The Green Revolution was expected to diffuse the agrarian crisis in India. However, the most
profound impacts of the Green Revolution are the social disparities and the increase in
inequality that it has led to amongst the agrarian population in India. In benefitting only the
upper class and upper caste section of the rural population, this agrarian transformation
proved most adverse to small scale farmers and landless labourers. It must be remembered
here that the patterns of land distribution in India have a strong historical precedent in the
land tenure systems of Zamindari, Mahalwari and Ryotwari. The Green Revolution typically
favoured areas where “pre-existing property relations were conducive to capitalist (and
peasant) farming.17 Thus, this typically meant the areas under the Mahalwari system (India’s
north-west – Punjab and Haryana). The land reforms undertaken post-independence saw
mixed success; Indian democracy was built on shaky foundations and was held together by
the support extended to the political order by the land-owning farmers in rural India (middle
and upper land owning farmers). In exchange for political support, the state repaid this group
by providing subsidies in farming equipment, irrigation and other agrarian infrastructure.
These schemes culminating with the Green Revolution programme therefore saw success in
areas which were already pretty well off, in the process leaving a lot of marginal areas in dire
need of (un-provided) state support. Aside from the fact that it did create regional disparities
at the very level of its implementation with only some areas selected over other; the fruits of
this period too fell in a very inequitable manner. JR McNeill notes that, “as a rule, though not
without exceptions, the Green Revolution promoted inequality among farmers”.18 In almost
all areas where it was implemented the Green revolution favoured farmers with better access
to credit and water. In the Indian case, this meant the middle and upper landowning farmers
in the country who incidentally also belonged to the upper castes. In thus favouring this select
group of farmers the Green Revolution furthered the caste and class divide in rural India.

The introduction of the HYV seeds in the market along with the range of fertilisers and
pesticides led to a virtual market monopoly. These products were expensive and thus pretty
well out of reach of small farmers. In order to procure these products with the hopes of

17
Das, Raju J. "Geographical unevenness of India's green revolution." Journal of contemporary Asia 29, no. 2
(1999): 167-186
18
McNeill, Environmental Issues in India, 189
increasing productivity, rural Indian saw an expanding credit market. It was generally the
small farmers who secured loans by often placing their assets at stake. The failure of the crop
inevitably led to a loss of land and property leaving this vulnerable section of the population
further impoverished. These consequences have led to cases of social unrest and a complete
dissolution of community ties. Vandana Shiva focuses on the violence caused by the Green
Revolution particularly in Punjab. Disillusionment with the centralized control of agricultural
policies and commodity prices caused a rift between the farming community and the State
leading to an intensified conflict. As Shiva notes, the Green Revolution policies “created an
ethical vacuum where nothing is sacred and everything has a price” leading also to political
conflicts over capture of State power and tensions centred on Centre-state relations.19

The most spoken about issue at the turn of the century in particular related to agrarian crisis
was of course the issue of farmer suicides. The states of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and
Punjab in particular report high rates of farmer suicides. In a case study of 5 states, AR
Vasavi (2009) observed that most of the victims of farmer suicides were farmers who were
attempting to make the transition to Green Revolution agriculture by modernizing farm
practices. This included the procurement of HYV seeds, fertilizers, a change in irrigation
techniques etc. for which loans were procured. Most of these victims he further notes are
small farmers and belonged to the lower caste groups who resorted to these techniques in a
desperate bid to rise out of poverty.20 Crop failure however inevitably led to a failure to repay
loans and these accumulated large debts ultimately culminated in suicides.

19
Shiva, Vandana. The violence of green revolution: third world agriculture, ecology and politics. Zed Books,
1991
20
Vasavi, A. R. "Suicides and the making of India's agrarian distress." South African Review of Sociology 40,
no. 1 (2009): 94-108
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Agrarian Ecology Part II: Organic Farming

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Organic Farming, Non Pesticide Management

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR) Savyasachi Jamia Milia Islamia University
Language Editor (LE) Savyasachi Jamia Milia Islamia University
Organic Agriculture
Definitions
International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM) defines organic agriculture as
follows:

“Organic agriculture is a production system that sustains the health of soils, ecosystem and
people. It relies on ecological processes, biodiversity and cycles adopted to local conditions,
rather than the use of inputs with adverse effects. Organic agriculture combines tradition,
invention and science to benefit the shared environment and promote fair relationships and a
good quality of life for all involved.”

Other common definition of organic agriculture given by FAO (1999) is-“Organic agriculture is a holistic
production management system which promotes and enhances agro-ecosystem health including the
biodiversity, biological cycles and soil biological activity. It emphasizes the use of management practices
in preference to the use of off-farm inputs, taking into account that regional conditions require locally
adapted systems. This is accomplished by using wherever possible, agronomic, biological and
mechanical methods, as opposed to using synthetic materials, to fulfill any specific function within the
system.
Unites States Department of Agriculture defines organic agriculture as “a system which avoids or largely
excludes the use of synthetic inputs (such as fertilisers, pesticides, hormones, feed additives etc) and to
the maximum extent feasible rely upon crop rotations, crop residues, animal manures, off-farm organic
waste, mineral grade rock additives and biological system or nutrient mobilization and plant protection”.
United Nations’ Food and Agriculture definition suggests that “organic agriculture is a unique production
management system which promotes and enhances agro-ecosystem health, including biodiversity,
biological cycles and soil biological activity, and this is accomplished by using on-farm agronomic,
biological and mechanical methods in exclusion of all synthetic off-farm inputs”.

Organic agriculture makes use of the locally available resources in combination with the adapted
technologies like pest control management. Organic agriculture’s approach can lead to sustainable
agriculture as it has several benefits like stability of the yield, increase in income of the farmers by using
traditional farming systems once the system gets stabled, soil fertility remains intact and there is
reduced dependence on chemicals. Since the organic products receive certification farmers get access to
the market with attractive prices for their produce.

According to the latest FiBL-IFOAM survey on worldwide certified organic agriculture approximately 43.7
hectares in 170 countries which consists of 1% of the total agricultural land of the countries under the
study. Three countries with most of the land under organic agriculture are Australia (17.2 million
hectares), Argentina (3.1 million hectares) and The United States (2.2million hectares). Apart from
agricultural land there are other areas are areas for wild collection, aquaculture, forests and grazing
areas on non-agricultural land. The agricultural land constitutes more than 37.6 million hectares, a total
of 81.2 million hectares-agricultural and non -agricultural are organic. In Asia there are forty percent of
world's organic producers which is followed by Africa (26 percent) and Latin America (17 percent). The
countries which have highest number of producers are India (650,000), Uganda (189,610) and Mexico
(169,703).

History of Organic Agriculture and Thinkers

There have been suggestions that peasants were engaged in cultivation without external chemical
inputs such as synthetic fertilisers and pesticides for many centuries and hence can be called
practitioners of organic farming. However, the intent that is conveyed by the term organic farming can’t
be captured in its entirety, if such a choice was to be by default. So, the term organic farming has
emerged when even in the face of growing chemicalisation of agriculture and the emergence of several
sub-disciplines within agricultural sciences, there emerged a perspective which was looking at farm as a
‘living organism’. The earliest impression of such a perspective can be traced in the proposal by Rudolf
Steiner for Biodynamic Agriculture (1920s). The ideas of biodynamic agriculture emerged in the work of
Steiner who had conceptualized it as a part of his larger proposal of anthroposophy and earth
spirituality. Talking about the biodynamic system, Lotter (2003: 03) states, “it uses specific compost
preparation recipes, has a strong metaphysical component in its farm practices” and is understood by
some commentators as “organic plus metaphysical”.

Around the same time as Steiner was engaged in launching his challenge to dominant mode of doing
agriculture – with more and more reliance on synthetic nitrogen – in last ten years of his life (1915-
1925), Albert Howard had been trying to revive the humus theory of soil health and its relevance for
plant growth.

Rudolf Steiner, author of Lectures on Agriculture (1925), challenged the dominant modes of practicing
cultivation during the last ten years of his life (1915-1925), by launching the first serious challenge to the
proliferation of chemical agriculture. In 1924, a groups of farmers approached him to impart them
knowledge of what Steiner had termed “healing the earth”. Steiner responded to this request, by
putting together a series of eight lectures on an ecological and sustainable approach to agriculture,
which turned out to be arguably the world’s first organic agriculture course (7th to 16th June 1924). A
recently published paper (Paul: 2011) that looks at original attendance records points out that there
were 111 participants (81 men and 30 women), who came from six countries1. The immediate outcome
of the course was The Agricultural Research Circle and the idea of Bio-Dynamic Agriculture getting some
amount of visibility and inspiring Dr Ehrenfried Pfeiffer writing, Bio-Dynamic Farming and Gardening in
1938. These lectures were published from participants transcripts in November 1924 in German
language and in 1928, the first English translation appeared as The Agriculture Course.

James Northbourne studied agricultural science at Oxford University and later applied the theories of
Rudolf Steiner to the family estate in Kent. In 1939, he visited Switzerland to meet Dr. Ehrenfried Pfeiffer
another noted exponent of Biodynamic Agriculture. His visit resulted in Northbourne hosting at his farm,
the Betteshanger Summer School and Conference2. Northbourne is credited to have coined the term
‘organic farming’ in his book, Look at the Land (written in 1939, published in 1940) as a response to what

1
For more on this course, see Paull (2011a: 64-70).
2
For more on this summer school and conference, see Paull (2011b: 13-26).
he termed as ‘chemical farming’. Revisiting how Northbourne introduced key concepts in his 1940 book,
Paul (2006: 14) states:

“Northbourne’s key contribution is the idea of the farm as organism. He wrote of “the farm as a
living whole” (p. 81). In the first elaboration of this concept, he wrote that “the farm itself must
have biological completeness; it must be a living entity, it must be a unit which has within itself a
balanced organic life” (p. 96). A farm that elide on “imported fertility… cannot be self-sufficient
nor an organic whole” (p. 97). For Lord Northbourne, “the farm must be organic is more sense
than one” (p. 98), and he presents the holistic view that “The soil and the microorganisms in it
together with the plants growing on it form an organic whole” (p. 99)... The first occurrence or
organic farming as a distinct phrase appears where he warns: “In the long run, the results of
attempting to substitute chemical farming for organic farming will very probably prove far more
deleterious than has yet become clear. And it is perhaps worth pointing out that artificial
manure industry is very large and well organized. Its propaganda is subtle, and artificials will die
hard” (p. 103).”

Albert Howard, author of An Agricultural Testament (1940) is often referred to as pioneer of modern
organic agriculture, since he along with Gabrielle Howard spent years between 1905 and 1924 at Pusa,
Bengal working as imperial botanist, while also observing with keen interest and documenting
traditional cultivation practices of neighboring peasants. In 1924, both of them moved to Indore to
establish Institute of Plant Industries continuing their efforts to revive the humus theory of soil health
and experimenting with different methods of composting and manuring. From 1924 onwards, Albert
Howard also worked as Agricultural Adviser to States in Central India and Rajputana. The writings by
Howard from 1920s suggest that he had started to voice his displeasure at compartmentalizing
agricultural research and advocated a holistic perspective. At Indore, he worked on developing an
aerobic composting method known as ‘Indore Process’ and talked extensively about this at two lectures
that he delivered before Royal Society of Arts.

In 1931, along with his colleague, Yeshwant D. Wad, he published the remarkable book titled, The Waste
Products of Agriculture: Their Utilisation as Humus. In the preface, they mentioned how the various
experiments at Indore of utilizing waste products from the farm in order to increase soil fertility were
being replicated in Sind and at various centres in Central India and Rajputana. This book explained in
detail, how the Indore method of composting could utilize all human, animal and vegetable waste in
order to restore humus in the soil. It also emerges that at Institute of Plant Industries, Howard and his
colleagues used to conduct short term certificate courses on Compost Making and Cattle-shed
Management.

Howard wrote in his classic book, An Agricultural Testament that “the capital of nations which is real,
permanent, and independent of everything except a market for the products of farming, is soil” (1943:
219). In the preface to this classic book, which had seen five re-prints between 1940 and 1945, Howard
informed his readers that “During the last nine years (i.e. 1931 to 1940), the Indore process has been
taken up at many centres all over the world” and “much additional information on the role of humus in
agriculture has been obtained”. To drive home his perspective with a force, Howard used the metaphor
of war in his subsequent book, War on the Soil.

In a tribute to Albert Howard, his colleague at Indore, Yeshwant D. Wad – who had joined Institute of
Plant Industries at Indore in 1928, calls Howard’s experiments in developing the Indore method of
composting, “the initial stage in founding an entirely new school of agricultural thought, which promises
in the near future to offer a creed to humanity destined to halt its present headlong race towards
destruction and the ruin of civilization, enabling it to pause and think and direct its course to safety,
security and stable prosperity”. Thus this new creed – organic farming – was in the eyes of Wad, marked
by “the maintenance of a live and active soil, producing food capable of imparting to human beings
genuine vitality and lasting power of survival”3.

Robert McCarrison was in the meanwhile engaged in researching the relationship between soil fertility,
food quality and human nutrition at the Nutrition Research Laboratories in Coonoor in South India. He
also examined the decrease in food quality due to the presence of excessive mineral nitrogen fertilisers.

Eve Balfour, author of The Living Soil (1943), had launched in 1939, The Haughley experiment, the first
long term, field based and scientific comparison of organic and chemical based farming. She was
inspired by writings of Albert Howard and Mc Carrison and to stress the importance of soil health
formed an organization The Soil Association in 1940s and started to publish its journal The Mother Earth
from 1943 onwards.

In United States organic farming practices found a sympathetic voice in the writings William Albrecht, a
soil chemist at University of Missouri. Several experiments by innovative farmers and their practical
ideas on organic farming were chronicled by the publisher-entrepreneur, J. I. Rodale, who started the
magazine, Organic Farming and Gardening and named Albert Howard as its consulting editor.

Mark Lipson (1997) called organic agriculture in itself has ambiguous nature and can be interpreted to
wide range of things. “Organic” in organic agriculture shows that products are produced in accordance
to certain standards and finally certified by some authority. Some certification agencies have strict
compliance requirements when it comes to using the word “organic” in relation to the agricultural
production.

Promulgation of the first set of Organic production standards (1960s)

In 1971, Earl Butz, at that time the Secretary of USDA, made a statement, ‘before we go back to organic
agriculture in this country, somebody must decide which 50 million Americans we are going to let starve
or go hungry’. However, within ten years USDA demonstrated positive inclination when it published “a
comprehensive survey of organic farming to understand better its potential and its limits and to
recommend how USDA should get involved in it”.

Global Market
According to the Organic Monitor, in 2014 the global sales of the organic food and drink reached 80
billion US Dollars. There is an expansion of the global market for more than fivefold, growing at a
healthy rate over the last decade and the monitor has projected that it would continue to grow in the
coming years. Twenty seven percent of the world’s organic land is in Europe whereas Latin America
constitutes 15 percent. The largest single market was the United States (approximately 43 percent of

3
See for the full text of this tribute to Albert Howard by Yeshwant D Wad titled The Work at Indore and published
in Organic Gardening Magazine (Vol 13, No 8), September 1948
http://journeytoforever.org/farm_library/howard_memorial.html
the global market) followed by the European Union (23.9 billion euros, 38 percent) and China (3.7 billion
euros, 6 percent. China and India mainly grow Oilseeds (majorly soybeans) on at least 443,000 hectares.

Table 1-: World: Organic agricultural land (including in-conversion areas) and region’s shares of the
global organic agricultural land 2014

Table 1 depicts that Oceania has approximately 40 percent of the global organic agricultural land
followed by Europe which had a very constant growth of organic land has more than one quarter land of
the world’s agricultural land and Latin America constitutes approximately 16 percent of the global
organic agricultural land.(Report by FIBL & IFOAM (2016))

Philosophy of Organic Farming

George Kuepper (2010) mentions about the philosophy of the organic farming -there was a desire to
reverse the issues of agriculture like decline of soil quality, soil erosion, monoculture and therefore low
quality of the food and poverty. There was an emergence of humus farming which in order to conserve
the soil used traditional farming practices. This traditional farming included composting, application of
animal manure, proper management of pH by the addition of lime and natural rock dusts. The food web
of the soil is considered to be the living component of the soil which is in contrast to the use of fertilizers
which disturb the whole web. Use of the synthetic fertilizers and pesticides are in contrast to the
principle of the humus farming. This type of traditional farming regenerates the soil by avoiding
exploitation of natural resources hence ensures sustainable management of food along with the soil.

In 1940s the term humus farming converted to the “organic”, the term organic was first used in the
book “Look to the land” by Northbourne which was published in 1940 in order to describe this type of
agriculture. Northbourne used the term organic to describe the processes which are biological in nature.

Since 1960s, there has been growing concern about the possible effects of bioaccumulation. The study
in 2002 revealed that organic foods have one third of the residue compared to the produce grown using
integrated pest management. Albert Howard mentions that “health is the birthright of all living things
and that health in humans depends on a chain of health that begins in the soil” and further elaborates
that pests and diseases give the evidence of unhealthy soil.
There is predisposition theory given by a different school of thought which dates back to the work of
H.M. Ward in 1890 and continued till mid-1970. P.L. Phelan’s research on corn borer found that if there
is organic farming there is reduction in damage due to pests. Fungal diseases were the prime focus of
predisposition theory earlier but later they expanded to address this issue of other diseases. When it
comes to the mechanism of predisposition there are several theories attached to it. One says that plants
produce phytochemicals to protect themselves from pests and diseases. However, if plants are stressed
they produce fewer phytochemicals which makes them more susceptible to pests and diseases. Another
theory mentions about the breakdown of proteins under stress which leads to the accumulation of
soluble amino acid in the plant sap which can be easily digested by the pests and therefore they attack
on stressed plants.
One more theory that links susceptibility and resistance describes that the indicator of plant health are
the high level of sugars, minerals and other components. This is the most popular theory but
predisposition theory is not relevant to the new crop species or if there is introduction of new pest.

Organic Farming in India

Agriculture in India plays a vital role and forms the backbone of the economy. Post-Independence the
major challenge India faced was to produce enough food with the growing population. The Green
Revolution in India helped the country develop food surplus by the infusion of high yielding technology.
Green revolution was one of the most important programs of the Government in 1960. Hybrid seeds
were introduced and large tracts of land were brought under cultivation. Traditional knowledge was
replaced by the scientific knowledge by the introduction of chemical fertilizers. Due to the Green
Revolution there is reduction in the imports and India had enough surplus by 1990’s. The darker side of
the revolution resulted in the environmental pollution, toxicity due to pesticides, eutrophication of
surface and ground waters, dependence on the chemicals and deterioration of the soil health. The
conventional agriculture does not provide any certification and encourages the use of fertilizers and
chemical pesticides. The revolution eroded the traditional knowledge and the practices of organic
farming. Fertilizers remain in the environment for a very long time with detrimental effects though it
shows short term effect in productivity. Hybrid seeds and monoculture poses threat to the germplasm
of the indigenous species as they can be lost in quest for the increase in productivity. The visible
horrendous effects of the conventional farming are the farmer’s suicide, pesticide contaminated water
and aerated drinks are just few examples. Organic farming deals with all the major issues the agriculture
is facing these days.

The organic movement started in India originated from the Howard’s views which were accepted by the
people who were active in the movement. K.A. Gopinath in his paper on organic farming mentions that
the scientific approach to organic farming can be dated back to the “Later Vedic Period”, 1000BC to
600BC and the basic idea of organic agriculture is to live in harmony with nature rather than exploiting
the nature. Vedic period farmers had immense knowledge of soil fertility, type of seed to be selected
and sustainability of plants in different seasons. Even Quran mentions “atleast one-third of what you
take out from the soils must be returned”. Some of the other names which are given to the organic
farming are humus farming, natural farming, Bio-dynamic farming, holistic farming, sustainable farming,
alternative farming etc. In conventional farming what is considered waste and unproductive is
considered productive in organic farming.

In India’s National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP) is defined as “a system of farm design and
management to create an ecosystem, which can achieve sustainable productivity without the use of
artificial external inputs such as chemical fertilizers and pesticides”. “Organic Farming is a system of
farming based on integral relationship of processes, input farming and animal and human community in
harmony with nature”.

Organic farming is not only the system of agriculture but a philosophy in itself wherein the three pillars
of the sustainability-environmental, social and economic lies at the core of the farming. Sustaining the
fertility of the soil is the major concern as the land is tilled extensively under the intensive cropping
hence losing its nutrient value. Such extensive tillage with the indiscriminate use of the chemicals has
led to major problems. Rainfed agriculture faces low productivity due to aberrant behavior of the
monsoon; apart from this other problems are poor farmers, low investments, degraded soils and
nutrient deficiency.

The historical perspective given by the Bhattacharyya (2005) in his article on Current Status of Organic
Farming in India and Other Countries is-:

Historical perspective of Organic Farming

Ancient Period
Oldest Practice 10,000 years old, dating back to Neolithic age,
practiced by ancient civilization like Mesopotamia,
Hwang Ho basin etc.
Ramayana (All dead things-rotting corpse or stinking garbage
returned to earth are transformed into wholesome
things that nourish life. Such is the alchemy of
mother earth- as interpreted by C.
Rajagopalachari)
Mahabharata (5500 BC) Mention of Kamadhenu, the celestial cow and its
role on human life and soil fertility
Kautilya Arthashastra (300 BC) Mentioned several manures like oil cake, excreta
of animals
Brihad-Sanhita(by Varahmihir) Described how to choose manures for different
crops and the methods of manuring
Rig Veda (2500-1500 BC) Mention of organic manure in Rig Veda 1, 16, 10,
2500-1500BC is Green Manure in Athara Veda II
8.3 (1000BC). In Sukra (IV, V, 94, 107-112) it is
stated that to cause healthy growth the plant
should be nourished by the dungs of goat, sheep,
cow, water as well as meat. A reference of manure
is also made in Vrksayurveda by surpala
(manuscript, oxford, No 324 B, Six, 107-164
Holy Quran (590 AD) Atleast one third of what you take out from soils
must be returned to it implying recycling or post-
harvest residue

The Sources of Plant Nutrients

Organic farming not only maximizes the nitrogen fixation from the atmosphere but also encourages
maximum use of local resources. Application of the organic sources not only encourages the growth of
and the activity of mycorrhizae along with other beneficial organisms in the soil but also fulfills the
deficiency of micronutrients. It also helps in maintaining the soil health, hence sustains high crop
productivity. Joint use of the chemicals and organic sources improves the soil fertility, productivity of the
crop in a better way. Even today cow dungs, oil cakes and neem leaves are used in many parts of rural
India.

Yadav S. et al (2013) mentions about the technique of Farm Yard manure (FYM) which can help meet the
nutrient need of the Indian agriculture presently. In FYM the concentration of the nutrient is usually
small and varies greatly depending upon the storage conditions and the source. Usually straw of the
harvested crop is used for animal feed or bedding as straw traps the urine when used for bedding in turn
increase N cycling. Wet straw and manures are composted and applied immediately or until the next
cropping season. The nutrient management strategies that are appropriate are less use of tillage,
improve water and efficient use of the nutrients. Organic nutrition when provided to the soil reduces
the carbon emission, enhances the soil biodiversity and increases crop yield. The crop productivity of the
organic farming is comparable to the conventional form of farming though the productivity of the crop
during initial year is lower than that of the conventional farming but increase in the subsequent years.
Research proves that there is gradual increase in the yield of the grain with the efficient use of organic
fertilizers and vegetables respond well to the organic sources of nutrients. The mixture of the
vermicompost with the fertilizers increases the accumulation of Nitrogen, Phosphorus, potassium,
calcium and magnesium. The soil water retention increases with the incorporation of the vermicompost
and hence enhances the root growth; it also increases the soil organic nitrogen level. It has also been
reported that organic matter once gets decomposed releases macro and micro nutrients into the soil
which becomes readily available to the plants. Reports also show that after approximately 4 years there
is an increase in the levels of the carbon, soluble phosphorus, potassium and pH level, it also acts as
reserve pool of stored nutrients. Organic farming also increases the soil organic matter and improves
the physiochemical properties. However, the addition of the carbonaceous materials like straw, wood,
bark, sawdust helps in raising the C: N ratio.

Gopinath K elucidates that there is a conversion period when a farmer shifts from conventional farming
to organic farming-it is the transition time to neutralize the chemical residues in the soil and period
between the organic farming and certification of crops. The plant products can be called organic when
they will meet the requirements during the conversion period of atleast two years before sowing of
annual crops

Principles of the Organic Agriculture

The principle aim of the organic agriculture as per the Indian Federation of Organic Agriculture
Movements (IFOM), Germany is highlighted by Chandrashekhar H (2010) in his paper on changing
scenario of organic farming in India: An overview are-:

 To maintain the fertility of the soil and to produce high quality of food.
 To work compatibly within a closed system of living systems and natural cycles through the soil,
plants and animals in the entire production system.
 To avoid pollution of any form by using locally adapted methods of farming as opposed to
external usage of chemicals
  To produce sufficient quantity of the food with high nutritional quality while maintaining the
nutritional value and sustainability of the system.
 To make the life of the producers earn a decent living and develop their traditional knowledge
potentiality and protecting that at the same time.

The pillars of the organic farming are organic standards, certification and regulation, technology
packages and the market network. The States which are involved in the organic farming are Gujarat,
Kerala, Karnataka, Uttaranchal, Sikkim, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh and
Himachal Pradesh.

India’s growth
Soon after the demand for organic agriculture increased in western world, there was in increase in for
organically grown food in India. In order to increase the prospects of the export of the organic food,
National Programme on Organic Production was launched by the Ministry of Commerce. It lays down
the procedure for the accreditation and certification in 2000 along with defining the National Standards
for Organic Production (NSOP). (Gopinath K). Main features of NSOP are-:

1. It is not necessary to convert the whole farm or holding. However, the certification programme
shall ensure that the organic and conventional parts of the farm are separate, clearly
distinguished and inspectable.
2. Plant products produced can only be certified “organic” when the national standards
requirements have been met during a conversion period of at least two years or in the case of
perennial crops, at least three years before the first harvest of products.
3. When certified organic seed and plant materials are not available, chemically untreated
conventional materials shall be used.
4. Sufficient diversity in crop production is to be maintained.
5. Bio-degradable material of microbial, plant or animal origin shall form the basis of the
fertilization programme.
6. The certification programme shall lay down restrictions for the use of inputs such as mineral
potassium, magnesium fertilizers, trace elements and manures with a relatively high heavy
metal content and, or unwanted substances, e.g. basic slag, rock phosphate and sewage sludge.
7. Manures containing human excreta shall not be used on vegetation for human consumption.
8. Products used for insect-pest, disease and weed management, prepared at the farm from local
plants, animals and micro-organisms, are allowed.
9. Thermal weed control and physical methods for insect-pest, disease and weed management are
permitted.
10. Use of synthetic growth regulators and genetically engineered organisms or products is
prohibited.
11. Animal products may be sold as “products of organic agriculture” only after the farm or relevant
part of it has been under conversion for at least 12 months. With regard to dairy and egg
production, this period shall not be less than 30 days.
12. At least 80 percent of the livestock feed should be organically grown. Products from the organic
food processing industry shall also be used.
13. The use of conventional veterinary medicines is allowed when no other justifiable alternative is
available.
Certification
In order to provide accredited certification, India has now 30 agencies to provide certification to
growers. For proper dissemination of technology, Ministry of Agriculture launched a National Project on
Promotion of Organic Farming (NPOF-DAC), funds are also provided in order to set up organic and
biological input production units and certification under various schemes of the government like RKVY
(Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana), NMSA (National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture) and NHM (National
Horticulture Mission).

In the organic business sector, India has showed good growth, the domestic markets grew faster about
40 percent and exports grew between 25 to 30 percent. There were two major initiatives in the year
2015-16- allocation of 1 billion rupees for the development of organic market in the northeastern region
of India and the government’s participatory guarantee scheme (PGS). (Jagran K. et al., 2015)

The definition of PGS given by The International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements or IFOAM
(2008) is “Participatory Guarantee Systems are locally focused quality assurance systems. They certify
producers based on active participation of stakeholders and are built on a foundation of trust, social
networks and knowledge exchange.” The PGS is locally relevant which ensures the participation of all
the stakeholders and there is no third party certification. The process involves participatory approach,
transparency and trust.

There are three certification schemes in India-:

1. Third party certification of the individuals by a well-known internationally recognized

certification system.
2. Small scale farmers can be certified under the groups of Internal Control System (ICS)
3. Participatory Guarantee System (PGS)

Marketing
The marketing of organic food should be carefully selected and major importance should be given while
developing large markets distribution channels. Most of the organic produce is for the export market in
India as the domestic market is still underdeveloped which adds to the difficulties faced by the farmers.
Farmers need policy support, proper education and access to the capital. There is need for the collective
action in order to scale up the production in the form of cooperatives. There is need for technical
assistance to the farmers in order to increase the productivity so that they could capture majority of the
supply chain.

Policies and the challenges

Reddy B (2010) highlighted the policies issues and the challenges faced by the farmers. Till now policies
have increased the dependence of farmers on external input and that why it has caused damage to the
environment along with high uptake of resources. The first concern is whether organic agriculture would
fulfill the demand of the world. There are certain questions on the sustainability, productivity and
support from the government. New policies should focus more use of locally available resources and use
of local traditional knowledge. There are certain issues which need to be dealt at the policy level-
financial support to promote organic farming, in order to increase domestic sales there is need for the
market development, certification process should be simplified along with the reduction of the cost so
that even small scale farmers can access it. National Agricultural Policy does not mention about the
promotion of organic agriculture. The governments of Sikkim, Mizoram and Uttarakhand have taken
initiative to convert their state completely into organic.

Conclusion
There is growing interest in the organic farming as the input cost is low with the use of natural
resources. The process makes use of traditional and indigenous technical knowledge of the farmers.
Organic farming gives challenges to the farmers to adopt new perspectives and innovation. Though
there is low productivity during initial years but eventually there is improvement in the soil quality with
reduced cost of production. There is need to extend the facilities for the farmer as they need access to
the domestic as well as export market. Due to the ignorance in the agricultural policy, there is less
assistance from the government to promote organic agriculture. The conventional agriculture has
received much attention in the form of subsidies, official research and even extension services are also
available. India has made progress and if continuous support would be provided by the government
organic farming would progress tremendously.

References
 Carson, Rachel (1962) The Silent Spring
 Conford, P. (2001) The Origins of the Organic Movement, Floris Books, Edinburgh, UK
 Jones, Rebecca (2010) Green Harvest: The History of Organic Farming and Gardening in Austria,
Collingwood, Victoria: Csiro Publishing.
 Klonsky, Karen and Laura Tourte (1998) ‘Organic Agriculture Production in the United States:
Debates and Directions’, American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Vol 80, No 5, pp. 1119-
1124
 Lockeretz, William (ed) (2007) Organic Farming: An International History, CAB International,
Oxford
 Lockeretz, William and Madden P. (1987) Mid-Western Organic Farming: a ten year follow up.
American Journal of Organic Agriculture, No 2, pp. 57-63.
 Paul, John (2006) ‘The Farm as Organism: The Foundational Idea of Organic Agriculture’, in
Elementals: Journal of Bio-Dynamics Tanzania, No 89, pp. 14-18.
 Paull, John (2011) ‘The Betteshanger Summer School: Missing Link between Biodynamic
Agriculture and Organic Farming.
 FIBL & IFOAM (2016), The World Of Organic Agriculture-Statistics & Emerging Trends 2016,
Research Institute of Organic Agriculture FiBL, IFOAM-Organics International, International
Institute of Sustainable Development
 FAO (1999) Organic Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome
 Kuepper G (2010), A Brief Overview of the History and Philosophy of Organic Agriculture, Kerr
Center for Sustainable Agriculture
 Gopinath K, Organic Farming, Senior Scientist (Agronomy), Central Research Institute for Dryland
Agriculture, Hyderabad
  Bhattacharya P and Chakraborty (2005), Current Status of Organic Farming in India and other
Countries, Indian Journal of Fertilizers, 111-123
 Yadav S., Babu S, Yadav M, Singh Kalyan, Yadav G, Pal S (2013),A Review of Organic Farming for
Sustainable Agriculture in Northern India, International Journal of Agronomy,
 Gopinath K, Organic Farming, Senior Scientist (Agronomy), Central Research Institute for Dryland
Agriculture, Hyderabad
 Chandrashekhar H (2010), Changing scenario of organic farming in India: An overview,
International NGO Journal, 034-039
 Jagran K, Yadav A, (2015), Organic Agriculture at a Glance,
Link(http://krishijagran.com/farm/scenario-in-india/2015/03/Organic-Agriculture-At-a-Glance),
Date accessed-22-01-17
 PGS-India (2015), Participatory Guarantee System for India-Operational Manual for Domestic
Organic Certification, National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture, Government of India,
Ministry of Agriculture
 Reddy B (2010), Organic Farming: Status, Issues and Prospects-A Review, Agricultural Economics
Research Review, 344-358

Did you know?

There is a Bio-Dynamic Association of India, based at Auroville, Pondicherry that conducts training
courses and facilitates interactions between farmers practicing bio-dynamic agriculture. For details see,
www.biodynamics.in

In 1994, Centre for Science and Agriculture, published Green Farming, a directory of individuals and
organizations involved in organic farming in India.

The organic farming community in India is large is growing with every state in India accounting for
around hundreds of organic farmers. In the year 2009, Claude Alvares compiled and published a
directory titled Organic Farming Source Book on behalf of an alternative publishing house, Other India
Press. The Organic Farming Association of India is an umbrella organization that does networking for
organic farming since 2002. The association was primarily set up by the senior most members of organic
farming community to lobby with government agencies and departments to pay more attention to
sustainable agriculture and assist farmers in using chemical and pesticides to convert successfully to
organic farming methods. Read more at www.ofai.org

In 2012, Action Aid published a compilation of cases studies on organic farming from Bangladesh,
Cambodia, Indonesia and Pakistan titled, Fed Up: Now is the time to invest in Agro Ecology. Citing global
studies and surveys, this publication argued that agro-ecology offers tools that can help the poorest
communities to develop new, affordable dynamic, low carbon and locally-adaptable models of
agricultural development to meet these multiple challenges. Read this 43 page report here:
http://actionaid.org/sites/files/actionaid/ifsn_fed_up.pdf
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Agrarian Ecology Part III: Indigenous Cultivation

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary This module introduces students to Jhum cultivation (also known as

‘Swidden’ or ‘Slash and Burn’ farming), which is a traditional form of
cultivation

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Yogeshwari S. Azim Premji University

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Language Editor (LE) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
 Jhum Cultivation in India

Introduction

Jhum cultivation is a primitive form of farming and is still prevalent in some parts of Central Africa,
Central America, Southeast Asia and China. This type of cultivation also assumes various names such as
“Slash and Burn”, rotational bush fallow, swidden or shifting cultivation. In Assam, it is known as Jhum,
“Podu” and “Dungar” in Andhra Pradesh, “Bewar”, “Mashan” or “Penda” in Madhya Pradesh and
“Punam Krishi” in Kerala. Jhum cultivation is largely practiced by tribal population dwelling in the forests
and that too predominantly in North-eastern states in India. It is also prevalent in certain parts of Odisha,
Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Kerala. As far as coverage and the number of families engaged in
Jhum cultivation are concerned, there appear to be great amount of difficulties in knowing exact
estimates. This is due to a general lack of useful demographic data, ethnographic studies, and explicit
knowledge about the location and intensity of these practices (Mertz et al., 2009a; Schmidt-Vogt et al.,
2009). For example, Government of India estimates (2000), claim having 23.58 Lakh hectares (ha) area
under the cultivation. Strikingly, almost 83.7 % of total Jhum cultivation is covered by the North-eastern
states. While other studies, mainly Maithani (2005), and Tripathi and Barik (2003) claim lower level of
area coverage and dependence of families for their livelihood (Table 1). In another study, Raman (2000)
pegs these estimates slightly different way. According to his study, Jhum cultivation plays a crucial role
in supporting livelihood of almost 100 different indigenous tribes and over 6.2 lakh families in the seven
North-eastern states.

Table 1: Statistics of Jhum cultivation in NERI

state Annual Area Minimum Fallow Annual Total Area No. of Jhum
Under Jhum Area Period Area as as % of Families Land Per
Cultivation Under (Years) % of Geog.Area Involved Tribal
(‘000ha) Jhum at a Geog. Family
Given Area (ha)
Time
(‘000 ha)
Arunachal 70.0 210 3-10 1.00 3.04 54000 1.29
Pradesh
Assam 69.6 139 2-10 4.56 32.44 58000 1.20
Manipur 90.0 360 4-7 2.68 4.47 70000 1.29
Meghalaya 53.0 265 5-7 3.37 18.46 52000 1.01
Mizoram 63.0 189 3-4 2.94 28.65 50000 1.26
Nagaland 19.0 191 5-8 4.49 36.87 116000 0.16
 Tripura 22.3 112 5-9 2.16 20.71 43000 0.51
(Source: Anonymous 2009, Maithani 2005)

The Process of Selection of Plots and Cultivation

Jhum cultivation begins with the selection of a plot on or near the hill side or jungle. It is usually done
in the months of December or January with the ceremonial event by the village elders or clan leaders.
The fertility of the soil is judged by the colour and texture of the soil. In some tribes, community as a
whole collectively clear selected piece of land while in others the cutting of trees and shrubs is made by
the respective family to whom the land has been allotted (Priyadarshini, 2004). At the time of allotment
of land, size and workforce in the family are taken into consideration. Although the pattern and details
of Jhum cultivation differ in different places and tribes, there are broad similarities. After the selection of
the piece of land, the land is cleared by slashing unwanted trees and plants. After that the slashed
vegetation is allowed to dry on the hill slopes for a few months prior to burning in the month of March
and April. The cultivators take extreme care that the fire should not spread into the forest by making fire-
breaks1 and pay special attention while burning the forest to avoid the chance of accidental fire spreading
to main forest and residential plots. Once the burning is complete, the un-burnt or partly burnt rubbish
are collected in one place for the complete burning. Later on the plot is left with the burned ashes to be
absorbed for a few months period. Then, the ashes are scattered over the ground well before the advent
of pre-monsoon rain. Crops are sown with the first rains in April in plots that ranges between 1 to 4 ha
in area. Jhum cultivators believe that such a process adds nutrients to the soil and thus any seed planted
on such land would grow well and provide better yield. In the entire life span of the cultivator, he
generally requires four to five plots of land to sustain his livelihood and meet the subsistence
requirements.

The cycle of cultivation in which the land is left fallow, and brought back again for cultivation is called
the “Jhum cycle” (figure 1). The period of consecutive cropping differs from region to region and from
tribe to tribe. There is no given method to select a patch of land for Jhum cultivation. Apart from these,
other major features of Jhum cultivation include rotation of fields rather than rotation of crops, absence
of draught animals and manure. The Jhum cultivators largely rely on use of human labour and simple
tools like axe, dibble stick or hoe, and short period of occupancy alternating with long fallow periods
(Priyadarshni, 2004). It is usually done under rain-fed condition. The cultivators do not use modern
inputs such as chemical fertilisers, hybrid seeds or modern machineries and tools. Thus, the soil is never
ploughed and no artificial irrigation is made. With the advent of rain the seeds beings to sprout which is

this is done to prevent the fire to escape out of a given area. Generally fire-breaks are made on the day when dried
1

bushes and trees are burnt by clearing the vegetation between the plot to be burnt and the forest, usually a gap of
5 to 10 meters is kept between the two plots which also consists of freshly slashed green vegetation.
followed by “selective weeding”2 done at regular intervals. The crops are also protected from stray cattle
and wild animals by fencing the fields with bamboo. Many cultivators construct a hut in the field to look
after the crop properly. After one or two years of cultivation the Jhum land loses its fertility then it is left
to be reclaimed by natural vegetation once again. The same activity continues elsewhere, with this the
cycle continually repeat itself. Occasionally, some residual crops are also collected from the abandoned
fields.

Figure 1: Jhum Cultivation Activity Cycle

Source: Jamir (2015)

Role of men and women in the cultivation process

The area allotted per family varies between half hectare to one hectare among the different tribes, regions
and states. The land is cleared of all its undergrowth and the branches of trees are slashed off. The cleared
growth is allowed to dry on the field. This process of clearing which takes over a month is labour
intensive, being undertaken with indigenous and primitive equipment’s. Women play crucial role in
sowing, weeding, harvesting, cleaning and preserving the produce. The old, widows and children are
also involved according to their physical and mental abilities. However, as far as decision making
regarding what to grow, how to manage and preserve traditional varieties of seed (through seed bank)
is concerned, it is either taken collectively at the household or community level. Quite often it is done
together in the community. In these societies, generally the natural resources (land, forests, and water)

2 When fields are first cleared, any useful tree species found in the plot are generally spared, left uncut, and even
protected from fire. These plants, mostly fruit trees, then become integral parts of the field together with planted
crops. Thus, it is a method with which the cultivator protects and nurture the useful trees and cut down the unwanted
trees (Bhaskar Vira et, al. 2015).
belong to community and not to the individuals. Thus the process of social organization of the people is
built around the concepts of community ownership, community participation and communal
responsibility. The entire practice and the know-how related to Jhum cultivation is passed from one
generation to the other. The younger ones learn from their elder members about the knowledge of
practicing the Jhum cultivation through observation and doing trial and error method (Slash and
burn_Part 1).

Case studies in seven Asian countries showed that indigenous women perform about 70 percent of the
work in Jhum cultivation. Generally, men do the hard physical work in land preparation, they prepare
the plot for cultivation by slashing, burning and clearing the patch of land. Women helps in clearing the
land, selecting seeds and weeding (AIPP and IWGIA, 2014).The day of sowing which is a ceremonial day
for the whole village, the male members of each family on reaching the Jhum field in the morning engage
themselves in preparing the digging sticks. The seeds are sown either by broadcast or dibbling. The male
members broadcast seeds of crops like millets and small millets, whereas crops like maize, pulses, cotton,
sesame and vegetables are dibbled by females. While dibbling the seeds, the woman walk over the field
with a digging stick in hand, make a hole in the ground, sow a few seeds and cover it over with earth
by pressing it down with her toe. Before sowing starts, evil spirits are worshipped and sacrifices are made
for a good crop and prosperity to the family. Thus, one can say that Jhum cultivation is very deeply
rooted to the cultural beliefs and practices. “Jhum cultivation, though a rudimentary technique of land
and forest resource utilization, represents an intricate relationship between ecology, economy and society
of a region” (Priyadarshini, 2004).

Cropping pattern

The Jhum plots consist of mixed cropping. The mixture of crops varies from tribe to tribe within a region.
Among the food grains the coarse varieties of rice, followed by maize, millet and small millets are the
principal crops grown. Cotton, ginger, linseed, rapeseeds, sesame, pineapple and jute are the important
cash crops. Among the vegetables, soya-bean, potato, pumpkins, cucumbers, yams, tapioca, chilies,
beans, onion, arum are cultivated. Thus, a single plot provides different produce for the daily
consumption. As different types of crops are grown in the field with different periods, upland rice and
vegetables are harvested within a few months after sowing, whereas cotton, turmeric and arum are
harvested after 8 or 9 months, largely during December. This provides them varied food for nearly six
to nine months in a year. Unlike the commercial agriculture, wherein a given plot is used to cultivate a
single or a few crops here a single plot is used to produce diverse set of crops ranges between fifteen to
twenty thus are used to meet the food, fodder, medicine, firewood and other requirements of the tribal
community. If there is any surplus left than it is exchanged or bartered (exchange for commodity to
commodity) or sold for cash in the neighbouring markets. Hence, this system is self-reliant with a high
degree of economic interdependence. Cultivation of mixed cropping has also scientific basis in it as
farmers grows soil exhausting crops, e.g., rice, maize, millets, cotton, etc., and soil enriching crops, e.g.,
legumes, together. It caters the subsistence needs of the community while maintaining the nutrient and
fertility of the soil. In case the crops fail, the households use forest resources to meet their food
requirements. The inferior grains and vegetable wastes are fed to pigs, which are raised to meet their
meat requirements.

Jhum cultivation landscapes are often “illegible” to outsiders (Scott, 1999), are frequently devalued and
labelled “degraded”. But, those who are practicing the cultivation has a different story to tell. In recent
years when commercial agriculture has taken over subsistence agriculture, still the aboriginal people of
Amazon forest continue with their traditional practice of Jhum cultivation. For many “slash and burn”
cultivation method is a way of living and from ages they are practicing this type of agriculture. A farmer
says “I am doing this agriculture when I was as young as six years old, that’s the way I have done it” and
they are also reluctant to do any other type of agriculture. According to them they practice this cultivation
because they have to plant and harvest to eat. When farmer were asked the reason to stick to Jhum
cultivation practices when they can opt for commercial farming which is more lucrative in nature, they
stated the following reasons; a) According to them they don’t have tractor, modern machineries and
don’t have access to bank facilities; b) there is no need to invest on purchased inputs and modern
machineries as their own labour is sufficient to cultivate crops and meet the subsistence food requirement
of the community; c) because there is no expenditure on this type of agriculture whatever comes is the
profit or surplus otherwise the farmers says he will be left with little or no profit. Most of the farmers
operate in small scale and they consider this cultivation practice more suitable for their small holding size
as well as their subsistence needs (Slash and burn_Part 1).

Pros and Cons of Jhum Cultivation

There are divergent of opinions about the evil and adverse effects of Jhum cultivation on the ecology
and environment of the region. During the earlier days when there was abundance of land and sparse
population spread, the cultivators had more freedom to choose the plot, the time to cultivate and also
to leave the land fallow for longer duration. In the past, land was left fallow for 10 to 20 years, in places
with sparse population it was left even for 20 to 30 years, which allowed sufficient time to regenerate
soil fertility and ensured forest regrowth. These days due to population pressure coupled with acute land
scarcity has forced the farmers to reduce the fallow cycle between 3 to 5 years. In a study done in
Rangamati district of Bangladesh, the researcher found that around 80 percent of the cultivator practiced
fallow period less than three years (Chakma and Nihar, 2012). The study also found that the region is
facing severe population pressure due to migration, lack of awareness about family planning, low
education etc. Thus, such a situation has made the Jhum cultivation unsustainable and push the people
to vicious cycle of poverty in the region. A study which examines the Jhum cycle, the period of occupancy
and duration of fallowing of some of the tribes in the hilly tracts of northeast India found that except
Idu-Mismi (Lohit district), in all the other five regions the tribes occupy Jhum land for sowing only for
one year (Saikia, 2014). Such short period fallow is widely understood as not being sufficient for the soil
to regain its productivity.
The duration of Jhum cycle is decisive on various counts, particularly in maintaining the fertility of the
soil, flora and fauna of the forest. Frequent shifting from one plot to the other has adverse effect on the
ecology of these regions. The area under natural forest has declined; disappearance of native species and
invasion by exotic weeds and other plants are some of the other ecological consequences of shifting
agriculture. It has also resulted in the deterioration of fauna and microbial organisms, topsoil loss and
erosion during periods of heavy rainfall (Gafur 2001). Rajiv et. al, (2014) in his study area found that the
tribes in which the jhum cycle is around five years are facing serious problems of undernourishment and
their ecosystems are fast losing their resilience characteristics. The area having Jhum cycle of 2 and 7 years
is more vulnerable to weed invasion compare to Jhum cycle of 20 years. The area with fifteen years
Jhum cycle has more nutrients, large numbers of species, and higher agronomic yield with ratio of energy
output to input with 25:6 productions compared to Jhum cycle of 10 and 5 years. In these areas the
cultivators are abandoning the fields due to rapid depletion of soil. Repeated short cycle jhuming has
created forest canopy gaps which are evident from the barren hills. But there is another set of studies
which indicates that if Jhum cultivation is practiced well, incorporating the traditional knowledge of
fallow management, these system is sustainable without undermining the soil fertility and productivity
and at the same time conserving biodiversity (Cairns, 2007; Colfer et al., 2015; Ramakrishnan, 1992;
Parrtta and Trosper, 2012).

According to Raman (2000) reduction in the Jhum cycle is serious, but linking it to population pressure
is scarce. In reality, jhum cycles often decline because of external pressures, relocation and grouping of
villages, or reduced land availability. The study done by Singh (1996) has pointed out that (i) there is
often no strong relationship between population pressure and jhum cycles, (ii) villagers choose to
cultivate at cycles of 5-10 years even when longer fallow periods are possible, and (iii) that population
density would impinge on jhum cycle only after some critical threshold of high population pressure is
crossed. The duration of the fallow period is influenced by the ease of clearing the vegetation and soil
fertility levels following the slash and burn operations. The burning of slash returns nutrients to the soil
through ash and kills microbes allowing relatively high yields. After ten years, the vegetation and soil
properties recover to levels that can support another round of jhum cultivation. In anotherstudy done
in the Tat hamlet of Vietnam found that land cover in secondary vegetation may be degraded in terms
of merchantable timber species. However, the secondary “degraded” vegetation, a product of the
swidden land-use system, might well be the most species rich and water and soil holding land cover
available.

Some studies opines that encouragement of cultivation of Rubber and Palm oil trees by the government
in the forest of north-eastern region has encouraged mono-cropping and also deforestation (Raman,
2014). Such examples are found in many parts of the world where Jhum cultivation has been gradually
replaced by more intensive forms of land use. For instance, in the mountains of Nepal, Jhum cultivation
had been completely replaced by intensive sedentary agriculture by the end of the nineteenth century.
Such process also has happened in northern Thailand and peninsular Malaysia, Indonesia (Turkelboom
et al. 1996; Suraswadi et al. 2000). Singh(1996)has reviewed studies carried out by the Indian Council of
Agricultural Research that compared soil erosion from Jhum fields with other forms of cultivation on
terraces and contour bunds. The study found that Jhum fields cultivated for single year and abandoned
(the most common practice) have less erosive losses of soil than the other forms of settled cultivation.
Studies have found that cutting of hill, collection of soil, extraction of stone, river erosion and land slide
are responsible for degradation of environment. Often, these are the factors which are usually
overlooked. Therefore, it is difficult to establish one to one relationship between Jhum cultivation and
environment degradation. But studies has supported the belief that Jhum has a detrimental impact on
wildlife. Studies in Mizoram on rainforest birds, arboreal mammals, and plants have shown that second
growth
habitats created by Jhum, especially young fallows and dense, monotypic bamboo forest, support only
a fraction of the hoary bellied squirrels, which are of little conservation importance. A large number of
specialised and endangered flora and fauna such as hillock gibbons, langurs, hornbill, and woodpeckers
occur only in undisturbed primary forest.

Emerging challenges:

Jhum cultivation require access to different plot of lands in a given time span. Land right and access to it
are the two major problem faced by the tribals living in the forest. Right through the British period,
virtually no ‘right to the land’ has been recorded. The insignificant nistar right (which was subsequently
made as concession to collect some firewood, leaves, food items, fruits etc.) has been recorded. Faulty
interpretation of the Forest Rights Act, stipulating (incorrectly) that it only recognizes rights over forest
land under continuous occupation, not under seasonal occupation (which is the practice in Jhum
cultivation), as well as the general prejudice within government conservation agencies against the practice
of Jhum cultivation as being detrimental to forests (Dash, 2010). For instance, in Koraput district (Odisha)
the forest departments has taken up an incredible 52,800 ha of plantations due to the absence of forest
rights to the dwellers. Much of this plantation is taken up on land already being cultivated or under Jhum
cultivation by tribals.

The swidden/Jhum cultivation was never settled with respective tribal communities. These lands were
settled either as forest land or as government revenue land. Thus paradoxically, even though three fourth
of the land in tribal districts belong to government, most tribals remain landless or marginal landowners
(Kumar, 2006). The recent India’s forest right act 2006 is undoubtedly a landmark shift towards pro-
poor institutional reform in the governance of the country forest. The act has the potential of restoring
the enclose commons to communities and private land to individual cultivators. But given the rules for
implementation and the agencies involved in implementing will minimise its impact. It undermines the
foundational position of the forest, prepares the ground for profits and minimally serves the interests of
the marginalised tribal and forest dwellers (Sarin et, al., 2010).
The dynamics of Jhum cultivation has changed over time, and in some regions such changes have been
rapid. In north-eastern states also there is a decline evident in the net area cultivated under Jhum
cultivation. similarly, the number of person dependent on Jhum cultivation has also undergone decline
from 1.1 person (1970-71) to 0.7 person in (1995-96). Many Jhum cultivators have switched to
commercial agriculture consists of the use of hybrid seeds, fertilisers, pesticides that may not necessarily
suit the local agro-ecological conditions. While such changes can sometimes increase the cultivator’s
immediate incomes, the agricultural results have often been adverse or unsustainable. These changes have
often resulted in instabilities in previously well adapted Jhum cultivation and resource use, jeopardising
their ecological and in some cases economic sustainability (Raintree and Warner, 1986; Warner, 1991).

The major challenges associated with the Jhum cultivation are; a) the youth are no more interested to
work in the traditional way of cultivation. The younger generation who are gaining education are no
longer interested to do cultivation and are searching other occupation. Even in some village which were
earlier predominated by this cultivation practices are now losing its ground; b) many of the Jhum
cultivators are unable to maintain food-security by solely relying on Jhum cultivation. In period of
drought and flood the situation gets grim and pose threat to meet the food and other needs of the
community; c) the market is a major problem faced by Jhumias, their share of produced in the market is
small and most of them are illiterate therefore they are often exploited in the hands of middlemen and
traders. Hence, to overcome these problems many farmers are leaving the traditional way of cultivation
and are shifting to the settled agriculture. The major concern here is that such a shift also leads to
redundancy of traditional knowledge, community system of cultivation because for the Jhum farmers it
is a way of living and not merely a way of earning a living.

Conclusion:

Jhum is a traditional way of cultivation which is an integral part of Jhumias and their livelihood. From
clearing a patch of land till harvest of final produce, utilising the fallow lands for various purpose all
these process are complicate yet with scientific basis which not only meets the subsistence needs but also
takes care of the fertility of soil. Such a cultural and traditional practice need not to be encouraged in a
sustainable way. For instance, crops which are grown under Jhum is organic and needs to market could
be trapped by providing the farmers market linkage and good price. Moreover, there are other
techniques like Ingar, wherein the trees in the plot are cut till chest height and which not only provides
continues supply of green manure to the soil but also acts as mulching and prevents weed growth and
nourishing to the seedlings and new cropped vegetation’s.
 Appendix-I

Table 1a: Temporal Dynamics of Jhum Cultivation in North East

1970-71 1976- 1980-81 1985- 86 1990- 91 1995-

Parameter 77 96
Families involved in jhum (nos) 78,990 66499 78542 86038 94357 109093
Net land under jhum (ha) 87220 71901 66220 72555 73000 84002
Jhum land per family (ha) 1.1 1.08 0.84 0.84 0.77 0.7
Net permanent agricultural land
(ha) 28006 40013 52012 76759 92616 81281
Permanent agricultural land per
family (ha) 0.35 0.6 0.66 0.89 0.98 0.74
(Source: GBPIHED, 2006)

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Mokokchung District in Nagaland, India” in Earni, C (Ed), Shifting Cultivation, Livelihood and Food Security New
and Old Challenges for Indigenous Peoples in Asia, Bangkok: FAO, IWGIA and AIPP.

Government of India (GOI), 2000. Guidelines for watershed development project in shifting cultivation
areas.Ministry of Agriculture, New Delhi.

Priyadarshni (2004) shifting cultivation: Cropping Patterns, Jhum Cycle and Problems.
http://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/cultivation/shifting-cultivation-cropping-patterns-jhum-cycle-and-
problems/44650/

Parrotta, J.A. and Trosper, R.L. (eds.), 2012. Traditional forest-related knowledge:sustaining communities,
ecosystems and biocultural diversity. Dordrecht, Netherlands: springer. http://dx.doi.org/10/1007/978-94-007-2144-
9

Rahman, Syed Ajijur, MdFaizar Rahman, and Terry Sunderland (2012). "Causes and consequences of shifting
cultivation and its alternative in the hill tracts of eastern Bangladesh." Agroforestry systems 84.2, pp: 141-155

Ranjan, Rajiv, and V. P. Upadhyay (1999). "Ecological problems due to shifting cultivation." CURRENT SCIENCE-
BANGALORE- 77. PP: 1246-1249.

Raman, Shankar, T( 2014) Crop cycles: Fire and renewal in Mizoram, March.
https://ruralindiaonline.org/articles/cropcyclesfireandrenewalinmizoram/

Ramakrishana,P.S.,1992. Shifting agriculture and sustainable development: an interdisciplinary study from north-
eastern india. Man and biosphere book series no.10. paris:UNESCO and Caernforth, Lancaster, UK:Parthenon
Publishing.

Shankar Raman, T.R (2000). Jhum Shifting opinions.http://www.indiaseminar.com/2000/486/486%20raman.htm

Samal PK, Mili R, L.J. Singh, S.C. Arya and Mihin Dollo, 2009. Shifting Agriculture: Issues and options. Arun Awaz,
Vol 1 (1): 6-14.
Sarin, M., & Springate-Baginski, O. (2010). India’s Forest Rights Act: The Anatomy of a Necessary but Not Sufficient
Institutional Reform.’. Research Programme Consortium for Improving Institutions for Pro-Poor Growth,
Manchester.

Shankar Raman, T.R (2014). Mizoram: bamboozled by land use policy, Thehindu, 14 May.

Shankar Raman, T. R (2000). "Jhum: shifting opinions." SEMINAR-NEW DELHI-. MALYIKA SINGH.
Singh, J. S. and Singh, S. P( 1992). Forests of Himalaya, Gyanodaya Prakashan, Nainital, P: 294

Suraswadi P, Thomas DE, Pragtong K, Preechapanya P,Weyerhauser H (2000) Changing land use mosaics of
(former) shifting cultivators in watersheds of north Thailand. In: Sanchez P (ed) Alternatives to slash-and-burn.
American Society of Agronomy, Madison

Slash and burn _Part 1_Why Amazonian Farmer use fire.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDOq7QZXTdI

Scott,J.,1999. Seeing like a state: How certain schemes to improve the humand condition have failed. New Haven,
CT:Yale University Press.

Singh,D 1996, The Last Frontier: people and forests in Mizoram. Tata Energy Research Institute, New Delhi.

Sarangi, T. K. (2013). Legalising Rights through Implementation of Forest Rights Act 2006.

Tripathi, R.S., Barik, S.K., (2003). Shifting Cultivation in North East India. Proc. Approaches for increasingagricultural
productivity in hill und mountain ecosystem. ICAR research complex for NEHregion, Umiam, Meghalaya, India.

Trouble in Tripura, Down to Earth. 30th Friday, 1999. http://www.downtoearth.org.in/coverage/trouble-in-tripura-

19707

Turkelboom F, Van KK, Ongprasert S, Sutigoolabud P,Pelletier J (1996) The changing landscape of the Northern
Thai hills: adaptive strategies to increasing land pressure. Chiang Mai University, Thailand

Upadhya, Vandana (2011). "Environmental Degradation and Gender Relations in North East India: A Case Study of
Arunachal Pradesh." Journal of Economic and Social Development 7.2. Pp: 25-47.
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Forest Ecology

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Forest Laws, Colonial plunder, NTFP, Forest Management,

Commodification, Forest based livelihoods

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary In this Module we will explore the world of forest ecology and a very
important component of it, Non Timber Forest Produce. We will try to
understand the interlink ages between Forest Ecology, Governance and
Livelihood. With the help of some Case studies will see
1. Changing roles of NTFPs.
2. How NTFPs are used in different ways by the community.

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Ritu Vaishnav Research Scholar, Azim Premji

(CW) University
Content Reviewer (CR) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Language Editor (LE) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Forest Ecology and NTFP

Introduction:

Human life depends on forest for many purposes like shelter, subsistence, livelihood, Wood,
Medicine, Agriculture, Aesthetics and many more. Forest are the primary source and protector
of natural resources. Indian forests are house to wide variety of vegetation constituting almost
600 species of hardwood trees that include ‘Sal’ & ‘Teak’. Because of such a huge variety,
India is considered amongst the mega biodiverse region in the world. Indian forests types
include tropical evergreens, tropical deciduous, swamps, mangroves, sub-tropical, montane,
scrub, sub-alpine and alpine forests.

In this Module we will explore the world of forest ecology and a very important component of
it, Non Timber Forest Produce. We will try to understand the interlinkages between Forest
Ecology, Governance and Livelihood. With the help of some Case studies will see

1. Changing roles of NTFPs.

2. How NTFPs are used in different ways by the community.

Historical understanding of Forestry:

Historically, forests in India were largely unexplored for the purpose of trade or economic
exchanges before the colonial period, but they did have cultural, spiritual and social value. We
often come across narrations in the mythical texts and archives that revolve around forest which
indicates the old relationship of humans and forest. Even today there are spaces called ‘Sacred
Grooves’ which are part of forest but treated as sacred place by people living there. They have
history of their lineages attached to these places.

The value that people attach to the forest largely depends on their proximity to the forest, their
economic dependency and their historical, physical and cultural relationship with the forest.
For people who live close to the forests and who depend on them for their livelihood, direct
material needs and cultural and spiritual values tend to prevail. People further away (for
instance the urban population) attach more value to aesthetical and recreational values, while
concerns at global level tend to relate to ecological and economic values.1

A large number of our population lives in forests situated across the country. With a large
population still living in the villages and forest areas, it becomes utterly important for us to

1
Singhal, R. "Changing models of forest governance in India: Evolution or revolution?” 56-72. Indian Institute
of Forest Management. Bhopal
understand the lifestyle of our people living in those areas and intrinsically related to forest
resources. There have been several transitions in the way the forest were associated with the
communities and the role of state in that dynamics. Forest assumes different roles in different
spheres of life like the Social, Economic, Political and Cultural. All these relations and roles
evolve with time and continuously get affected by the role of different actors.

Forestry under British India:

British India saw dramatic changes in the forest use, depletion and state’s role in forest
management. During the Colonial regime in the country the need of timber and need of land
for crop cultivation resulted into deforestation and conversion of forest land into agricultural
land on large scale. In Late 1790s India was one of the leading supplier of Timber to the British.
Massive use of forest resource, specifically timber for facilitating the expansion of industries,
led to the shortage of supply as the natural reproduction system could not match the pace of
demand. The growing need of Industrial development gave way to higher demands of natural
resources of which timber was prime. Timber needs were fulfilled from all across the country.
For example Teak was used for ship building industries and Sal was used for railways.

The process of huge extraction and shortage of resources culminated into the advent of
scientific forestry and establishment of Indian Forest Service in 1864. Dietrich Brandis, a
German forester was appointed as its first inspector general. Colonial government confined the
user rights to its own domain. Local communities were denied access in order to protect forests
from over utilisation. This was done through Indian Forest act 1865 amended to Indian Forest
Act 1878 and later through The Indian Forest Act 1927. There were interventions to transform
the forest composition as well, the slow growth of the natural vegetation could not meet the
requirements of the growing trade. The best known example is the transformation of mixed
oak-conifer forest into single species of Chir Pine. This type of intervention effected the
livestock of the region, resulting into the non-availability of food as the whole food chain got
disturbed. High priorities were given to the need of colonial government over the needs of
community and local people. These disturbances were in the roots of many dissatisfactions in
the communities across the country and often resulted into rebellions against the government.
One of the most celebrated rebellion is the Chipko movement.

Post-Independence:

Post-Independence the government was still following the colonial legislation- The Indian
Forest Act 1927. Only after the enactment of the Forest (Conservation) Act 1980 the emphasis
shifted to conservation from an extraction oriented approach. This empowered the state in
relation to the centre as they gave state governments a space to operate without the permission
of central government. Forest Policy came into being in the year of 1952 which was a successor
of Forest Policy 1894. After the formulation of Forest Policy in 1988 the emphasis of policy
was directed towards the conservation of environment instead the user based embeddedness of
its successors. It included the local level governance mechanisms like panchayat, local
communities, individual, participate in different levels of participation in the decision making
process. Many initiatives through various legislations and scheme are introduced like the Joint
Forest Management, Van Panchayat, Forest Protection committees, National Westland
Development Board etc. for the conservation purpose as well as to recognise the community
members as stakeholders. Governance issues relating to forest (of any nature: legislative,
judicial or executive) make a huge impact on a substantial part of the population as they not
only live in the forest but also depend on the forest resources for subsistence and livelihood
purposes along with a cultural and social traditional linkage. To understand forest governance
then becomes a prerequisite to understand forestry and the lives of communities related to it.
Most of the communities dependent on the forest produces are Tribal Groups. They generally
depend on the minor forest produces or what is often referred as the Non Timber Forest
Produce.

Forest Governance in India:

“Forestry provides a useful entry point for governance programmes due to its focus, linking
the global to national and local; high levels of income and other benefits which it generates,
and its importance in rural livelihoods and poverty alleviation. Moreover, public participation,
accountability, transparent government, and pro-poor policy change themes have been central
to the forest, which are also crucial dimensions of governance”.2

Forest come under the concurrent list in the 7th schedule of the Constitution of India, which
implies that both the centre and state can make policies unless the state’s policy come in conflict
with that of union. Forest governance predominantly is done through three modes

1. Governance by State
2. Governance by Civil Society
3. Governance, jointly by both State and Civil Society.3

2
Monditoka, Aruna Kumar. "Decentralized Forest Governance-A Policy Perspective." Centre For Economic and
Social Studies, Begumpet, Hyderabad, India (2011)
3
Singhal. Changing models of forest governance in India. 62-65
Governance by State is done on central level where national policies on forests are made.
Operated through ministry of Environment and Forest, State Forest Department and the
legislations passed by Union government. Governance by civil society implies community
making cooperatives and managing the resources. The most desirable type of governance today
is the governance where both the state and the civil society jointly take care of the resources.
Most of the legislations now focus on this type of management of resources where locals are
treated as stakeholders through legal means acknowledging their social political and economic
rights over forest creating a sense of ownership.

There are several legislations in the country that have been passed and are operational. They
have different features that focus on different aspects of the forest ecology. Below is the table
explaining them and can help us analyse and compare the same.

Source: Changing Models of Forest Governance in India: Evolution or Revolution? Rekha

S. N. Forest Related Policy& Act Salient Features

1 Constitution of India under The state shall endeavour Protection and

section 10 ( 42nd Amendment) improvement of environment and safeguarding
Act 1976 Article 48A
2 Constitution of India
section 11 ( 42nd Amendment) including forests, lakes, rivers, and wild life is
Act 1976 Article 51A
3 Forest Act , 1865
4 Forest Policy, 1894
5 National Forest Policy, 1952
Singhal
of forests and wildlife
under Protect and improve natural environment
one of the fundamental duties of every citizen.
The first Forest Act was enacted in 1865 mainly
to facilitate the acquisition of forest areas that
could supply timber to the railways without
abridging the existing rights of the people.
First policy statement aimed at managing the
state forest for public benefits. Provided rights
and restrictions to the neighbouring population.
Allowed local communities to manage inferior
forest for fulfilling fodder and grazing needs
A resolution on the first post-independence
Forest Policy was issued in 1952. It emphasized
a balance across economic, ecological and social
benefits from the forests. It thus proposed to
classify the forests on a functional basis into (i)
 protection forests, (ii) national forests, (iii)
Village forests, and (iv) tree lands. The provision
of centralised management was continued in this
policy.
6 National Commission on Ushered major shift in the sector. Emphasized
Agriculture ( NCA) 1976 need to address the production of industrial wood
for forest based industry, defence and
communication. Need of business management
skill in forest managers. To meet the present and
future demands for protective and re-creative
functions.
7 National Forest policy, 1988 It was only about 25 years later that the Forest
Policy 1988 underscored community
Participation in protection and development of
forests. The policy is in effect on date. It is
comprehensive document with directives on
afforestation, farm forestry, management of
forests, rights and concessions, diversion of
forest land wild life conservation, tribal
communities, forest fire and grazing, forest based
industries, forest extension, education, research,
personnel management, data base, legal and
financial support.
8 National Wild life Action Plan , National Board for wildlife constituted in
2002 September 2003 with full strength of law and
land behind. Responsibility to provide thrust to
conservation activities.
9 Joint Forest management, 1990 The primary objective of the National Forest
( as per provisions of 1988 Policy, 1988 is to ensure environmental stability
Policy) and ecological balance. The Policy also
emphasizes on the need to meet the domestic
demands of rural people for forest produce, and
involve them in protection and management of
the forests. The National Forestry Action
 Programme, 1999 also addresses the Government
s concern towards Sustainable Forest
Management. Forest management became the
joint responsibility of communities and forestry
personnel undergone a paradigm shift. By 2005
all 28 states as adopted 84 thousand committees
looking after 17 million ha of forest land in
September 2003. This figure has increased
tremendously due to central funding through
National Afforestation Programme (NAP) and
externally funded projects. , the forest sector is
being seen as a crucial component in eradicating
rural poverty and providing livelihoods to the
communities dwelling in and around the forests.
Presence of legislations have made an everlasting effect on the lives of people. But there exist
many challenges to them as it heavily depend upon the interaction of societies with the legal
provisions. There are various overlaps and disconnects in the legislations. This can be attributed
to different bodies and authorities proposing and making different laws.

Challenges to Forest Governance:

Predominant factor that affect forest governance is the population that has produced immense
pressure on Natural resources in general and NTFP in particular.The situation in India is even
more serious as with only 2% of the world’s forests, the country has to serve about 15% of the
world population. While about 45% of the energy in the Third World is met from wood, over
85% of the rural energy in India is met from biomass and about 50% of it is collected from
forests.4

Most of the NTFPs are nationalized leaving a very less space for the market to operate in
expanding manner. Middlemen enjoy the most of profits from NTFPs because of two reasons:
1. State is unable to reach the people directly and thus depends heavily on Middlemen
facilitating market. 2. Labors engaged in the collection and processing are unaware of the
market value of the product and have a very poor bargaining power. These factors lead to

4
Hegde, NG. “Development of Non-Timber Forest Product Species for providing Sustainable livelihood in India”.
Paper presented in the International Workshop on Global Partnership on Non-Timber Forest products for
Livelihood Development. International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR), Morocco. December 1-3, 2005
unsustainable dynamics of labor, state and market and disconnect in the process of
development.

With the changing economic structure and higher integration of population into formal
economic structure NTFPs are explored for economic exchange. This has converted the NTFPs
into commodities and to some extent incentivize people to protect and enhance them for their
livelihood. Kishore and Belle (2004) argued that income had statistically significant negative
impact on deforestation where rising income is likely to reduce deforestation and concluded
that “improving governance may have an indirect but strong impact on curbing deforestation”.5
They also argued that forest governance depends heavily on the individuals involved rather
than the nature of management in the form of concentration of authority (centralisation/
decentralisation).

There is a clear lack of a comprehensive policy approach, this is basically because there is a
fairly large variation in the NTFPs produced and differentiated state regimes. Bamboo can be
taken as an example for the same as it is treated as a ‘minor forest produce’ under Forest Rights
Act 2006 and is treated as a timber product under Indian Forest Act 1927. Provisions and
privileges under PESA and Wildlife Protection Act are contradictory to each other regarding
Minor Forest Produce. These contradictions often lead people into problems and conflict.
Coherence and coordination is required to make use of NTFPs at the maximum possible extent
in a sustainable and equitable manner.

Non Timber Forest Produce (NTFP):

Traditionally Non Timber Forest Products refers to all biological material other than timber
extracted from natural forests for human and animal use and have both consumptive and
exchange value. Globally NTFP/NWFP are defined as forest produce consisting of goods of
biological origin other than woods, derived from forest, other wood land and trees outside
forest.6 There is a broad category of NTFP based on their usage and importance.

1. NTFP for Food Security: Includes the produces that are used by people for their
Diets and living. For example Honey.
2. NTFP for Wood and Biomass: This refers to the usage of wood for fuel, furniture
and other such works and the procurement of forage and manure.

5
Kishor, Nalin, and Arati Belle. "Does improved governance contribute to sustainable forest
management?." Journal of Sustainable Forestry 19, no. 1-3 (2004): 55-79.
6
Report of the sub-group II on NTFP and their Sustainable Management in the 12th Five Year Plan, 2011
 3. NTFP for Medicines and Plant Protection: there are traditional usage of NTFPs for
medicinal and healing purposes. Many new NTFPs are being explored for the same
purpose. This is invariably utilised for human and animals. They are also used as
pesticides and crop supplements. for many plants
4. NTFP for Aromatics, Dyes and Oilseeds: they are mostly utilized for industrial
purposes.

NTFPs have constituted an important component of rural livelihood in India, particularly in the
tribal dominated forest regions, In addition they have formed an important source of forest
revenue in the country and, therefore, remained under the control of the forest department.
Public and private interests have over the last few decades been extremely interested in NTFPs
as the case of Chattisgarh State demonstrates.7 Non-Timber Forest Produce Case studies from
India: The livelihood school

The importance of NTFP is widely acknowledged by the policy makers, economists,

sociologists and others in different domains, for the role it plays as a ‘safety net’ especially in
the lean seasons. Yet, most of the policies relating to forest often undermines NTFPs which
estimates around 68% of the total export of forestry sector. NTFPs account for the major
income received by the forest departments in the current times as there are many restrictions
put on the extraction of trees. The state often finds itself in the dilemma of conservation and
need of people. Commercial utilization leads to over extraction by the communities if not kept
in check whereas if total restriction is imposed, it tend to disturbs the lives and the
ecosystem.Furthermore, Severe shortage in NTFPs do not get addressed as the communities
continue using them without opting for alternatives. They fail to opt for alternative mainly
because of the poverty and unavailability of affordable option.

Some Case Studies:

With very wide spectrum of variety of spectrum of NTFPs available and diverse utilization it
is impossible to understand them only through theoretical frameworks, acts and legislations.
Therefor we will make an attempt to understand them through some case studies of various
kinds.

7
Gautam, Singh Rajendra and Sharma, Deepak. “Livelihood Promotion through Non Timber Forest Produce: A
Case of Chattisgarh State”. Non-Timber Forest Produce Case studies from India: The livelihood school.
http://ilrtindia.org/downloads/rajendra%20S%20case%202-2_11.pdf
In Chhattisgarh where 11185 village out of a total of 19720 villages are forest fringed, the importance of
NTFPs in the livelihood security of the rural population has led the state government to declare seven NTFPs
such as Tendu leaves, Saal seed, harra, gum (khair, dhawara, kullu and babool) as nationalised and establish
the CGMFP Federation with an objective promote trade and development of these minor forest produces
in the interest of MFP collectors, mostly tribal. The remaining other MFPs were left free for trade because
their distribution and production varied with respect to time and space. As a result, villagers would get
assured minimum prices for nationalized NTFPs, but low collection prices and often exploitation by
middlemen for the non-nationalized NTFPs due to inadequate market facility development in the remote
rural areas. Therefore, the state government issued a new state forest policy in 2002 declaring the State as
Herbal State, with the objectives of conservation of NTFP based industries for processing of MFP so as to
generate additional employment opportunities in the state and provide health cover. Accordingly, CGMFP
Federation developed a comprehensive programme focusing on organized production, collection,
processing and marketing through community based institutional and marketing set-up in the form of
“Sanjeevani’. A separate multi-disciplinary task force headed by Conservator of Forests (CF) has been
established within the federation to translate this programme into reality. The present study is an attempt
to understand the intervention in detail and its impact on the livelihoods of the rural poor.
The Chhattisgarh State Minor Forest Produce Cooperative Federation Limited came into being in October
2000 as apex organisation with a three-tier cooperative structure after the division of erstwhile Madhya
Pradesh state. The federation comprise of an apex body at the state level, 32 district Unions at the district
level and 913 primary forest produce cooperative societies at the village level. At present there are about
10000 collection centres spread over the length and breadth of the state and approximately has covered
around 9.78 lakhs forest produce gatherers the federation collects and markets nationalised NTFPs like Sal
seeds, Tendu leaves, Harra and gum through this three-tier cooperative structure. After the new state
forest policy a task force under CF was constituted with the federation to achieve the objective of Herbal
State. Major tasks being done by the federation are:
a) Collection and trade of nationalised forest produce.
b) Collection and trade of non-nationalized minor forest produce including medical and aromatic plants
with assured market tie up.
c) Promotion of MFP-based processing units
d) Conservation development and sustainable utilisation of MFPs
e) Promotion of cultivation of MFP species including medicinal, aromatic and dye plants.

(Livelihood Promotion through Non Timber Forest Produce: A Case of Chattisgarh State,
Gautam and Sharma)
The case of Sanjeevani mart
The Sanjeevani mart in Raipur is run by a ten member SHG formed in the year of 2005. For
years it had been involved in saving and helping each other through petty cash. It was like an
Household saving group (HSG). But since the group did not have its own source of income, it
was difficult for them to with this and gradually it began to disintegrate. CGMFP federation
developed Sanjeev Mart using funds form the European commission supported project and
invited expression of Interest from SHGs to operate Sanjeevani. The year 2007 brought a new
dimension to this SHG when it got associated with the CGMFP federation for operating the
Sanjeevani mart. The SHG did not make any investment. All the herbs and herbal product
were supplied by Raipur Mart. SHG members received training in group dynamics record
keeping Ayurvedic medicines and information
For operating the Sanjeevani responsibilities are shared among the 10 members working in
three shifts for ten hours every day. They have mutual understanding about the time and at
a time one find two members managing the shop. As MART is also attached they also get
support from Executives Presently Sanjeevani has 38 Drug products which are supplied by
Raipur mart on demand by the group. Tie ups have been done with two local vaidyas who sits
in sanjeevani twice a week ach and prescribe herbal medicines to customers. Side by side
customers are also given use of different medicine through the technical pamphlet. By the
group members. Along with the main Sanjeevani store the group members set up stalls for
sale of herbal products in exhibitions and fares. The shg gets a commission of 15 % on the
total sale in the month. The monthly sale of herbs and herbal products in Raipur Sanjeevani
ranges between INR 125000 and 150000 which takes the commission up to a tune of 18750
to 22500. This amount is distributed equally among the members. They take pride in
contributing to 25-30 percent to their family income. The president of the SHG with the
income from Sanjeevani she has started sending her children to convent school. The SHG
members see this as life changing opportunity. Now they also train members from other SHGs
to plan to start Sanjeevani in their city/town. During discussion the SHG members pointed
out that the sale of herbal product is increasing every day. They also use their personal
network for advertising and sale of the herbal products. However, the members also pointed
out that many medicines which are much in demand by consumers are not available at their
Sanjeevani stores and this affect their relation with consumers. They demand a regular supply
from the marts.

(Livelihood Promotion through Non Timber Forest Produce: A Case of Chattisgarh State,
Gautam and Sharma)
Non Timber Forest Produce Case studies from India: The livelihood school.
Village level SHGs
Jeerapur is one of the forest fringe villages in kumani Panchayat of Bastar. It has 77 households
of which 35 families are now involved in collection of NTFPs like Churaki Ful (Punder Fu), Arjun
Chaal: Patal Umhara amd salparni. They are also working on vlue adition in form of grading and
drying. All this started when Purush Swa Shahayata Samuh was identified for purchase of NTFP
raw material. They can sell their collection at Kuranj, a temporary storage centre near their
village but normally they sell their product directly to Jagdalpur mart. Considering their
activeness and involvement the forest department has constructed a concrete platform of
dimension 27*27 meters for drying cleaning and grading of raw NTFPs. In this village almost
every family owns two to five tamarind trees which fetches them INR 2000-4000/ per tree,
without value addition. The last two years have opened up new occupations for substantial
family income. Those who were engaged in other activities are now getting involved in NTFP
collection, thanks to the presence of an SGH that will buy their produce.

(Livelihood Promotion through Non Timber Forest Produce: A Case of Chattisgarh State,
Gautam and Sharma)
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Climate Change and Carbon Footprint

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Carbon Emission, Greenhouse Gas, Fossil Fuels, Global Warming, Carbon
Sequestration, Carbon Footprint, Clean Development Mechanism

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary We will start with some conceptual clarifications on phenomenon related to

our subject: Sources of Carbon, Radiation Budget of Earth, Climate Change,
and Green House Effect. Exploring and understanding the problem at both
Individual level and International level through Carbon Footprint and
Emission Trading. We will explore what steps are being taken to mitigate
the problem of Carbon Emission through economic devices like carbon
trading, its developments so far and India’s stand on it.

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Ritu Vaishnav Research Scholar, Azim Premji

(CW) University
Content Reviewer (CR) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Language Editor (LE) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Climate Change and Carbon Footprint
What is this module all about?
Carbon dioxide is one of the essential gas in the environment and also an important nutrient of
the biogeochemical cycle without which the system would collapse. For the plants to produce
food through photosynthesis carbon dioxide is essential. Carbon dioxide also plays a major role
in keeping the earth warm enough to make it habitable. At the same time excess of CO2 is
dangerous to the sustainability of our planet. In this module we will try to understand why this
gas has acquired a central position in the discussions about mitigating climate change. We will
start with some conceptual clarifications on phenomenon related to our subject: Sources of
Carbon, Radiation Budget of Earth, Climate Change, and Green House Effect. Exploring
and understanding the problem at both Individual level and International level through Carbon
Footprint and Emission Trading. We will explore what steps are being taken to mitigate the
problem of Carbon Emission through economic devices like carbon trading, its developments
so far and India’s stand on it.

Sources of Carbon
There are several sources of Carbon and
below is an illustration of the sources of
Carbon and also how is the carbon
consumed back from the atmosphere into
the system. Naturally carbon was present in
the atmosphere but with increasing human
activities like industrialization and constant
increase in the combustion of the fossil
fuels leads to the excess of carbon in the
atmosphere in the form of compounds of
carbon. Due to the increasing deforestation,
the excess of carbon is not fixed and
remains in the atmosphere. The remaining
Carbon in the form of Carbon dioxide
makes a layer around the earth that traps
heat and helps the earth keep warm when there is no source of heat i.e. during the night times.
The excess of this CO2 would result in trapping excess of heat. More details about this will be
explained in the further sections.
Source – Thomas M Smith – Chapter 23/Pg. 449
The Radiation Budget of Earth
To understand the role of CO2 we need to understand the location and functions of it in the
Radiation Budget of the Earth (The energy entering, reflected, absorbed, and emitted by the
Earth system are the components of the Earth's radiation budget). Radiation with short
wavelength enters the earth’s atmosphere. Major part of it gets radiate back by the atmosphere
but a part of it gets absorbed and trapped by gases in the atmosphere, these are known as the
Green House Gases. They emit the absorbed energy through radiations of long wavelength in
all directions. A portion of that radiation escapes earth’s atmosphere and the remaining
emission heats up the lower atmosphere. This results into heating of earth’s surface. This
heating mechanism is known as Green House effect and the gases involved in this process are
the Green House Gases
Source: IPCC Fourth report

What is Greenhouse Gas (GHG)?

"Greenhouse gases" means those
gaseous constituents of the
atmosphere, both natural and
anthropogenic, those absorbs and re-
emit infrared radiation.
The GHG basket consists of six
direct gases, such as: CO2 - Carbon
dioxide; CH4 – Methane; N2O -
Nitrous oxide; PFCs –
Perfluorocarbons; HFCs –
Hydrofluorocarbons and SF6 -
Sulphur hexafluoride.
Source: IPCC (2007)
Why Carbon?
In the explanation of radiation budget we saw the mechanism through which the surface of
earth gets heated. One of the gases that absorb the terrestrial radiation (radiation from earth) is
CO2. There are various other GHGs that absorb those radiations like the water vapour, methane,
nitrous oxide but what makes it come to focus are two things: Abundance and Residual between
the Large Sources and Sinks.
Abundance: CO2 is the second most abundant GHG after water vapour. The problem is its
Airborne Fraction (AF), which is defined as the fraction of anthropogenic (created by humans)
carbon emissions which remain in the atmosphere after natural processes have absorbed some
of them. Main reason for this raised quantity is the emissions from different sources like
industries, power plants etc. human triggered high emission scaled up particularly after the
Industrial Revolution.
This created an imbalance between the sources and sink of the gas (CO2) as the natural sinks
(where the gas gets absorbed) are unable to absorb the large amount of CO2 produced and as a
result it remains suspended in atmosphere. This is known as the residual between the sources
and sink. The major sinks for CO2 are Forest, Oceans
The figure below show sinks and the sources of carbon through carbon cycle.

What are the Sources and Sinks for CO2?

Sources are the point of release of CO2 in the atmosphere. Major sources of CO2 are:
1. Combustion: Burning of fuels cause emission of CO2
2. Land Use Changes:
Combustion: Burning of Fossil Fuel is the major source of CO2 in the environment.
What is fossil fuel?
Fossil fuels -coal, petroleum (oil) and natural gas- are formed from organic material over the
course of millions of years within the crust of earth. The age they were formed is called the
Carboniferous Period. ‘Carboniferous’ gets its name from carbon, the basic element in fossil
fuels. It derives the name ‘fossil’ due to its formation period and its location under earth. Fossil
fuels are currently World’s primary energy sources. However, fossil fuels are finite resources
and they can also irreparably harm the environment. There are different techniques like the
Carbo Capture and Carbon Storage to tackle this problem
What is Carbon Capture and Storage?
Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS), also known as Carbon Capture and Sequestration, is a
process that collects carbon dioxide (CO2) that would otherwise be emitted into the atmosphere
by industrial and power generating sources, and pumps it deep underground for long term
storage.
Carbon dioxide (CO2) can be captured either pre- or post-combustion. In integrated gasification
and combined cycle power plants, carbon dioxide is removed pre-combustion in the
gasification process. In conventional coal-fired power plants, carbon can be captured post-
combustion using a chilled ammonia solution, which seizes the pollutant from flue gas before
it is released into the atmosphere.
Source: http://www.eesi.org/topics/fossil-fuels/ccs

Individuals and Carbon emission: Carbon Footprints

The governments, decision-makers and businesses have started to seek ways and means to
mitigate global warming aiming at reducing GHG emissions. This brings the need to
understand what activities drive GHG emissions and how they can be effectively reduced.
Thus, the ‘carbon footprint’ (CF) concept has become a popular tool to estimate GHG
emissions related to human activities. Despite its growing appearances and acceptances by
media, business houses and often a mention by world leaders during their presentations on
climate change, the Carbon Footprint has no unanimously agreed definition, usage or
measurement.
Origin of carbon footprint can be traced back to the concept of ‘ecological footprint’ in early
1990s. Ecological footprint refers to the biologically productive land and sea area required to
sustain a given human population expressed as global hectares (Wackernagel and Rees 1996
and Rees 1992).1 According to this concept, carbon footprint refers to the land area required to
assimilate the entire CO2 produced by the mankind during its lifetime. In due course of time as
the global warming issue took prominence in the world environmental agenda, use of carbon
footprint became common independently, although in a modified form (East 2008). The
concept of carbon footprinting has been in use since several decades but known differently as
life cycle impact category indicator global warming potential (Finkbeiner 2009). Therefore, the

1
Rees, W. E (1992), Ecological footprints and appropriated carrying capacity: What urban economics leaves
out, Environment and Urbanization, Vol. 4, No. 2, pp. 121– 30.
present form of carbon footprint may be viewed as a hybrid, deriving its name from “ecological
footprint”, and conceptually being a global warming potential indicator.
A carbon footprint is a measure of an individual's contribution to global warming in terms of
the amount of GHG produced by an individual and is measured in units of carbon dioxide
equivalent (Lynas, 2007).

What is "CO2 equivalent"?

GHG emissions/removals can be expressed either in physical units (such as grams, tonnes, etc.)
or in terms of CO2 equivalent (grams CO2 equivalent, tonnes CO2 equivalent, etc.). The
conversion factor from physical units to CO2 equivalent is the Global Warming Potential
(GWP) of the corresponding GHG. If X Gg of CH4 is to be expressed in terms of CO2
equivalent, then it is multiplied by 21, which is GWP of CH4 over 100 years timescale
(UNFCCC Secretariat).
Carbon Footprint is made up of the sum of two parts, the direct or primary footprint is a
measure of our direct emissions of CO2 from the burning of fossil fuels including domestic
energy consumption and transportation (e.g. car and plane); and the indirect or secondary
footprint is a measure of the indirect CO2 emissions from the whole lifecycle of products and
services we use including those associated with their manufacture and eventual breakdown
(Tukker and Jansen, 2006).
There is increasing awareness of an individual's behaviour or life style as a source of global
carbon emissions (Bin and Dowlatabadi, 2005). The calculation of individual and household
carbon footprints is a powerful tool enabling individuals to quantify their own carbon dioxide
emissions and link these to activities and behaviour. Such models play an important role in
educating the public in the management and reduction of CO2 emissions through self-
assessment and determination. Carbon emission models may possibly be used in the future as
a tool to calculate carbon taxes, the allocation of carbon units and the basis for personal carbon
trading.
Other terms used associated or sometimes as a synonym of carbon footprint in the available
literature are embodied carbon, carbon content, embedded carbon, carbon flows, virtual carbon,
GHG footprint, and climate footprint.
While the term itself is rooted in the language of Ecological Footprint, the common baseline is
that the carbon footprint stands for a certain amount of GHG emissions that are relevant to
climate change and associated with human production or consumption activities. But this is
almost where the commonality ends. There is no consensus on how to measure or quantify a
carbon footprint. The spectrum of definitions ranges from direct CO2 emissions to full life-
cycle greenhouse gas emissions and not even the units of measurement are clear.
Few Carbon Footprint Definitions in popular literature:-

Source Definition
BP (2007) "The carbon footprint is the amount of carbon dioxide emitted due
to your daily activities – from washing a load of laundry to driving
a carload of kids to school."
British Sky The carbon footprint was calculated by "measuring the CO2
Broadcasting equivalent emissions from its premises, company-owned vehicles,
(Sky) (Patel 2006) business travel and waste to landfill." (Patel 2006)
Carbon Trust "… a methodology to estimate the total emission of greenhouse
(2007) gases (GHG) in carbon equivalents from a product across its life
cycle from the production of raw material used in its manufacture,
to disposal of the finished product (excluding in-use emissions).

"… a technique for identifying and measuring the individual

greenhouse gas emissions from each activity within a supply chain
process step and the framework for attributing these to each output
product (we [The Carbon Trust] will refer to this as the product’s
‘carbon footprint’)." (CarbonTrust 2007, p.4)
Energetics (2007) "…the full extent of direct and indirect CO2 emissions caused by
your business activities."
ETAP (2007) "…the ‘Carbon Footprint’ is a measure of the impact human
activities have on the environment in terms of the amount of
greenhouse gases produced, measured in tons of carbon dioxide."

While academia has largely neglected the definition issue, consultancies, businesses, NGOs
and government have moved forward themselves and provided their own definitions. In the
UK, the Carbon Trust has aimed at developing a more common understanding about carbon
footprint of a product. (Carbon Trust 2007). It emphasized that only input, output and unit
processes which are directly associated with the product should be included, whilst some of
the indirect emissions – e.g. from workers commuting to the factory – are not factored in. A
more inclusive definition has prescribed by Wiedmann, T. and Minx, J. (2008). “The carbon
footprint is a measure of the exclusive total amount of carbon dioxide emissions that is directly
and indirectly caused by an activity or is accumulated over the life stages of a product."2 Central
concern remains the Climate Change.

Climate Change and the UNFCCC

There is growing scientific evidence that burning fossil fuels contributes to rising temperatures
and extreme weather events. The impacts of greenhouse gas (GHG) emitting by burning fossil
fuels from human activities are dramatically reshaping the environmental, political, and social
landscape and Climate Change. "Climate change" means a change of climate which is

2
Wiedmann, T. and Minx, J. (2008), A Definition of 'Carbon Footprint' In C. C., Pertsova, Ecological Economics
Research Trends, Chapter 1, pp. 1-11, Nova Science Publishers: NY, USA
attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global
atmosphere and which is in addition to natural climate variability observed over comparable
time periods (UNFCCC 1992).
In 1992 at Rio de Janeiro during United Nation Conference on Environment and Development
(UNCED) or famously known as ‘Earth Summit’, countries agreed on legal binding on the
GHG emissions. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is
aimed at preventing global climate change and entered into force on 21 March 1994. “The
ultimate objective of this Convention and any related legal instruments that the Conference of
the Parties may adopt is to achieve, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the
Convention, stabilization of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that
would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system. Such a level
should be achieved within a time-frame sufficient to allow ecosystems to adapt naturally to
climate change, to ensure that food production is not threatened and to enable economic
development to proceed in a sustainable manner.... stabilization of greenhouse gas
concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic
interference with the climate system." (UNFCCC- Article 2). The second commitment period
began on 1 January 2013 and will end in 2020. The beginning of negotiations to Kyoto Protocol
had actually made ‘carbon’ as a 21st Century ‘commodity’ where Carbon Footprint and Carbon
Trading concepts shaped up.

The Kyoto Protocol and Emission Trading.

Command and Control (CAC) and Economic incentives (EI) have been two major devices that
were used in policy making regarding improvement of environment. CAC emphasises on
stringent standards to be followed for abatement of emission and EI emphasises on the
economic models of taxation based on both production and consumption of emission, emission
charges, and exchanges through tradable units. Kyoto protocol adopts the EI model for
controlling emissions.
Adopted in 1997, The Kyoto Protocol is an international agreement linked to the United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which commits its Parties by setting
internationally binding emission reduction targets (UNFCCC). Recognizing the role of
economies in the emission of carbon through their industries and economic model was being
devised in a hope to incentivise economies to reduce their emission levels. Kyoto protocol
works on the principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities”. Through this principle
the protocol puts a heavier burden on the developed nations to reduce and curb emission levels.
Following are the categories of parties that are defined by UNFCCC according to their
commitment.
Kyoto protocol entered into force in February 2005 with its first commitment period of 2008
to 2012. In December 2012 the “Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol was adopted” for the
second commitment period of 2013 to 2020. The major contribution of this amendment were
a. It defined new commitments for the Annex I parties
b. revised list of Green House Gases to be reported
The protocol mainly operates through the national measures of the parties (countries) but has
also given the market based mechanism in order to meet the target, propagate and encourage

Annex I Parties include the industrialized countries that were members of the OECD (Organisation for
Economic Co-operation and Development) in 1992, plus countries with economies in transition (the
EIT Parties), including the Russian Federation, the Baltic States, and several Central and Eastern
European States.

Annex II Parties consist of the OECD members of Annex I, but not the EIT Parties. They are required
to provide financial resources to enable developing countries to undertake emissions reduction
activities under the Convention and to help them adapt to adverse effects of climate change. In
addition, they have to "take all practicable steps" to promote the development and transfer of
environmentally friendly technologies to EIT Parties and developing countries. Funding provided by
Annex II Parties is channelled mostly through the Convention’s financial mechanism.

Non-Annex I Parties are mostly developing countries. Certain groups of developing countries are
recognized by the Convention as being especially vulnerable to the adverse impacts of climate change,
including countries with low-lying coastal areas and those prone to desertification and drought.
Others (such as countries that rely heavily on income from fossil fuel production and commerce) feel
more vulnerable to the potential economic impacts of climate change response measures. The
Convention emphasizes activities that promise to answer the special needs and concerns of these
vulnerable countries, such as investment, insurance and technology transfer.

The 49 Parties classified as least developed countries (LDCs) by the United Nations are given special
consideration under the Convention on account of their limited capacity to respond to climate change
and adapt to its adverse effects. Parties are urged to take full account of the special situation of LDCs
when considering funding and technology-transfer activities

Several categories of observer organizations also attend sessions of the COP and its subsidiary
bodies. These include representatives of United Nations secretariat units and bodies, such as UNDP,
UNEP and UNCTAD, as well as its specialized agencies and related organizations, such as the GEF and
WMO/UNEP Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

Source: UNFCCC
1. International Emission Trading
2. Clean Development Mechanism
3. Joint Implementation.
International Emission Trading: Application of a market based approach in GHG emission
control, particularly carbon. Essentially it means treating pollution as a commodity. It operates
as trading in the pollutants through a “cap and trade” system. It emphasises the creation of cap
on the emission level and then treating that cap as a basis for creating permits. It can be seen
as a policy instrument to control GHG emission. Aimed at the promotion of operational
excellence through existing and new technologies.
Clean Development Mechanism: allowing an Annexure B country to implement a project
targeted at emission reduction. Such projects can earn saleable certified emission reduction
(CER) credits, each equivalent to one tonne of CO2, which can be counted towards meeting
Kyoto targets (UNFCCC).
Joint Implementation: The mechanism known as “joint implementation,” defined in Article
6 of the Kyoto Protocol, allows a country with an emission reduction or limitation commitment
under the Kyoto Protocol (Annex B Party) to earn emission reduction units (ERUs) from an
emission-reduction or emission removal project in another Annex B Party, each equivalent to
one tonne of CO2, which can be counted towards meeting its Kyoto target (UNFCCC).
Parties with commitments under the Kyoto Protocol (Annex B Parties) have accepted targets
for limiting or reducing emissions. These targets are expressed as levels of allowed emissions,
or “assigned amounts,” over the 2008-2012 commitment period. The allowed emissions are
divided into “assigned amount units” (AAUs). Emissions trading, as set out in Article 17 of the
Kyoto Protocol, allows countries that have emission units to spare - emissions permitted them
but not "used" - to sell this excess capacity to countries that are over their targets (UNFCCC).
What is ERU?
An “emission reduction unit” or “ERU” is a unit is equal to one metric ton of carbon dioxide
equivalent, calculated using global warming potentials defined by Parties to UNFCCC.

What is CER?
A “certified emission reduction” or “CER” is a unit issued is equal to one metric ton of carbon
dioxide equivalent, calculated using global warming potentials defined by Parties.
What is AAU?
An “assigned amount unit” or “AAU” is a unit is equal to one metric ton of carbon dioxide
equivalent, calculated using global warming potentials by parties.
What is RMU?
A “removal unit” or “RMU” is a unit is equal to one metric ton of carbon dioxide equivalent,
carbon credits relating to land use and forestry.
Where does India Stand?
Given the Socio Economic and Geo-political situation of India, there are huge issues that
restrict its commitment for the protocol. There are many initiatives by the government on
national level to tackle the climate change in general and emission in particular. There is a
historic argument given by the developing countries arguing that the major burden of the
emission control should be borne by the developed countries. This argument find its root in the
observation that anthropogenic emissions have steadily increased after the industrial revolution
and the developed countries were the main host for the same.
Whether or not every country become a signatory of the protocol the damage that high paced
emission has done is evident and future problems can be predicted on the same. There is a
larger responsibility on global level that all the countries have to take part in to make sure that
with all their sincerity.

Further videos can be referred to under this concept in further details.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzCA60WnoMk
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBjtO-0tbKU
 http://missionscience.nasa.gov/ems/13_radiationbudget.html
 http://unfccc.int/ghg_data/items/3825.php
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yiTZm0y1YA
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fq8P9RhEpiQprincess
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReOj12UAus4
 http://ete.cet.edu/gcc/?/globaltemp_carbon_cycle/
 http://unfccc.int/kyoto_protocol/mechanisms/emissions_trading/items/2731.php
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1o4ODWMZq5U
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiVzQZAAV7g
 http://www.ieta.org/
 http://globalchange.mit.edu/files/document/MITJPSPGC_Rpt93.pdf
 http://www.c2es.org/international/negotiations/kyoto-protocol/glossary
 http://www.cprindia.org/research/reports/india%E2%80%99s-negotiating-position-
climate-change-legitimate-not-sagacious
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Ecology and Health Part I

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Health, poor, Climate Change, IPCC

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary This module describes the relationship between human activity, climate
change and health, and explores the health benefits of preventing climate
change.

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Stefi Barna

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR)
Language Editor (LE)

1
 I. Sociology and climate change
Science and technology have produced many of the astonishing gains in health and longevity over the
past century. At the same time, our industrialised, carbon-dependent societies are producing large-
scale environmental changes, such as global warming, which will undermine many of those advances.
Many people fear that climate change is the biggest health threat of the 21st century. Moreover, it is
people who are socially, economically, culturally, politically and institutionally marginalized who are
disproportionately affected by climate change, although they have done little or nothing to produce it
What does a sociologist need to know about climate change? Sociologists play a valuable role by
asking questions that are often overlooked in climate change research. What are the driving forces of
climate change? What is the role of ideology, large scale institutional processes, or the spread of status
consumption? Why and how is the science of climate change contested? How is climate skepticism
and climate denial developed and promoted through the media? How effective are social movements
in creating policy?
In short, efforts to address climate change are unlikely to succeed without the understanding of human
behavior and societal dynamics that sociology offers.
This module will help students to understand the basic science of climate change and its effects on
human health. By the end of this module, students will be able to:
1. Define climate change
2. Describe the scientific evidence for anthropogenic climate change
3. Describe the current and projected health effects of climate change
4. Describe the way in which climate change exacerbates health inequity
5. Describe adaptation and mitigation strategies
II. What is climate change?
The scientific evidence for anthropogenic climate change has been established with increasing
precision and there are widespread concerns about its potential to undermine the public health gains
of the past century (IPCC 2014). Human lifestyles have produced unprecedented changes to global
and local ecosystems and a burgeoning epidemic of chronic illness.

Climate is often defined as the ‘average’ weather over a period of time. It is usually calculated from
the mean and variability of temperature, precipitation and wind over a 30-year period. The Earth’s
climate varies naturally over time, but when we talk about ‘climate change’ we generally mean changes
which are anthropogenic, i.e. caused by humans, and which result in an increase of average global
temperatures above and beyond the normal variation of the Earth’s geological history.
Climate change is caused by the accumulation of gases in the atmosphere which prevents the sun’s
heat from radiating back into space. These gases include carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and
ozone, among others. They are more effective at warming the Earth than others, and some can remain
2
in the atmosphere for hundreds or even thousands of years. In this module we focus on carbon dioxide
(CO2) because it is the primary human-created contributor to global warming.
Unleashing the stored energy of carbon
The amount of carbon on the earth and in the atmosphere is fixed and constantly moving between
living and non-living things. Through photosynthesis, plants take CO2 out of the atmosphere and
release oxygen. This CO2 is converted into carbon compounds and stored. Animals absorb carbon by
eating plants. Animals breathe in oxygen and exhale CO2, which is then available for plants to use in
photosynthesis. When plants die and decompose, their carbon is released into the atmosphere or stored
in the soil.
For much of Earth’s history, large amounts of carbon have been locked up in fossil fuels - coal, oil and
gas – which are the remnants of organic matter that lived millions of years ago. The industrial
revolution unlocked the enormous, explosive energy stored in fossil fuels. We harness this energy to
improve health, particularly in industrialised nations, by developing infrastructure, goods production
and transport, access to clean drinking water, food, electricity for homes and workplaces. We also use
energy to power transport and machines to make our lives easier, reducing the amount of personal
energy we use for work and travel. This ‘high-carbon’ lifestyle, in which energy from fossil fuels
replaces the human energy powered by food, is part of what is called “development”.
Burning fossil fuels has released carbon compounds into the atmosphere (as CO2 and other gases) at a
much faster rate than they would have been released naturally. Other human processes, such as
clearing large areas of forest for agriculture or settlements, has reduced the Earth’s capacity to store
carbon. We are beginning to realise the need for a more ‘sustainable’ model of development, building
societies that can meet the needs of the current generation without impairing the capacity of future
generations to look after their own needs.

ACTIVITY 1
All animals, including humans, need access to basic resources such as oxygen, water, food and a
habitable climate. When these resources are scarce we are often willing to fight for them. Most wars,
although they are often masked by issues of religion or politics, are the result of groups of people
struggling to obtain or maintain access to natural resources such as agricultural land, fresh water, oil,
coal and natural gas. The combination of a growing population, rising consumer expectations and an
unstable climate is likely to exacerbate the frequency and intensity of conflicts over resources. In
addition to civilian deaths and displacement, wars destroy infrastructure that can take decades to
replace, and population health deteriorates rapidly when food, water and electricity supplies are
interrupted. Make a list of resources that people are willing to fight for. Look up situations in which
conflict has occurred over resource scarcity.

3
Responses - The Romans fought the Punic Wars (264-146BCE) to gain control of grain production in
the fertile valleys of North Africa, Sardinia and Corsica. Hitler justified his 1939 invasion of Poland
as providing “lebensraum” (living room) for the German people. Saddam Hussein’s 1990 invasion of
Kuwait was precipitated by a battle over ownership of an oilfield. Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea
may be seen as an attempt to gain control over the ‘bread basket’ of the Soviet Union. A chain of
remote, energy-rich islands known as Senkaku (in Japan) and Diaoyu (in China) are the subject of an
escalating territorial dispute.

Is climate change happening?

The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has been monitoring
scientific research on global temperature change since 1988. The 2014 report concludes that the
average temperature of the Earth's surface has risen by 0.6°C since the late 1800s and is expected to
increase by a minimum of 1.4° by the year 2100. This increase is larger than any century-long trend in
the past 10,000 years and is primarily due to human activity. In a worst case scenario, it may rise by
over 4°C, an increase that would make it difficult for large-scale human civilisations to survive.
How do we know?
Since the 1950s scientists have measured increases in concentrations of greenhouse gases in the
atmosphere. Temperature data collected from ancient sources (fossil records, pollen counts in ancient
bogs, isotopes of oxygen and hydrogen in ice cores) show a strong correlation between temperature
and atmospheric CO2 over the last 420,000 years. They also show that for the majority of this time the
Earth was much colder with occasional “interglacial” periods lasting about 10,000 to 30,000 years.

Temperature data from tree rings, ships logs, and meteorological stations show that the planet has
warmed about 1°C over the past 150 years. Over the past 50 years there has been an exponential rise
in the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere. Current levels of CO2 exceed any measured even in the
oldest ice cores; in short, CO2 levels are now higher than at any time in the history of Homo sapiens’
life on the planet.

A rise in global temperature of more than 4°C would have a catastrophic effect on current ecological
cycles, partly due to “tipping points” in the climate system. Normally, equilibria are maintained by
negative feedback cycles, where a shift in one direction (e.g. an increase in temperature or acidity)
triggers mechanisms that oppose the change (reduce temperature or acidity). A tipping point occurs
when a change triggers a positive feedback cycle. A small change in one direction triggers further
changes in the same direction. An example, of a positive feedback is that increasing global
temperatures triggers permafrost melting and the release of large amounts of methane stored in tundra.

4
Methane is a greenhouse gas twenty times more potent than CO2, and its release would triggers rapid
further warming.
Tipping point models are complex and difficult to predict with mathematical models, hence the critical
levels at which they occur are usually unclear. Further examples of climate tipping points include the
melting of the Greenland ice sheet, dieback of the Amazon rainforest and the shift of the West African
monsoon. Think about why these changes could eventually trigger a tipping point.
Is it caused by human activity?
The term ‘anthropogenic climate change’ refers to that proportion of global warming which is due to
human activity. Scientists have accepted that human activity is the major cause of the current level of
global warming. Population growth, urbanisation and demand for transportation, electricity and
processed goods are the main drivers. Nearly half a trillion tonnes of carbon-based fossil fuels have
been burned to drive our current lifestyles. Coupled with deforestation for agriculture and building,
the burning of fossil fuels by humans has transformed planetary ecosystems (see Figure 2).
Between 1959 and 2008, about 43 per cent of each year’s CO2 emissions remained in the atmosphere,
while 57 per cent was absorbed naturally into land and ocean ‘carbon sinks’. The proportion of CO2
emissions removed from the atmosphere decreased over the period from about 60 per cent to 55 per
cent. Models suggest that this trend was caused by a decrease in the uptake of CO2 by carbon sinks
due to climate change and variability.

5
ACTIVITY 2
We are producing CO2 faster than the earth can absorb it. We can address this problem by accessing
renewable energy sources (e.g. solar power, wind power or tidal power), reducing the amount of energy
we use (e.g. consume fewer material goods and travel less), or using energy more efficiently (e.g.
insulating houses or growing food closer to where it is consumed).
Which of these options do you think should be prioritised? How feasible is each option? Think about
practical, social and political issues. Discuss your ideas and give examples to support your arguments.

6
 III. Adaptation and mitigation strategies
Greenhouse gases that have accumulated in the atmosphere since the industrial revolution have already
caused the Earth to warm by 0.8°C more than it would have naturally. Some scientific models suggest
that global warming can still be capped at a level that we might be able to manage (2°C) with
immediate and substantial reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. Other models predict that keeping
the temperature rise below 2°C is unlikely or impossible.
Preparing for the changes that result from global warming is called climate change adaptation.
Adaptation measures include building heatwave warning systems and defences to protect land from
flooding and sea level rise, developing new agricultural crops for altered climates and improving living
conditions and livelihood prospects for climate refugees.
But in addition to managing changes that we cannot prevent, we must try to prevent a level of climate
change that we cannot manage; climate change mitigation. International proposals for climate change
mitigation include reducing the quantity of fossil fuels burned and protecting forests which absorb
carbon. Mitigation policies can seem expensive until the cost savings of a reduced level of climate
change adaptation are included. In addition, many climate impacts, such as the loss of human lives,
the loss of cultural heritage and damage to ecosystem services, are difficult to value and monetize.
Implementing effective adaptation and mitigation practices requires the involvement of many sectors,
including healthcare. Sustainable development addresses the environmental, social and economic
dimensions involved in the transition into sustainable societies and communities.

ACTIVITY 3 Who is responsible for climate change?

National governments have traditionally had three roles: protecting the country from invasion,
maintaining order within the country and raising revenue. Over the last century the role of the nation
state has expanded to include developing national infrastructure, providing social welfare and
supporting economic growth.

What is a country’s responsibility with regard to global environmental changes? This activity
encourages you to think about factors which influence whether national governments support
international commitments on preventing climate change.

Make a table with two columns. In the left hand column make a list of reasons why a government may
act to reduce climate change. In the right hand column make a list of reasons why they may not want
to act. You may want to find out what actions are being taken by your government. You could also
consider the difference between democratic and authoritarian forms of government.

7
 Reasons to take action Reasons to avoid action

Concern for long-term economic or Fossil fuels cheaply available

environmental sustainability of the country

Desire to position country at the forefront of No domestic alternative to fossil fuels, or a pre-
new technologies by subsidising sustainable existing commitment to fossil fuel subsidy
energy

Response to popular demand Response to pressure from corporate interests

IV. Health and climate change
The worldwide burden of ill health due to climate change is not well quantified, but conservative
estimates suggest that global warming already causes 200,000 premature deaths each year. Over 85
per cent of climate change-related deaths occur in low-income countries, predominantly in sub-
Saharan Africa and South Asia, and in children under the age of 5. Until mid-century, climate change
is expected to exacerbate existing health problems and extend the range of vector and water-borne
disease into new areas.
Even in rich countries, there is considerable evidence to suggest that preparation is needed to minimise
climate change related harms. For example, elevated temperatures in the 2003 European heat wave
resulted in over 30,000 heat-related deaths and flooding has caused billions of dollars of damage and
significant loss of life.
Vulnerable populations—children, elderly people, those living in poverty, people living in certain
geographic areas and people with underlying health conditions—are at even greater health risk from
climate change.

8
There are three ways in which climate change is expected to affect health (see Table 1).
Table 1. Health effects of climate change

Category Mechanism Health Impact

Short Term Direct

Heat stress and dehydration make deaths from heatstroke, stroke, cardiac disease,
Heatwaves respiratory conditions and diabetes more likely. Risk is highest in children, the aged, and
Risks

manual workers.
Extreme weather
events (floods, Compromised water sanitation (due to damage to water systems and run-off from farms)
storms) causing in- creases in infectious diseases such as malaria, cholera, and other gastrointestinal
infections.
Greenhouse gases such as ozone and the airborne pollutants associated with fossil fuel
Longer Term
Direct Risks

combustion contribute to an array of respiratory and cardiovascular disease through

inflammation of the airways.
Air quality
Airborne ash from drought-related wildfires contributing to a rise in asthma

Higher levels of atmospheric CO2 act as a fertilizer for plant

growth. Temperature changes are expected to initiate earlier and longer s Indirect Risk

lasting allergy seasons, and a change in the distribution of allergenic plant

varieties
Reductions in food Sea-level rise and changes in rainfall patterns reduce crop yields and increase prices.
Individuals

yield Malnutrition increases susceptibility to infectious disease, growth stunting and impaired
educational attainment.

Forced displacement has more adverse health impacts than voluntary or planned resettlement.
Migration and These include undernutrition, food- and water-borne diseases, sexually transmitted diseases,
Conflict diseases of overcrowding (measles, meningitis, acute respiratory infections) maternal mortality,
mental illness.
Infections and Changes in climate make environments more favourable to human pathogens, allowing more
vector-borne infections and for changes in the distribution of disease vectors.
diseases
Psychiatric trauma due to conflict, forced migration and extreme weather includes post-
traumatic stress, generalized anxiety, depression, aggression, suicide, somatoform disorders
Mental health and substance use.

9
There are immediate and direct risks from injury, disease and death due to extreme weather events
such as heat waves, storms and flooding.
The longer term risks include those posed by changes to air quality: increased concentrations of ground
level ozone inflame airways making acute exacerbations of asthma and emphysema more likely, and
air pollution is associated with increased risk of stroke and heart attack.
Indirect risks arise from changes and disruptions to ecological and biophysical systems, affecting food
yields, the production of aeroallergens (spores and pollens), bacterial growth rates, the range and
activity of disease vectors (such as mosquitoes) and water flows and quality. The indirect effects of
climate change will cause the greatest number of disability-adjusted life years (DALYS) and deaths,
but may be less noticeable because they occur slowly, follow complex causal pathways, and occur in
poorer countries with less robust recordkeeping.
Health inequity
The health impacts of climate change are unevenly distributed. Disadvantaged communities are not
only the most likely to be exposed to climate-related health threats; they also are more likely to become
unwell as a result (higher vulnerability) and have the least resources to respond to illness.
The risk of weather-related natural disasters is almost 80 times higher in low-income countries than in
high-income countries. More than half of urban dwellers in Africa and Asia lack access to adequate
water and sanitation and one billion people in poor countries live in slums; meanwhile richer countries
have used fossil fuel energy to improve nutrition and sanitation, build up infrastructure and combat
infectious disease. Within countries, it is the poorer members of society who are more likely to lack
access to clean water, sanitation and healthcare, more likely to experience adverse working conditions
during periods of excess urban heat and more likely to go hungry when food prices rise due to climate
change.
The poorest one billion people in the world produce only 3 per cent of global carbon emissions. The
illness burden therefore overwhelmingly falls on those who have contributed least to the problem of
climate change.

10
Figure 5. Deaths from diarrhoea compared to carbon emissions across the world
Source: worldmapper.org

Climate change and food production

The production and transportation of food is essential in a world where the population is set to reach
9 billion people by 2050. Malnutrition has a range of impacts. Moderate effects include stunted growth
and impaired brain development. In extreme cases, children die from a combination of starvation and
immunosuppression. On a population level, conflict is more likely when groups of people compete for
food and arable land or are forced to migrate to look for better prospects elsewhere.
Figure X shows how a fall in crop yield can lead to rises in global food prices. In rich countries,
consumers have to spend an increased proportion of income on food. In the world’s poorest countries
more people go hungry because incomes are already insufficient to purchase an adequate range of
nutrition.

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Fig X Climate change and food production
Food crop yield is sensitive to both high temperature and extreme weather. In earlier scientific models
it was suggested that while some agricultural areas would see a significant decrease in food production
due to heat waves and drought, others, especially in the global North, might benefit from warmer
weather and a longer growing season. Now, however, it is expected that any benefits of a longer
summer will be reversed by the effects of irregular weather, in particular prolonged rainstorms
alternating with dry weather.
Case study: Unaffordable Food
In 2007 a paediatrician in a university town in North India, serving a large, mostly rural population,
admitted a two year old boy with gastroenteritis, severe dehydration and severe malnutrition. His
parents were subsistence farmers. The boy and his mother had travelled 8 hours to reach the ward after
selling livestock to pay the bus and taxi fare to reach the hospital. The boy’s father had remained at
home to look after the crops and the boy’s two siblings. The boy was treated with IV fluids but because
his heart was weakened by malnourishment, the fluids pushed him into acute heart failure. He died
within a few hours of reaching the ward.
Children suffering chronic malnutrition have poorly functioning immune systems, they are prone to
infections, and the biggest killer is acute gastroenteritis. In some rural clinics, 50 per cent of the
children meet the WHO criteria for moderate malnutrition. The staff noted that admissions with
malnutrition had increased between 2006 and 2007. During the same period world cereal prices
increased by 34 per cent. By 2007 parents could only afford to buy two thirds of the food they had
previously been able to purchase. Food prices peaked in mid-2008 at 250 per cent of January 2006
prices. The price spike was due to several factors, including rising oil prices which affect the cost of
mechanised production, the use of cereals to create biofuels (turning food into petrol) and market
speculation. In addition, a massive drought-related crop failure is attributed to changing weather
conditions which are predicted in climate change models.
12
Some questions to ponder upon:-

• Dependence of human health on global and local ecological systems

• Contribution of human activity and population size to environmental changes

• Mechanisms by environmental change affects human health

Disease vectors Extreme weather Food security Migration War

• Co-benefits: features of a health-promoting local environment and synergies between

environmental sustainability and health promotion

Clean air Active travel infrastructure Green spaces

References

IPCC. Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability. Part A: Global and Sectoral
Aspects. Contribution of Working Group II to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change. UN. 2014.

Additional web resources:

Webinar on 'Climate change: health impacts, opportunities and policy responses'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QXtUlca6rU

13
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Ecology and Public Health Part II

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Global Environmental Changes, Hazards, Biodiversity, Intergenerational

Equity, Prevention, Health, Disease

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary This module describes the ways in which human health depends on
ecological systems and the contribution of human activity to global
environmental changes, in particular to climate change.

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Stefi Barna

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR)
Language Editor (LE)

1
Human Health and the Environment

On completion of this module you will be able to:

1. Describe the ways in which human health is determined by the natural environment

2. Recognise sources and control measures for environmentally-mediated disease

3. Discuss the contribution of human activity to global environmental changes

4. Describe the relationship between health inequity and environmental change

I. Introduction

Over the last two centuries, dramatic improvements in nutrition, sanitation and access to healthcare
have allowed humans to live longer, healthier lives. In 1800, average life expectancy globally was
approximately 30 years; two centuries later it was 66 years. Over the same period, global
population increased from one billion to seven billion.

Most advances in population health stem from the technological mastery of the relationship
between humans and the natural environment. For example, with technology and fossil fuels we
have created an infrastructure to bring clean drinking water to billions of people, designed systems
to water, fertilise, harvest and transport the food to nourish them, and invented chemical
insecticides to reduce transmission of vector-borne diseases.

However, technological advances have also created new hazards for human health, including
chemical pollution, nuclear radiation and climate change. The health burdens of these hazards are
distributed unequally between and within populations. In this module we will explore the physical,
chemical and biological components of environmental health and the evidence linking human
health, directly and indirectly, with the natural environment.

2
II. Environmental determinants of health

Learning outcome 1: Describe the ways in which human health is determined by the natural
environment

Learning outcome 2: Recognise sources and control measures for environmentally-mediated

disease

There are many factors which together determine the health of individuals and communities. For
the most part, whether an individual will live a long and healthy life, or suffer from early disease,
disability or death, is determined by their genetic makeup and their environment.

Our genetic makeup, our age and our sex are relatively fixed. However, where we live, the state
of our environment, our income and education level, and our relationships with friends and family
all have considerable impacts on health, and are largely a result of policies or practices which can
be modified. These are called the ‘social’ determinants of health.

The social determinants of health are illustrated in the figure below. The centre of the circle shows
of non-modifiable determinants of health such as genetics, age and sex. Each ring outside the
centre illustrates one kind of social, or modifiable, aspect of health. Lifestyle choices include an
individual’s diet, exercise, smoking, and drinking habits. The larger issues include the kinds of
jobs available and how socially integrated we are. But the broadest range of factors are
environmental, from unsafe drinking water and poor sanitation or hygiene to indoor and outdoor
pollution, workplace hazards, industrial accidents, automobile accidents, or poor natural resource
management.

Surprisingly, access to health care services often has less of an impact on health than does the
environment. For this reason, a well-developed system of health care has less of an effect on human
health, longevity and wellbeing than does a robust, resilient natural and physical environment. The
health of our natural environment, and the quality of larger ecosystem which supports all life,
determines how healthy we can be.

3
The Health Map. Barton and Grant (2006). Reproduced by permission.

Traditionally, environmental hazards to human health have been classified as biological (e.g.
microbes, malaria), chemical (e.g. toxins) or physical (e.g. radiation).

Physical hazards are naturally-occurring processes which threaten human health. Examples
include ultraviolet radiation (sunlight) which damages DNA, or natural phenomena such as
volcanoes, earthquakes, tornadoes, landslides or droughts

Biological hazards are interactions between organisms, in which the transfer or viruses, bacteria
or parasites causes disease. These are also natural processes.

4
Chemical hazards can occur naturally (i.e. heavy metals such as lead or mercury the compounds
in foods that cause allergic reactions in humans) or be human-made. As chemical use has grown
in industrialized societies, so have chemical-related diseases, including cancer, asthma, birth
defects, developmental disabilities, autism, endometriosis and infertility.

Children are particularly sensitive to biological, chemical and physical hazards; the World Health
Organisation estimates that nearly one-third of the 6.6 million deaths in children under the age of
5 each year are associated with environment-related causes, including diarrhoeal disease and
malaria. The release of tens of thousands of new chemicals since the 1950s coincides with rapidly
rising incidence of childhood asthma, obesity, diabetes, attention deficit hyperactive disorder
(ADHD) and birth defects. rowing scientific evidence links the incidence of these diseases in part
to environmental toxicants. Even at low levels, chemicals can disrupt physiological systems and
cause disease: disrupting hormones or sexual development and causing cancer.

The short film Environment, Health and You offers a historical overview of environmental health
and the interconnections between air, water, soil, food production and distribution, chemicals,
population, climate change, and policy. Although it is made for the context of the United States,
the principles and processes are similar in India https://vimeo.com/32226544

Case study of chemical hazards: Mercury

The main sources of mercury pollution include coal emissions from plant emissions, mercury cell
chlor-alkali processing facilities, along with artisanal and industrial gold mining.

Discarded mercury pollutes the global environment, affecting bodies of water and the organisms
inhabiting them. Mercury that contaminates bodies of water and moist earth will turn into highly
toxic organic mercury. Even small amount of this substance will harm the brain, and the rest of
the nervous system. Organic mercury also accumulates in the bodies of exposed animals.

Health care is a considerable source of mercury pollution. Fluorescent lamps, thermometers,

dental fillings; waste treatment and incineration of products containing mercury; and cremation.
Many instruments used in hospitals, health care facilities and laboratories contain mercury. The
substance is commonly found in thermometers, and blood pressure measuring device. Tools used

5
in construction and the households such as thermostats, pressure gauges, and switches may also
contain mercury. Mercury may be released from these and other similar products, as no device is
100% failure-proof. Substances such as fixatives, preservatives, lab chemicals, cleaners, and other
products may have mercury added deliberately. When discarded inappropriately, mercury always
contaminates the environment. At room temperature, significant amounts of mercury can turn into
gas.

Reducing methyl mercury accumulation in the global environment a global priority. Fortunately,
there are safe, cost-effective non-mercury alternatives for nearly all health care processes that use
it. Most mercury-based thermometers and

Everyday products such as batteries, lighting fixtures, electrical and electronic devices, dental
products, and measuring and control devices.

The Delhi municipal government is developing a plan to phase out mercury-based medical
devices (pdf) in hospitals under its jurisdiction.

As more and more laws banning mercury product get passed in wealthier countries, stocks are
usually sold to Asian countries. This practice will likely add challenges to mercury reduction
programs in the region. This is an alarming trend, and calls for greater controls on trade, including
export and import bans on mercury

II. Global environmental changes

Learning outcome 3: Discuss the contribution of human activity to global environmental changes

The Earth has a number of mechanisms to maintain the equilibrium of its biosphere and there is
now scientific consensus that humans have significantly altered the biosphere’s equilibrium. Over
the past several hundred years, human activity – from has made far-reaching changes in the
structure and function of the Earth's natural systems There are substantial health effects from the
anthropogenic degradation of nature's life support systems. The chart below shows several of
these.

6
Several recent reports explore the health impacts of global environmental change in great detail.
The 2015 Lancet commission on climate change and health explores the health impacts of climate
change and fossil fuel combustion. The WHO’s Convention on Biological Diversity State of
Knowledge review on Biodiversity and Health. The Rockefeller Foundation-Lancet Commission

7
on Planetary Health situates both of these in the broader context of anthropogenic influences on
the environment and the social and political failures responsible for these harms. The figure below
takes a wide view. It describes the boundaries of the essential Earth-system processes which make
the planet hospitable for human life. Four of these have been breached: climate change,
biodiversity loss and disruption of the nitrogen cycle and ocean acidification , . In others areas
(chemical pollution, land degradation, freshwater use, and ozone depletion) threshold limits have
not yet been quantified (Rockstrom et al., 2009).

It also shows how close we may be breaching those boundaries, which would mean exceed the
carrying capacity of the Earth in those areas. Breaching these boundaries will undermine the
ecosystem processes needed to support our population of 7 billion people.

Geophysical planetary boundaries (by permission from Macmillan Publishers Ltd: Nature 461,
472-475 (2009)

8
Some scientists have suggested that our current geological era should be titled ‘The Anthropocene’
to acknowledge it as the time when human activities began to have a discernable global effect on
the Earth's systems.

Case study: Biodiversity

Biodiversity - the variety of life – is often discussed in terms of 'ecosystems services', the functions
ecologies play in human societies. Examples of the ‘services’ provided by ecosystems to humanity
include ‘products’ such as clean water, flood regulation, snf disease control. Forest and wetlands
systems filter and purify water. Woodlands stabilise the saturation of soil on steep surfaces,
preventing landslides and flooding. Plants reduce air pollution by absorbing carbon and other
gaseous and particulate pollutants.

Biodiverse ecologies helps control infectious disease and are vital for medical research. More than
half of all drugs registered with the US Food and Drug Administration in 1981-2010 were derived
from natural sources. But deforestation threatens the extinction of the tree frog species whose
toxins underpin our understanding of anesthetic agents. Climate change and ocean acidification
destroys the coral reefs and the snail species whose toxin is used to develop new painkillers.
Melting artic ice denies us the ability to study how polar bears avoid renal failure, diabetes and
osteoporosis in circumstances that cause it in other mammals like us.

Biodiverse systems are also resilient, they can minimize disruptions, recover from shocks and
stresses, and to adapt and grow from them. Systems with low biodiversity are susceptible to
collapse when faced with a new pathogens, but biodiverse ecosystems are robust - that is, they
have the adaptive capacity to remain stable in the face of external disturbances and are protective
against a range of infectious diseases.

Case study: climate change

The effects of climate change threaten to undermine the last half-century of gains in development
and global health. The impacts are already being felt, and future projections represent a high, and
potentially catastrophic risk, to human health. (See module X climate change and health for more
information).

9
III. Health Inequity and the Environment

Learning outcome 4: Describe the relationship between health inequity and environmental change

Health inequity is the systematic and avoidable difference in life expectancy and health status
between groups of people. Many aspects of policy or social practice affect the environment in
ways which can increase health inequity. Development and planning policies often locate a
disproportionate number of polluting industries, power plants or waste disposal areas near low-
income or communities. Transportation and housing practices also affect the distribution of
environmental pollution. The principle of environmental justice holds that all people have an equal
right protection from environmental burdens.

10
Preventing health inequity

Imagine that you are standing by the shore of a swiftly flowing river and you hear a drowning man
cry out. You jump into the cold water, fight against the strong current and force your way to the
man. You grasp him tightly and swim slowly back to shore. You pull him onto the bank and start
CPR. Just as he begins to revive you hear another cry for help. You jump back into the water. You
struggle against the current and eventually reach a drowning woman. You eventually get her to
shore, lift her onto the bank beside the man and start to resuscitate her. Just as she begins to
breathe you hear yet another cry for help. Astonished, exhausted and overwhelmed you return to
the cold waters and force your way to a desperate child. Although the child weighs little, it requires
great effort to bring him to shore, lay him on the bank and start to revive him. Near exhaustion, it
occurs to you that you are so busy saving people that you have no time to see what is happening
upstream to cause them to fall into the river. Why are people falling in? Is the bridge broken? Are
they unaware of the danger of crossing the river at that point? Should warning signs be posted?
Are swimming lessons needed? Has a particular cultural practice resulted in greater risk of falling
in?

The story is a metaphor for the ways in which we can choose to prevent ill health and death. The
drowning people represent those who have become ill and need treatment in a healthcare system.
Curative treatment is expensive, labour- and resource-intensive. In contrast, to identify and act on
the upstream, or ‘root’ causes of injury and illness by preventing them (keeping people from falling
in to the river in the first place) is a powerful way to reduce inequalities in health.
11
There are three types of interventions which can reduce risks or threats to health. Primary
prevention is preventive. It aims to prevent disease or injury before it ever occurs. This is done by
preventing exposures to hazards that cause disease or injury, or altering behaviours that can lead
to disease or injury, or increasing resistance to disease or injury should exposure occur. These
include legislation (and enforcement) to control the use of hazardous products (e.g. asbestos),
education about safe behaviours (e.g. reducing occupational exposure to health hazards) and
immunization against infectious diseases.

Secondary prevention is protective. It aims to reduce the impact of a disease or injury that has
already occurred by detecting and treating disease or injury as soon as possible to halt or slow its
progress, and preventing progression to long-term problems. Examples include: screening tests to
detect disease in its earliest stages (e.g. ) and modified work so injured or ill workers can return
safely to their jobs.

Tertiary prevention is curative. It helps people manage long-term health problems or injuries in
order to preserve as much as possible their ability to function, their quality of life and their life
expectancy. Examples include manage (eg ) and vocational rehabilitation programs to retrain
workers for new jobs when they are unable to recover their previous function.

Take the example of a polluted river which causes illness in the surrounding community.

 Primary prevention action: approach the company discharging industrial chemicals into the
river (eliminate the exposure altogether).

 Secondary prevention action: advise local residents to avoid certain uses of the river, to
identify signs of illness, or initiate a screening programme to detect poisoning or infection to treat
it early.

 Tertiary prevention action: teach people how to reduce the effects of their condition.

In environmental health issues, a combination of primary, secondary and tertiary interventions are
needed to achieve a meaningful degree of prevention and protection. However, the further

12
“upstream” one is from illness and injury, the likelier that the intervention will be effective and
will reduce health inequity.

Another reason to focus on source or primary level prevention of environmental health hazards, is
that healthcare organizations are themselves major contributors to environmental pollution,
resource depletion, climate change and biodiversity loss. A large private hospital can produce up
to a ton of general waste each day, along with a range of chemical, pharmaceutical and radioactive
waste which requires special handling. Incinerating medical waste produces large amounts of
airborne dioxins, mercury and other pollutants which can drift over thousands of miles, and the
ash produced from incineration can spread disease.

Intergenerational equity

Our discussion of health equity includes considerations of distribution of resources for health and
justice between groups of people within and between nations. It assumes that greater equity can
be achieved, through policy and practice. But it only considers people of the same generation. In
a world of global environmental changes, a similar consideration should be made
intergenerationally. In many ways, the economic, development gains in health gains of the
previous century have been achieved by mortgaging the health of future generations. To safeguard
equity between present and future generations, primary prevention of planetary boundary breaches
(such as climate change and biodiversity loss) in the current generation is necessary to prevent
illness, injury and death for future generations.

IV. CONCLUSION

Humans are components in a complex web of life. Because of the ongoing interaction between
humans and the environment, our health is to a considerable extent determined by the quality of
the ecosystems we inhabit. The functioning of ecosystems is also determined in large part by
human activity. In short, environment and health are closely related.

In this module we have given some examples of the ways in which human health is determined by
the natural environment and examples of causes of environmentally-related disease and how it can
be controlled at primary, secondary and tertiary levels. We have also considered how to reduce

13
the unequal distribution of the environmental burden of disease. Although the task of may seem
daunting, particularly considering the growing global effects of anthropogenic environmental
change, it is important to remember that there are many solutions within reach. We can address
the drivers of environmental change by redefining prosperity to focus on health and wellbeing for
all, by sustainable and equitable patterns of consumption, and by respecting for the integrity of
natural systems.

Glossary

Ecosystem: A dynamic complex of plant, animal, and microorganism communities and the non-
living environment which function together as a unit.

Anthropocene: The geological epoch that began about 11,700 years ago, during which humanity
has developed agriculture, writing and large civilization, is called the Holocene. A new geological
epoch called the Anthropocene has been proposed to delineate the time when human activities
have created a discernable global effect on the Earth's systems. Several dates have been proposed
to mark its beginning and the term is not yet formally recognised. See
https://youtube/SIdB9P1B5X4

References

Barna, S. Horsley, J. Walpole, S “Human Health and the Global Environment in Global Health”
in Global Health Sage Publications 2015.

Barton, H. and Grant, M. (2006) A health map for the local human habitat. Journal for the Royal
Society for the Promotion of Health, 126(6): 252-253.

IPCC. Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability. Part A: Global and Sectoral
Aspects. Contribution of Working Group II to the Fifth Assessment Report of the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. UN. 2014.

Patz, J.A., Gibbs, H.K., Foley, J.A., Rogers, J.V., Smith, K.R. (2007) ‘Climate change and global
health: quantifying a growing ethical crisis’, EcoHealth, 4: 397–405.

14
Rockstrom, J., Steffen, W., Noone, K., Persson Å., Chapin, F. S., Lambin, EF. et al. (2009) ‘A safe
operating space for humanity’. Nature, 46: 472-475.

World Health Organisaion (2015) Convention on Biological Diversity State of Knowledge review
on Biodiversity and Health.

Lancet- Rockefeller Commission on Planetary Health 2015. Executive summary, Safeguarding

human health in the anthropocene epoch: The report of the Commission on Planetary Health.

http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(15)60901-1/fulltext

https://youtu.be/d4YCPqz8NQU

APHA Environment, Health and You https://vimeo.com/32226544

This short film presents a historical overview of public and environmental health in the United
States over the past century. It's a complex story of the interconnections between air, water, soil,
food production and distribution, chemicals, population, climate change, national, state and local
policy, and communities taking their health into their own hands.

15
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Ecology and Public Health Part III

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Environmental Epidemiology, Environmental Risk Factors, Vulnerability,

Resilience, Environmental Health Policies

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary This module describe the impact of the environment on human health and
the types of environmental risks to which humans are exposed. It discuss
various environmental perspectives around environmental health
protection policies and presents principles of environmental risk
assessment

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Shreelata Rao Seshadri, Nilanjan Azim Premji University

(CW) Bhor and Suraj Parab
Content Reviewer (CR) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Language Editor (LE) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Page 1 of 21
 I. Introduction

Thinking about health and well-being in the context of development requires a broad multi-
disciplinary understanding of the interaction between humans and their ecosystems. Events in the
past few decades have brought to the forefront the need to understand the linkage between the
environment in which we live and the potential hazards it poses to our health. On December 4,
1984, more than 40 tons of methyl isocyanate gas leaked from a pesticide plant in Bhopal, India,
immediately killing about 4,000 people and causing significant morbidity and premature death
for thousands more. The leak was caused by a large multinational conglomerate which was able
to distance itself from the disaster for the most part due to weak laws relating to environmental
safety, indicating a need for strengthening such laws and provisions. About three decades later,
India again faced an environmental disaster: the flooding in the state of Uttarakhand in 2013,
claimed more than 6,000 lives. This was attributed to climate change and poorly managed
development projects: premature melting of Himalayan glaciers, as well as unseasonal monsoon
rains created the conditions for extensive landslides and back-flooding. The situation was
exacerbated by multiple dams, haphazard diversion of rivers and illegal tourist and other
development along the riverbanks. The need to understand and manage environmental risks to
morbidity and mortality, and create legal and policy frameworks to safeguard against rampant
flouting of environmental safety measures is now the need of the hour.

There is clear evidence that environment and health are closely connected. World Health
Organization (WHO) data suggest that environmental factors account for 24% of the world’s
burden of disease,1 35% in regions such as Sub-Saharan Africa2 and 23% of all deaths. The
environmental changes are largely attributable to human activities and resultant driving forces
and pressures; increasing global warming, exacerbating risk factors that have an impact on
human health.

1
Retrieved from http://rnao.ca/policy/projects/environmental-determinants-health.
2
Health and environment in sustainable development: five years after the earth summit. Geneva, Programmes on
Health and Environment, World Health Organization, June 1997 and Smith KR, Corvalán, Kjellstrom T. How much
global ill health is attributable to environmental factors? Epidemiology, 1999, 10 (5): 573-84.
Page 2 of 21
Climate change was among the 26 environmental, behavioural and occupational risk factors
evaluated by WHO as part of a comparative assessment of the causes of global and regional
burden of disease for the
year 2000.3 Table 1 shows
that climate change is
causing excess disease
burden in the developing
world. India is also
experiencing similar
challenges by increased
rate of water-related
diseases like diarrhea,
vector-borne infections like
malaria and dual burden of
malnutrition. Climate
change is projected to cause an additional 250,000 deaths per year from malaria, diarrhoea, heat
stress and under-nutrition between 2030 and 2050. Children, women and the poor in developing
countries will be the most vulnerable.4 The Health and Environment Linkages Initiative (HELI)
of the WHO recommends that policy should address the root-causes of climate change; as well
as take action to adapt to a changing climate through actions that immediately improve the health
of the poorest communities and also reduce their vulnerability to climate change effects in the
future.5

At the national level, there are several programs that address issues related to disease control,
improved accessibility of water, sanitation and hygiene, malnutrition such as National Vector
Borne Disease Control Programme, WASH, ICDS/Balwadi nutrition programme, Mid-day meal,

3
Global environmental change and health. Retrieved from
http://www.who.int/globalchange/publications/globalenvchangebrochure.pdf?ua=1.
4
News release 16 November 2015: WHO launches country profiles to help action on health and climate change.
Retrieved from http://www.who.int/globalchange/mediacentre/news/country-profiles/en/.
5
Policy brief: Climate change. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/heli/risks/climate/climatechange/en/.

Page 3 of 21
RBSKY, Prevention and control of Non communicable diseases etc. The draft National Health
Policy 2015 also talks about few areas stated above. However, progress on implementing the
provisions of available policies and programs to reduce environmental risks to health has been
slow; and there is a need for a great deal more of focused research on the linkage between
environmental health hazards and its impact on human health in order to respond in an effective
way as we move forward.

II. Objectives of this module

1. To describe the impact of the environment on human health and the types of
environmental risks to which humans are exposed

2. To introduce the key steps and principles of environmental risk assessment and the
pathways that connect human health and the environment

3. To discuss existing national and international health protection policies and the responses
to existing and emerging health risks

4. To reflect on the impact of environmental health risks on equity, vulnerability and

resilience

5. To critique the role of various sectors (research, academia, public health, public policy
etc) in contributing to and supporting an effective response to environmental challenges
to health outcomes

III. Impact of Environment on Human Health and Environmental Risk Factors

A World Bank study (2001) on the contribution of environmental factors to ill-health concluded
that one fifth of the total burden of ill-health in Andhra Pradesh could be attributed to
environmental causes.6 The study goes on to state that morbidity and mortality caused by major
environmental risks account for about 20% of the total burden of disease in India as a whole;
second only to malnutrition and ahead of all other preventable risk factors. The World Health
Organization (WHO, 2009) estimated - based on Comparative Risk Assessment, evidence
synthesis and expert evaluation for regional exposure and WHO country health statistics 2004 -

6
World Bank (2001). Environmental Health in India: Priorities in Andhra Pradesh. Environment and Social
Development Unit, South Asia Region; World Bank, New Delhi.
Page 4 of 21
that the annual environmental burden of diseases was 65 DALYs per 1000 population.7 Globally,
this ranges from a low of 13 and a high of 289 DALYs per 1,000; and in India, this translates to
about 2.7 million deaths annually, accounting for 24% of all deaths worldwide.8 The same report
indicates the environmental burden of disease in India for a range of disease conditions (Table
1).

Table 2: Environmental Burden of Disease

Risk factors/environmental hazards: Generally, environmental risks are categorized as follows:

(i) Biological hazards such as bacteria, viruses, parasites, protozoa and fungi; (ii) chemical
hazards from harmful chemicals in air, water, soil, food and man-made products; (iii) natural
hazards such as fire, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, floods and storms; (iv) cultural hazards,
such as unsafe working conditions, unsafe highways, criminal assault and poverty; and (v)
lifestyle choices such as smoking, poor food choices, alcoholism and unsafe sex.

7
Disability-adjusted life-years are a standard measure of the burden of disease. The concept of a DALY combines
life-years lost due to premature death and fractions of years of healthy life lost as a result of illness or disability. A
weighting function that incorporates discounting is used for years of life lost at each age to reflect the different
social weights that are usually given to illness and premature mortality at different ages. The combination of
discounting and age weights produces the pattern of DALY lost by a death at each age. For example, the death of a
baby girl represents a loss of 32.5 DALYs, while a female death at age 60 represents 12 lost DALYs (values are
slightly lower for males because of their lower life expectancy). Source: Murray and Lopez, 1996.
8
World Health Organization (2009). Country Profile of Environmental Burden of Disease; Geneva.
Page 5 of 21
Fig 1: Harmful effects of environmental change and ecosystem impairment on human
health

Source: www.millenniumassessment.org/

The World Bank report9 classifies environmental health risks fall into two broad categories:

(i) Traditional risks associated with poverty and under-development, including unsafe water,
poor sanitation and waste disposal, indoor air pollution and vector-borne diseases
(such as malaria and dengue); and

(ii) Newer risks due to ‘development’ projects that lack adequate environmental safeguards,
urban air pollution, and exposure to agro-industrial chemicals and waste.

These categories have been unpacked in a report issued by the Ministry of Environment and
Forests, which took stock of the environmental health situation, the risks and challenges and put

9
Ibid.
Page 6 of 21
together a ‘vision’ document that takes a comprehensive approach to this issue.10 The report
acknowledges that the environment is which we live has a great impact on our health, and
identifies the following specific household, workplace, outdoor and indoor factors that play an
important role in determining human health:

(i) Water: About 75-80% of water pollution is estimated to be caused by domestic sewage, and the
remaining by industrial wastewater which could be much more toxic. Major industries that cause
pollution at the point of production are: distilleries, sugar, textile, electroplating, pesticides,
pharmaceuticals, pulp & paper mills, tanneries, dyes and dye intermediates, petro-chemicals, steel
plants etc. There are other sources of pollution that are ‘nonpoint’, such as agricultural fertilizer
and pesticide runoffs in rural areas. Unsafe water, ingestion of contaminants and poor sanitation
are associated with infectious diarrhea, cholera, jaundice and other gastrointestinal tract infections
that together are the cause of significant levels of morbidity and mortality.

The environmental effects of poor water quality on human health are increasing
casualties among world’s poor especially in developing countries including India. Over 1
billion people globally lack access to safe drinking water supplies, while 2.6 billion lack
adequate sanitation; diseases related to unsafe water, sanitation and hygiene result in an
estimated 1.7 million deaths every year.11 In India, contamination of water source (such
as water tap, hand pump, well etc.) could be the consequences of many factors: open
defecation, improper drainage system, monsoon flooding, land irrigation and fertilizers
used in agricultural work. India accounts for 90 per cent of the 692 million people in
South Asia who practice open defecation.12 Water stored in containers within the
household also present a risk due to a variety of unhygienic practices. Diarrheal infection
due to consumption of unclean water is one of the leading casualties claiming lives of
many poor children. The World Bank study on environment health in India suggests
“Most of the health benefits from improving access to water in rural areas and to

10
Ministry of Environment and Forests (2000). Vision Statement of Environment and Human Health.
http://www.moef.nic.in/sites/default/files/visenvhealth.pdf.

11
Policy brief: water, health and ecosystems: the linkages. Retrieved from
http://www.who.int/heli/risks/water/water/en/.
12
WHO fast facts on water sanitation and health. Retrieved from
http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/monitoring/jmp2012/fast_facts/en/.
Page 7 of 21
 sanitation in both rural and urban areas are public benefits that accrue to the local
community as a whole via the reduction in health risk for all households rather than
private benefits that accrue primarily or exclusively to the households that install water
connections or toilets”.13

(ii) Ground Water Pollution: Industrial effluents contaminate ground water sources; heavy metals
and toxic compounds contained in these effluents pose significant health risks. Several incidents
of ground water contamination due to industrial clusters are reported specially due to
electroplating units, 4 tanneries, dyeing and printing units etc.

(iii) Air pollution: The largest contributors to air pollution are industries, vehicles and, to a smaller
extent, domestic sources. Urban air pollution is largely as a result of combustion of fossil fuels
which cause a broad range of acute and chronic conditions such as asthma and, in the case of
suspended particulate matter, lung cancer. Other constituents of air pollution, such as lead and
ozone, are also associated with serious health effects. Industries that contribute significantly to air
pollution include: thermal power plants, iron and steel plants, smelters, foundries, stone crushers,
cement, refineries, lime kilns chemicals & petro-chemical plants etc.

(iv) Indoor air pollution: Cooking indoors with solid fuels such as dung, wood, agricultural residues
or coal emit significant numbers of pollutants including carbon monoxide, nitrogen and sulfur
oxides. The relationship of indoor air pollution with poverty is strong, since it is largely the poor
who cook indoors with unprocessed fuels using challahs or stoves that are not energy efficient.
This results in emissions of carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, suspended particulate matter and
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon (PAH) etc. which cause respiratory disease such as cough,
dysponea and abnormal lung function. Women and children tend to be the worst affected by
indoor air pollution. Use of biomass fuel (such as wood), and is responsible for the deaths
of an estimated 1.6 million people annually. More than half of these deaths occur among
children under five years of age.14 Biomass fuel is considered to be one of the leading
social determinants of malnutrition among children in India. Upgrading to cleaner and
more cost-effective energy technologies such as LPG, biogas or solar power would
reduce the impact of indoor air pollution significantly, especially in rural areas; as also

13
Anthony J. McMichael et al., ‘Comparative Quantification of Health Risks’ Chapter 20: Global climate change,
2004.
14
WHO. The World Health Report 2002: Reducing Risks, Promoting Healthy Life. Geneva, World Health
Organization, 2002. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/heli/risks/indoorair/indoorair/en/
Page 8 of 21
 improved design of stoves and ventilation system and increased awareness of health risks
among the public.15

(v) Biological hazards: Infectious diseases spread by biological means constitute a significant
burden of disease, particularly in developing countries. Diseases such as Tuberculosis, influenza,
malaria and measles are examples of diseases spread by bacteria. Viruses are smaller than
bacteria but just as dangerous, causing diseases such as influenza and HIV/AIDS; the latter can be
transmitted even further from mother to child. Biological hazards can be transmissible, spread
through air, water, food and body fluids. Large-scale outbreaks are called epidemics, and
sometimes such epidemics can be global as in the case of avian flu or HIV/AIDS.

(vi) Climate change and allergens: Climate change can expose humans to extremes of
weather or weather disasters. Changes in weather conditions can change the dynamics of
disease vectors (such as malaria and dengue); it can change the yield of agricultural
crops, impacting nutritional outcomes; the resurgence of pests and pathogens; and a range
of effects on human health due to depleted natural resources and erosion of natural
environments.

(vii) Chemical pollutants: The Indian economy is heavily reliant on agriculture. There
has been an increasing reliance on the use of pesticides to overcome and reduce the
environmental risks on cultivation. “Long-term exposure to pesticides can increase the
risk of developmental and reproductive disorders, immune-system disruption, endocrine
disruption, impaired nervous-system function, and development of certain cancers.
Children are at higher risk from exposure than are adults.”16,17 Thus, it is an important
environmental health issue in India and must be addressed through policy and programs.
The WHO recommends a multi-pronged approach to mitigate the effects of changing
agricultural practices: (i) at the policy level, improved regulation and control of pesticide
sale, distribution, and use; (ii) at the health system level, systems to identify, treat, and
monitor cases of pesticide poisonings; and (iii) educating the public with well-designed
15
Policy brief: Indoor air pollution: environment and health linkages. Retrieved from
http://www.who.int/heli/risks/indoorair/indoorair/en/.
16
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations/United Nations Environment Programme/World Health
Organization. Childhood pesticide poisoning: information for advocacy and action. Geneva, United Nations
Environment Programme, 2004.
17
Yáñez L et al. Overview of human health and chemical mixtures: problems facing developing countries.
Environmental Health Perspectives, 2002, 110(6):901–909.
Page 9 of 21
 educational/advocacy tools to inform the public as well as agriculture and health-care
workers about the risks to health of excessive/improper use of agrochemicals.18

(viii) Zoonotic transmission: A recent study lead by the International Livestock

Research Institute (ILRI), UK found a huge burden of disease that crosses over from
animals to humans – ‘zoonoses’. The study found that 13 zoonoses are responsible for 2.4
billion cases of human illness and about 2,2 million death every year. Most of these are in
middle and low income countries.19 While zoonoses can be transmitted to people by
either wild or domesticated animals, most human infections are acquired from the
world’s 24 billion livestock, including pigs, poultry, cattle, goats, sheep and camels.

Figure 2: Global Prevalence of Zoonotic Disease

18
Policy Brief: Agrochemicals: linking health and environmental management. Retrieved from
http://www.who.int/heli/risks/toxics/chemicals/en/.
19
Grace D, Mutua F, Ochungo P, Kruska R, Jones K, Brierley L, Lapar L, Said M, Herrero M, Phuc PM, Thao NB,
Akuku I and Ogutu F. 2012. Mapping of poverty and likely zoonoses hotspots. Zoonoses Project 4. Report to the
UK Department for International Development. Nairobi, Kenya: ILRI.

Page 10 of 21
Map by ILRI, published in an ILRI report to DFID: Mapping of Poverty and Likely Zoonoses Hotspots, 2012.

IV. Principles of Environmental Risk Assessment

An environmental risk assessment asks the following questions:20

 What types of health problems may be caused by environmental stressors such as chemicals
and radiation?

 What is the chance that people will experience health problems when exposed to different
levels of environmental stressors?

 Is there a level below which some chemicals do not pose a human health risk?

 What environmental stressors are people exposed to and at what levels and for how long?

 Are some people more likely to be susceptible to environmental stressors because of factors
such as age, genetics, pre-existing health conditions, ethnic practices, gender, etc.?

 Are some people more likely to be exposed to environmental stressors because of factors
such as where they work, where they play, what they like to eat, etc.?

Environmental risks are usually expressed as probabilities. A risk is the probability of suffering
harm from a hazard that can cause injury, disease, death, economic loss or damage. Risk is
expressed as the mathematical statement of the likelihood that an individual will be harmed by
exposure to a particular hazard. So, for example, the lifetime probability of developing lung
cancer from smoking one packet of cigarettes per day is 1 in 250. This means that one out of
every 250 people who smoke one packet of cigarettes every day will likely develop lung cancer
over their lifetime.

Risk assessment is the process of using statistical methods to estimate how much of a risk a
particular environmental hazard poses to human health, and developing an appropriate risk

20
United States Environmental Protections Agency. Human Health Risk Assessment.
http://www2.epa.gov/risk/human-health-risk-assessment.

Page 11 of 21
management strategy. A risk management strategy involves deciding whether and how a
particular risk can be mitigated.

Figure 3: Risk Assessment and Risk Management

Risk Assessment Risk Management

Hazard Identification: What Comparative Risk Analysis:

is the hazard? How does it compare with
other risks?
Probability of Risk: How
likely is the event? Risk Reduction: How much
should it be reduced?
Consequences of Risk: What
is the likely damage? Risk Reduction Strategy: How
will the risk be reduced?

Financial Commitment: How

much money should be spent?

An exhaustive in-country review of Canadian risk management strategies adopted by a range of

public agencies in the face of different types of environmental risks (food safety, prescription
drug use, contaminated sites etc) was published in 2003, which recommended the following
principles for risk assessment, management and communication:21

Table 3: Decision Making Principles and Ethical Concerns in Risk Management

Decision Making Principle Ethical Concern

Do more good than harm: prevent or minimize risk and ‘do good; Beneficence/non-
as much as possible maleficence
Fair process of decision-making: should be just, equitable, impartial Fairness/natural justice
and objective as far as possible given the circumstances of each
situation

21
Jardine C, Hrudey S, Shortreed, J, Craig L, Krewski D, Furgal C, McColl S (2003). Risk management frameworks
for human health and environmental risks. J Toxicol Environ Health B Crit Rev. 2003 Nov-Dec;6(6):569-720.

Page 12 of 21
Ensure equitable distribution of risk: should ensure fair outcomes Equity/distributive justice
and equal treatment of all concerned through an equal distribution
of benefits and burdens
Seek optimal use of limited risk management resources: use Utility
resources where they will have maximum risk reduction benefits
Promise no more risk management than can be delivered: candid Honesty
public accounting of what is known and what is not, what can be
done and what cannot
Impose no more risk than you would tolerate yourself: understand The ‘Golden Rule’
the perspectives of those affected
Be cautious in the face of uncertainty, since evidence could be ‘Better safe than sorry’
uncertain
Foster informed risk decision-making among all stakeholders, with Autonomy
full and honest disclosure of all the information required for
informed decisions
Risk management processes must be flexible and open to new Evolving, iterative
knowledge
Risk is pervasive and cannot be entirely eliminated Life is not risk-free

V. Environmental Health Protection Policies

The policy framework for addressing the health impacts of environmental issues is limited. One
of the early efforts to address the issue was the Stockholm Convention (2001), ratified by 50
countries, which restricts or eliminates the production and use of 12 chemical substances: 8
pesticides, 2 industrial pollutants and 2 biological pollutants. The Convention was appreciated
widely for protecting the public from DDT, and for generally outlawing a whole class of
chemicals due to their detrimental health effects. In fact, the Convention widened the scope of
such legislation substantially by stating that full scientific certainty was not a precondition for
proposing the ban of a chemical.22 Prior to this, the United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change (1992), and later the Kyoto Protocol (1997) called for reductions in greenhouse
gas emissions, known to have a detrimental impact on health. Agenda 21 of the Rio Declaration
is frequently cited as an important international provision that provides for ‘the need to protect
and promote human health, with emphasis on meeting primary health care needs-particularly in
rural areas-control of communicable diseases, the protection of the health of vulnerable groups,
addressing the urban health challenge, and reducing health risks from environmental pollution

22
Von Schirnding Y, Onzivu W and Adede AO (2002). International environmental law and global public health.
Bulletin of the World Health Organization 20(12).
Page 13 of 21
and hazards.23 More recently, the Sustainable Development Goals, which seek to re-visit and
build on the Rio Declaration, have adopted Health as an explicit concern of sustainable
development, reflected in Goal 5 and a number of specific targets; they take forward the agenda
of the Millennium Development Goals while specifically recognizing the impact of the
environment on health outcomes. However, it is generally recognized that the enforcement of
such treaties has been weak.24

In India, the National Environment Policy (NEP) formulated by the Ministry of Environment and
Forest in 2006 aimed at emphasizing the environmental impacts of all developmental activities –
including conservation of resources. The main objective of this policy is that while conservation
of environmental resources is necessary to secure livelihoods and well-being of all, the most
secure basis for conservation is to ensure that people dependent on particular resources obtain
better livelihoods from the fact of conservation, rather than from degradation of the resource.
The NEP viewed human health as an entity with “incomparable value” in the face of activities
that may adversely impact the environment and cause significant risk to human health.

The NEP argued that environmental degradation often leads to poverty and poor health outcomes
- including malnutrition, lack of access to clean energy and safe drinking water. It recognized
that rapid industrialization based on poorly assessed environmental impacts results in further
impoverishment of the rural poor since they are largely dependent on natural resources for their
livelihood; and that ground water contamination could cause serious hardship in rural areas since
it is the sole source of drinking water in many places. In urban areas, the NEP identified lack of
(or inappropriate) waste treatment and sanitation, industry and transport related pollution,
adversely impacts air, water, and soil quality as threats to health. These environmental risks were
seen to negatively impact the capability of the urban poor particularly to seek and retain
employment, attend school, and enhance gender inequalities. The NEP emphasized the
importance of reducing indoor air pollution, protecting sources of safe drinking water, protecting
soil from contamination, improved sanitation measures, and better public health governance in
order to reduce the incidence of a number of critical health problems.

23
Onvizu W (2005). International environmental law, the public’s health and domestic environmental governance in
developing countries. American University International Law Review, Vol 21.
24
Ibid.
Page 14 of 21
The National Health Policy 2002 further reiterated the impacts of environmental change on
health.25 It also emphasized the importance of environmental policies in India to address the
impacts of environmental change on human health. For example, unsafe drinking water, poor
sanitation and air pollution significantly contribute to the burden of disease, particularly in urban
settings. The draft National Health Policy 2015 also addresses the impact of environmental
change on health.26 For example, it emphasizes measures to reduce air pollution, better
management of solid waste and improved water quality particularly in urban areas. In addition,
the Government of India has launched a program to address issues of water and sanitation -
Swachh Bharat Abhiyan – with an emphasis on behavior change, supplemented by building
modern technological (clean technologies) approaches to public services and regulatory
measures that address each of these urban health determinants.

Most recently, the National Policy on Safety, Health and Environment at Work Place was
declared in 2009. The Policy sets out a set of goals with the view to building and maintaining a
national preventative safety and health culture and improving the safety, health and environment
at workplace. It identifies eight specific working areas, including enforcement, national
standards, compliance, awareness, research and development, occupational safety and health
skills development and data collection. After an initial review to ascertain the status on safety,
health and environment at workplace, the Policy is envisaged to be reviewed at least every five
years.27

VI. Impact of Environmental Health Risks on Equity, Vulnerability and Resilience

Environmental health has become one of the major public health issues which have to be dealt
with by building resilience in an equitable manner taking into consideration inequities and
vulnerability.
Equity is the absence of avoidable or remediable differences among groups of people, whether those
groups are defined socially, economically, demographically, or geographically28.
Vulnerability is the degree to which a population, individual or organization is unable to
anticipate, cope with, resist and recover from the impacts of disasters.

25
http://mohfw.nic.in/WriteReadData/l892s/18048892912105179110National%20Health%20policy-2002.pdf
26 www.mohfw.nic.in/showfile.php?lid=3014
27
Retrieved from http://www.ilo.org/asia/WCMS_182422/lang--en/index.htm.
28
Website: http://www.who.int/healthsystems/topics/equity/en/
Page 15 of 21
Resilience is essentially the flip side of vulnerability. It is “the ability to survive, recover from,
and thrive.29
The impact of environmental risks falls largely on the poor and marginalized. According to
World Bank estimates the extreme poverty rate gradually dropped from 52% in 1981 to 21% in
2010; with an estimated 1.2 billion people living on less than $1.25 a day. The average income of
the extremely poor in the developing world was 87 cents per capita per day, up from 74 cents in
1981.30 Women represent some 70% of the 1.3 billion people in the world currently living in
extreme poverty, and are disproportionately affected by climate change.31

Environmental risks, particularly those associated with climate change, impoverish the poor or
push individuals into poverty either directly through rising food prices and agricultural
production channels, or indirectly by livelihood vulnerabilities.32 The understanding of
vulnerability and risks has the natural hazards literature in geography and the theoretical
contributions of White,33 Burton et al.34 and others on hazard characterization, risk thresholds,
human behavior, and adjustment to environmental risk.35 Climate change therefore affects health
directly, undermines the social determinants of health, and threatens the viability of a number of
environmental services provided by natural systems.36 The IPCC report on Managing the Risks
of Extreme Events and Disasters to Advance Climate Change Adaptation, defines vulnerability
as the propensity for individuals and households to be adversely affected by climatic and other
environmental shocks and stresses – this vulnerability is defined both in terms of exposure and
social determinants. Both these aspects are seen to increase susceptibility to harm and reduce

29
Costello A, Abbas M, Allen A, et al. Managing the health effects of climate change: Lancet and University
College London Institute for Global Health Commission. Lancet 2009;373(9676):1693–1733. doi:10.1016/S0140-
6736(09)60935-1.
30
Retrieved from
http://www.worldbank.org/content/dam/Worldbank/document/State_of_the_poor_paper_April17.pdf.
31
Strengthening Health Resilience to Climate Change Technical Briefing for the World Health Organization
Conference on Health and Climate.
32
Leichenko R and Silva JA (2014). Climate change and poverty: vulnerability, impacts, and alleviation strategies.
Bulletin of the World Health Organization, Volume 5, July/August 2014.
33
White G (1973). Natural hazards research. In Directions in Geography, ed. RJ Chorley, pp. 193–216. London:
Methuen.
34
Burton I, White G, Kates R (1978). Environment as Hazard. New York: Oxford University Press.
35
Eakin H and Luers AL (2006). Assessing the vulnerability of social-environmental systems. Annual Review of
Environmental Resources. 31:365–94.
36
Ibid. WHO Briefing.
Page 16 of 21
capacity to respond to climatic shocks and stresses.37 Marginalized groups are at higher risk to be
harmed by social vulnerability, due to a combination of different dimensions of poverty such as
uncertain income, limited assets and resources, poor knowledge and adaptive capacity, no
alternative livelihood options and social exclusion.

In operational terms, pursuing equity in health means eliminating health disparities that are
systematically associated with underlying social disadvantage or marginalization – both of which
are impacted by environmental factors.38 Eliminating systematic health disparities between social
groups requires correcting their fundamental causes, and mitigating their negative impact of
health.39,40 Both equity and human rights principles dictate striving for equal opportunity for
health – by providing care to improve the health of the poor but also by helping to alter the
conditions that create, exacerbate, and perpetuate poverty and marginalization.41 This argues for
proactive policy and program interventions to address issues of water quality, sanitation, vector
borne disease, indoor and ambient air pollution – all of which disproportionately impact both
rural and urban poor.

“Physical health and psychological dimensions of poverty may also play a role in influencing
both climate change vulnerability and resilience of poor populations. While the terminology of
resilience has a variety of meanings in the climate change literature, within the context of
poverty, resilience may be understood as the ability of poor individuals and poor communities to
recover or ’bounce-back’ from climatic shocks and stresses. The poor often experience higher
levels of illness, mental stress, stigmatization, shame, humiliation and other burdens that
compound monetary disadvantage and hinder their ability to escape poverty, respond to external
shocks, or plan for the future”.42,43 Poverty alleviation is one of the most important strategies to
reduce the impacts of climate change on the poor; and of reducing inequities in the social and

37
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC, 2012). Managing the Risks of Extreme Events and Disasters
to Advance Climate Change Adaptation. New York: Cambridge University Press; 594.
38
Braveman P, Gruskin S (2003). Defining Equity in Health. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health
2003;57:254-8.
39
Whitehead M. The health divide. In: Inequalities in health. London: Penguin; 1988.
40
Acheson D. Independent Inquiry into Inequalities in Health. London: Stationery Office; 1998.
41
Braveman P and Gruskin S (2003). Poverty, equity, human rights and health. Bulletin of the World Health
Organization 2003, 81 (7).
42
Narayan D, Patel R, Schafft K, Rademacher A, Koch-Shulte S (2000). Voices of the Poor: Can Anyone Hear Us?
New York: Oxford University Press and World Bank; 360.
43
Sen A (1983). Poor, relatively speaking. Oxf Econ Pap, 35:153–169.
Page 17 of 21
environmental determinants of health. Strengthening of public health systems to extend services
for hard-to-reach populations is therefore critical to protecting the health particularly of the poor
from climate change. These broad-based responses enhance an individual and community’s own
capacity to respond to a changing climate, and improve their ability to respond to social and
environmental shocks.44

On the other hand, the resilience or adaptive capacity of a society is not easy to measure. Early
literature on the subject frequently assumed that wealthy, industrialized countries would be able
to adapt while poor, less industrialized countries would not.45 The IPCC Third Assessment
Report identified five features that contribute to the adaptive capacity of communities: (i)
economic status; (ii) available technologies, information and skills; (iii) status of infrastructure;
(iv) institutional frameworks and governance; and (v) equity. Therefore building resilience to
climate risks and adapting to environmental risks needs to be part of the wider effort to improve
and sustain the social and environmental determinants of health. In India, at the national level,
environmental health and climate change policies are subsumed in its economic industrial and
human development policies, which come first. Environmental health and climate change policy
has been reactive rather than proactive and focused largely on the energy sector.46

VII. Role of Various Actors in responding to Environmental Health Challenges

Laurie Garrent, in her bestselling book, the Coming Plague, has extensively researched a series
of global health disasters that have been the result of a ‘world out of balance’. The spread of old
and emergence of new diseases due to changing environmental and social conditions reveals a
frightening scenario of global epidemics that have the potential of causing serious loss of life.
She recommends that humans should learn to live human beings learn to live together by
addressing the environmental hazards we face by investing in better research, technologies and
systems that help us to address the evolving disease challenges that are a result of increasing
44
Strengthening Health Resilience to Climate Change Technical Briefing for the World Health Organization
Conference on Health and Climate.
45
Magalhães, A.R. (1996). Adapting to climate variations in developing regions: a planning framework. In
Adapting to Climate Change: An International Perspective, J. Smith, N. Bhatti, G. Menzhulin, R. Benioff, M.I.
Budyko, M. Campos, B. Jallow and F Rijsberman, eds. Springer-Verlag, New York. Retrieve from
http://www.globalchange.umd.edu/data/publications/Resilience_and_Climate_Change.pdf.
46
Antoinette L. Brenkert Elizabeth L. Malone ‘Vulnerability and Resilience of India and Indian States to Climate
Change: a First Order Approximation’ April 2003 Joint Global Change Research Institute, College Park, MD.
Retrieved from http://www.globalchange.umd.edu/data/publications/PNWD-3271.pdf.
Page 18 of 21
globalization. Others have recommended that the burden of climate change on health can be
avoided for the next 2-3 decades through on the environmental and social determinants of
climate-sensitive diseases, strengthening the climate resilience of both preventive and curative
aspects of health systems, and adapting to changing climate conditions.47
For last 3 decades the WHO has scaled up its program focusing on working with national
Ministries of Health and other partners to support and guide implementation of protective
measures. The main strategy for building resilience to climate change and adapting to climate
change is through improving and sustaining the social and environmental determinants of health.
They recommend the following actions: 48
- Health departments should work along with other departments to address the issue of
climate change and adopt the “Health in All’ approach;
- Regular Impact Assessments of sectors which are critical to vulnerable populations, such
as employment, health, energy, small-scale farming, migration, gender and children;
- Promoting inter-ministerial policy dialogue;
- Ensuring policies are socially inclusive and ensuring that new infrastructure and
budgeting prioritization does not exacerbate social inequity;
- Taking into account the specific needs of vulnerable populations through meaningful
community engagement;
- Use of environment friendly technologies, regulations on environment determinant of
health for example air, water, food quality, housing safety and waste management; and
- Emergency preparedness and disaster risk management and financing should be also
taken into consideration.
Most of the WHO European regions members are engaged in strengthening their health systems:
in particular on infectious disease surveillance, environmental health services, early warning and
disaster response for extreme events, International Health Regulations, and planning for climate
change in public health policies. This progress in increasing health resilience is part of a wider
approach which also includes actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, including within the

47
Rudolph L, Gould S, Berko J. Climate Change, Health, and Equity: Opportunities for Action. 2015. Public Health
Institute, Oakland, CA.
48
Ibid.
Page 19 of 21
healthcare sector.49 Africa has also established a regional inter-ministerial health and
environment process. The WHO region for Americas (AMRO) which are more prone to natural
disasters and risk of climate change have set the best example of adopting “Hospitals Safe from
Disaster” which are disaster resilient.

Figure 4 explains the opportunity for action to climate change, health and inequities.

Figure 4: Climate change, health and inequities: opportunities for action

49
Wolf T, Martinez GS, Cheong HK, Williams E, Menne B. Protecting health from climate change in the WHO
European Region. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2014;11(6):6265-80
Page 20 of 21
Source3: Developed by: Public Health Institutes Center for Climate Change and Health.© Public Health Institute 2014

Environmental protection measures would be difficult to accomplish without extensive

awareness raising and education on good practices. The World Climate Summit being held every
year since 2010 brings together world leaders to address climate change and its impact on the
environment. India has been pledging continued commitment – political as well as financial - to
addressing climate change. Clean technologies are widely acknowledged as a means to deal with
climate change. The Indian government’s adaptation to the climate change will amount to 360
billion USD by the year 2030 – including investments in clean technologies. Despite this huge
expense experts have noted a significant deficit in the amount that would need to be spent to
address climate change – a deficit that would impact public health, in addition to agriculture and
water resources.50

50
Website: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/auto/news/industry/adaptations-by-india-towards-climate-change-
likely-to-cost-as-much-as-360-billion-a-year-by-2030/articleshow/49990031.cms
Page 21 of 21
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Urban Ecology – Part 1 – Green Patches

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Urban Ecology, Green Patches, Parks, Gardens, Urbanization

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary In this module, we will discuss the green patches in cities and their
importance. There are several green patches that we live with and grow up
but they are usually unnoticed and unexperienced. This module is an effort
to understand the urban ecology and green patches. This is the first module
based on Urban Ecology talking about green patches. The next 2 modules will
be based on Urban commons and Biodiversity. A part of it also discusses the
threats to these green patches.

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Dhwani Shah Azim Premji University

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Language Editor (LE) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Urban Green Patches

The Urban Ecology module will be divided into 3 sections i.e. Urban Green Patches, Urban
Commons and Communities and Urban Biodiversity. Before we start discussing about the green
patches in this module we need to understand some concepts that are essential to understand the
three topics in detail and involve with them. Starting with Urban or Cities. What do we mean by
cities? What comes to our mind when we say a city? How can we define a city? An urban area is
a term used to define an area which is a city or a town or a metropolitan. Most inhabitants of urban
areas have nonagricultural jobs. Urban areas are very developed, there is a density of human
structures such as houses, commercial buildings, roads, bridges, and railways. (Urban area, n.d.) A
city or an urban space can also be defined as having an increased density of human-created
structures in comparison to the areas surrounding it, but it also depends on an increased density of
people. Urban areas are also characterized by the density of the population that stays in a particular
geographical boundary. India defines a city or an urban space having a population density of more
than 400/km2.

India has been rapidly urbanizing since independence and some of the first cities to be developed
were Mumbai, Chennai, and Kolkata as these places served as the centre for trade and commerce
during the British period. Delhi was the centre of administration since a long time even before the
British times and has developed into a metropolitan over the time. But what it brings with it? Cities
are today known to be concrete forests and have been known to feed on the resources of the
villages. Cities in India are also famous for their slums as cities invite migration and the class
differences major in cities. Industries, malls, railways etc. determine a city and for cities like
Mumbai, it is said that no one goes to bed hungry. The ever rising aspirations of those who live in
the cities goes on increasing causing a pressure on the resources of the village.

Moving further to understand what does ‘Urban Ecology’ mean and why is it so important to focus
on the urban ecology. The origins of Urban Ecology Cities of India or urban places, land has been
precious and an important matter of concern as the cities are constantly increasing and to meet the
demands of the ever growing cities the reliance on the resources is greater than before. Urban
ecology emerged as a sub-discipline of ecology in the early 1970s due, in part, to the fact that
human impacts on the planet were becoming well documented and the growing size of human
settlements was resulting in serious environmental problems that threatened the health and well-
being of both urban and non-urban dwellers around the world. Influenced by these events, and
coupled with the demise of the ‘balance of nature’ paradigm, ecologists have acknowledged that
human settlements are legitimate subjects of ecological study. The discipline of urban ecology is
at the forefront of creating the knowledge base, conceptual frameworks, and tools that are crucial
for building and maintaining sustainable and resilient cities and towns in the future. (Niemelȁ,
2011)

This module will be focusing on Urban Green patches and their importance. Further in the paper
we will try to understand the urban green patches, what are they and their importance through the
examples like of Mumbai’s Borivali National Park, Delhi Ridge Forest of Delhi and Gunduthopes
of Bangalore. At the end of the paper we will spend some time discussing about the issues that are
posing threat to the green patches that help cities survive.

What are green patches? Green patches also called as ‘urban greens’. These are the areas where
there is a cluster of trees that provides for the ecosystem services to the area around it. In cities
where the land is scarce the green patches are the first to be targeted and removed in order to pave
way for the buildings and complex. Hence many times this conflict is also termed as concrete
forest v/s green cover. Below is the bird eye view of Mysore. Mysore is a city and the green patches

can be seen Picture Credits – Dhwani Shah

between and around the buildings and structures. These are the green patches we will be discussing
further in this paper. The green patches include gardens, parks, vegetable gardens, window
gardens, small gardens in the building premises and terrace gardens, mangroves, vegetation around
rivers passing through the city and also the road side trees. There are forest areas that get included
in the limits of the city. One of such example is the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) in
Mumbai also known as the lungs of the city. This national park is in the boundaries of the city of
Mumbai and is a reserved area where a vast biodiversity of flora and fauna is found. The forest
stretches to an area of 104 km2 and has a road passing from within the forest connecting two parts
of the city and making travel easy. The forest is also known for Kanheri caves and the Jain temple
inside the park. The park is home to a number of endangered species of flora and fauna. The forest
area of the park houses over 1000 plant species, 251 species of migratory, land and water birds,
50,000 species of insects and 40 species of mammals. In addition, the park also provides shelter to
38 species of reptiles, 9 species of amphibians, 150 species of butterflies and a large variety of
fish.

The role of this urban forest is improving urban habitats and the quality of life. The trees in urban
system provide a variety of ecosystem services including biodiversity conservation, they help in
reducing the atmospheric pollution caused due to the heavy vehicular and industrial activities of
the cities, oxygen generation, noise reduction, mitigation of urban heat island effect, climate
regulation, stabilization of soil and help groundwater recharge which otherwise would have
become difficult as the cities as they urbanize they also concretize and hence the water from the
ground level cannot seep down the soil. The forests also help in prevention of soil erosion and help
in carbon sequestration. All the green patches or a single tree also serves as a carbon sink which is
an essential part of the service today provided by the trees as it is crucial to address the climate
change and the greenhouse effect generated due to carbon.

Urban sprawl and densification is an important character that affects the ecology and environment.
Urban sprawl is the unchecked spread of cities into its adjacent lands. Earlier Mumbai was just
upto Sion and Bandra but with the Urban sprawl over long periods post-independence, Mumbai
has extended its boundaries to much greater areas upto Thane district which then become the
suburbs of Mumbai and also the outskirts or peri-urban areas that see unplanned development. In
all this process, the environment goes for a toss as there is no body to keep a check on the
developments that are happening as they do not fall under the city boundaries nor does it have a
proper village infrastructure. These areas see major transitions from the wetlands to raising
demands into housing societies, agricultural land transforming into the manufacturing units of
companies where the access to the cities is easier. Where profits are the major targets and not the
environment that gets affected in the process.

Urban densification that has been witnessed by many cities in India where the immigration
happens to the cities from the villages nearby in search of jobs and a source of income. This builds
a pressure on the services that the ecosystem can provide to the communities that live around them.
Densification also brings in a demand for more and more space for housing and again the greens
are at a threat and the wetlands and agricultural lands are converted to the residential colonies.

Source – The World Bank – INDIA – Mumbai – Urban sprawl intensity 2003 – 2011
Worldwide the climate in the urban areas has been an important point of focus and the temperatures
in the cities are higher than the temperatures in the villages surrounding the cities. This is mainly
because of the modifications that have been happening in the urban ecology. Such a city may be
called as an Urban Heat Island (UHI) which is a city or metropolitan area that is significantly
warmer than its surrounding rural areas due to human activities. The phenomenon was first
investigated and described by Luke Howard in the 1810s, although he was not the one to name the
phenomenon. The main cause of the urban heat island effect is from the modification of land
surfaces. Waste heat generated by energy usage is a secondary contributor (Urban heat island,
n.d.). The causes for the Urban heat Island effects are the high density of roads that absorbs more
heat than the green or other color surfaces do. This heat is stored and the land is heated more than
it would normally do. Also the high density of taller buildings in the urban areas allow the rays of
the sun more surface areas to reflect upon before being reflected back to the atmosphere and hence
causes the temperatures to increase higher than the normal levels in the cities. This allows more
heat to be trapped and the temperatures rise. There are increasing numbers of glass surface
buildings coming up as commercial buildings and hence it is also contributing towards the urban
heat island. In all this the green cover provides to absorb heat and give a cooling effect. Green
cover is hence essential to avoid the impacts of the increasing heat on health and environment. It
provides a regulatory service to the city. One of the health impacts of the increasing heat/
temperatures is skin rashes and problems and also sun burns, sun stroke etc.

Moving to the next section on where are the urban green patches found and what are their
characteristics. As described previously about the Urban Forest through the example of Sanjay
Gandhi National Park, we shall further discuss the other types of patches commonly found in
Indian cities.

1. Street trees – street trees/ trees on the pavements have an essential role to play but they are
constantly reducing in numbers as our streets are being widened and buildings are
increasing. Recently more and more trees have been chopped off and many trees have been
falling during heavy rains and fast winds. That is because in cities we are rapidly
concretizing due to which the transfer of nutrients from the atmosphere and the soil doesn’t
take place which eventually makes the tree weak and uproot. These trees have high
ecological value and also helps to keep our air clean, increase the oxygen that we get and
 keeps our stressful minds calm and good due to the calm atmosphere there. Many of the
trees have been transformed into Ashwat Kattes. Ashwat kattes have many names and are
found all over India in different forms and provide various services to the communities.
These kattes are largely used as religious places or community meeting points.

2. Urban Lawns – the urban lawns are architecturally designed to make the building appear
good and nice. These lawns have particular types of ornamental grasses and shrubs and a
controlled growth of plants. The lawns also have high aesthetic value attached to it. These
lawns serve as playgrounds for the children in the society, meeting points where mostly
women come together to talk and interact in the evenings etc. These lawns act as buffer
zones between the pollution in the surroundings and the buildings as it serves as a patch to
remove polluting particles from the surroundings and give out oxygen. Lawns also help in
dealing with the stress levels of the people living around. It is also a source of income for
at least 1 family or so who are appointed to take care of the lawns.
3. Terrace gardens/ terrace farming is a recent phenomenon and has been moving quickly into
the lives of the people especially from the higher classes. These are patches where the
vegetables are grown by the residents. But other than that these patches help keep the
building cool and acts as a buffer for the Urban heat island effect. There can be a variety
of vegetables and medicinal plants that can be grown in this patch.
4. Gardens and parks – parks and gardens are used interchangeably and sometimes are
confusing. There can be national parks and local parks. They are basically defined to have
recreational values and can have walking tracks and other activities that go on in the areas
around. Gardens are found around the residential areas and are home to many species of
plants and biodiversity. This would mostly have lawns for the communities to sit and also
walking path. Apart from being socially important as a community common it is also
environmentally important as it helps in maintaining the environmental temperatures and
 the urban biodiversity. Gardens and parks both have an aesthetic value attached to it. They
are generally called as ‘Upvan’ in Hindi. There are examples of Upvans around the cities
like Mahim Nature Park and Sagar Upvan in Mumbai and many parks. National parks that
now fall in the urban areas have transformed into a recreational areas and also a tourist
spot. These parks serve as eco-tourism places and also are seen to have more human and
environmental interactions to help the humans to feel close to the nature and environment.
The zoos too have adopted the gardens and parks that is attracting more visitors to the zoos.
5. Naturally occurring green cover like Gunduthopes found in Bangalore are essential green
patches that are found near the lakes that serve great amounts of ecological services that
are regulatory services, cultural services, water table recharge and also supports
livelihoods. These gunduthopes are now under threat due to urbanization where the
common resource gunduthopes are converted to controlled gardens and parks, fire station,
veterinary hospitals etc. in the urban Bangalore and the gunduthopes in the peri-urban areas
await their fate. These gunduthopes are home to a diverse kinds of animals and insects and
also the trees and plants. It is essential for such patches to be present as each animal and
insect that are found in such patches play an important role in the environment for
maintaining the nutrient flow in the system and maintaining the population in the
ecosystem.
6. Urban forest - The Delhi Ridge is said to be the lungs of the city the same way as the
Mumbai’s national park is the lung of the city. The difference in the national park of
Mumbai and the Ridge of Delhi is a reserved forest. The Ridge is known to protect Delhi
from the hot winds of the deserts of Rajasthan to the west. It is also the home to a wide
number of birds. These ridges were once at the threat of being encroached and developed
to meet the demands of urbanization but because of constant efforts and protest the Ridge
has been protected. This still doesn’t mean that there are no threats that are posed by the
Ridge. In the economic growth and development oriented society the urban forests are
valued on the productivity of the forests. Hiw much revenue it can generate and what values
it has. A forest with low income and benefits shows less focus of people and gets degraded
faster. There are some values that the forest provides people.
7. Urban mangrove patches – there are many cities that have developed around the sea patches
with mangroves. Mangroves are highly essential for the coastal economy and also the
 survival of the city as it forms a buffer zone that protects the cities from the sea ingress.
Mangroves provide the ecological services provided by the trees and forests but beyond
that the mangroves also help to keep the shore and the beaches lively and supports wide
range of livelihoods. Mangroves are the nurseries for the fishes and are crucial in the
ecological system. They are an essential part of maintaining the food chain and the
environment. Mangroves are carbon sinks and the cleansing mechanism of the sea.
Mangroves have been largely destroyed in India and other developing nations causing a
threat of soil erosion, ingress of sea into the land, marine life gets affected and also the fish
population. The reptiles and other

Threats to the green cover of the city

Apart from the threats discussed above of the urbanization, urban densification, urban heat island
effect etc. there are other factors that affect the urban green patches that we have today.

a. Invasive species – there are many species like lantana, Prosopis Juliflora and other plants
that are found in the cities. These species are not native to India but have been externally
introduced to India. These species have excellent capacity to win over the few food
resources that are available like they have excellent water sucking capacity which makes
the other plant species found in the areas around them difficult to survive as there are no
resources available. Hence the other native species are replaces by these invasive species.
One such example can be seen in Delhi where Prosopis Juliflora has taken over the
traditional species of plants found in the Ridge and the forest has now been degraded.
Prosopis is an extremely fast growing plant which is not used by the cattle. The only use
of this plant is that it provides firewood to the communities around them. The seed and
leaves both are toxic and when fall on the ground make the soil around it also toxic.
b. Land use change and Concretization – in urban areas the trees and the other resources are
being concretized for footpaths, walking
tracks, roads and gutter lines etc. which
are choking the flow of nutrients to the
soil. This affects the health and the
growth of the tree and eventually the tree
would dry up and die. The concretization
also affects the growth of other plants,
Figure 1- Concretized tree roots. Source - shrubs, grasses etc. which would earlier
http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/mc-plants-26000-
saplings-but-at-wrong-places/720925/ grow in that place. A huge part of the
green patch is lost in the process. Below
is an image of the concretization of the trees on the roadside which chocks the tree roots.
Next time you walk along the footpaths do observe of the footpath has chocked the trees.
c. Over extraction of ground water and blocking of the underground aquifers and channels of
water has created water scarcity for the trees that earlier grew in that area and survived
peacefully. The buildings are the major issue for the ground water aquifers and the channels
through which the water flows underground. The increasing dependence of the
communities on ground water is also an issue as the water tables are going deeper and the
consumption is increasing making it impossible for the recharge and sustenance of the
groundwater. When the groundwater tables are low then the roots have to go deeper and
deeper and it makes it difficult for the plants to collect enough nutrients and also there is
more and more energy that the plant has to invest in the sucking of the water from the roots
to the canopy.
d. Pollution – trees are strong but have sensitive parts like leaves and the pores of the leaves
that are essential in the exchange of nutrients and photosynthesis. When fossil fuels are
burnt, through any process they release in the atmosphere particulate forms of carbon in
the compounds of carbon monoxide, sulfur etc. which then settles down on the pores of the
leaves and restrict their respiration process. Higher amounts of pollution in the form of
suspended particles more the threat it poses to the trees and the plants around those areas.
The urban areas have other kinds of pollution too. The drainage systems carries with it all
kinds of good and bad nutrients and also toxic chemicals. These chemicals further affect
 the coral reefs and the mangroves which are the 2 most important and sensitive ecosystems.
Higher the level of toxicity also affects the fish population of the coastal areas in which the
city lives. Another important source of pollution is garbage and the dumping grounds. The
dumping grounds release highly toxic pollutants and affect the ground water table. These
toxic chemicals affect the trees in the surrounding vicinity. In Mumbai the dumping
grounds have highly infected the groundwater and it is no longer edible. The dumping
ground here has highly infected the mangroves and the trees that live in that area.
e. Development oriented projects have posed a huge threat to the greens of the cities as
development has always been given higher priority. One such example is of the Navi
Mumbai airport that has destructed large patches of mangroves and wetlands to build
runways and the airport. This has been a massive loss of biodiversity and green cover.
There are several such examples where the destruction goes unnoticed as it happens at the
individual levels and small scale. Corruption also plays an essential role in this process.
Each building that is erected in the urban areas needs to cleat trees. The example of the
Gunduthopes is also an example where the green cover is cleared for the development
projects.

In conclusion of the above discussed points and criteria we can understand that the urban green
patches play an important role in our day to day life as carbon sinks, oxygen providers, as filters
from the pollution that is created by our own day to day activities and the services that they provide
which regulate our environments and climate. That provides us with food and protection from
storms and sea ingress. The trees are of a cultural and social importance which we can understand
through the community involvement with the trees in the form of a get together place for the
community or for religious use called as ‘ashwat kattes’ in Karnataka but are found all over India
where the children play, communities get together and also where the panchayats are held and
many more activities are undertaken. trees, forests, grasslands etc. support the livelihoods of the
people from poor economic strata of the society. Each tree and green patch of plants, grasses,
shrubs supports an important biodiversity that is essential to maintain. When these green patches
have formed so many complex relationships. It is important for the communities and every person
to understand the value and safeguard these essential resources.
References
Niemelȁ, J. (Ed.). (2011). Urban Ecology. New York: Oxford University Press Inc.

Urban area. (n.d.). Retrieved September 2015, from Wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_area#India

Urban heat island. (n.d.). Retrieved September 2015, from Wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_heat_island

INDIA - Mumbai - Urban sprawl intensity 2003 – 2011

http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTEOFD/Resources/EOW_GISAT_Mumbai_Sprawl_2003_
2011.pdf
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Urban Ecology Part II: Commons and Communities

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Urban Commons

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary This module looks at the concept of Urban Commons and talks about why
the issue has acquired critical importance within the sphere of urban
ecology. This module will introduce students to Henri Lefebvre’s concept
‘right to the city’ (1968), the practice of commoning and research on the
state of commons in Indian cities that are influenced by critical urban
studies and Marxist scholars such as David Harvey

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR)
Language Editor (LE)
Urban Ecology Part II: Commons and Communities

We start this module with a question for those of you who live in the metropolis or state capitals. Have
you ever wondered why do you find it so hard to walk on the footpath? Have you ever wondered why
on some stretch of the roads, there are no footpaths at all? Not just pedestrians, even cycling
enthusiasts as well as cycle rickshaw pullers, find it hard to figure out their share on common resources
called roads, which are filled by motorized emission guzzling vehicles. In this module, we are going to
continue our explorations into urban ecology by paying close attention to urban commons and
responses from communities to these.

A wide spectrum of theoretical reflections offer myriad ways to define the concept of ‘urban commons’,
and most of these consist three constitutive elements: i) common resources, ii) institutions (communing
practice) and iii) the communities (i.e. commoners) who are involved in producti0ns and reproductions
of the commons. As various authors ranging from Henry Lefebvre (Right to the City) to David Harvey
(Rebel Cities) have suggested through their work, the urban commons also entails inspirations for
building resistance to the enclosing forces of State and Capital that repeatedly try to expropriate and
overtake commons in order to serve vested interests.

More than 100 years ago, in 1910, Jane Adams a committed thinker to creating a ling democracy in the
teeming cities of industrial America, published a book titled, Twenty Years at Hull House that has been
celebrated as a pioneering work in the task of ‘commoning’. At the heart of her vision were the
principles such as participation, reciprocity and democratic cooperationi.

Lefebvre’s idea of the right to the city draws from the imagination of urban habitat as an ouvre, as an
ongoing work of art, whose creation, use and reshaping is constantly being practiced by inhabitants.
Writing at a time of great upheaval in Europe, Lefebvre had imagined the right to the city concept to not
merely a reform proposal, but as a “cry and demand”, “the right to occupy and protest” and “a working
slogan and ideal”. For Lefebre the city stood as a metaphor for entire city and so in that 1968 book, he
expounded the right to participation in urban life and extended the same to marginalized groups also.
David Harvey calls the city, “that site where people of all sorts and classes mingle, however reluctantly
and agonistically, to produce a common if perpetually changing and transitory life”. However, what
could have appeared to Ambedkar at several decades ago as a habitat that offered promise to Dalits for
an escape form the exploitation and servitude of an Indian feaudal tradition bound village, in last few
decades have increasingly become a space that not just allows anonymity and the springboard on the
path of struggle to success, but a habitat that is under the constant threats of exclusions and evictions.

Making an intervention in the epistemologies and methodologies of urban studies, Ananya Roy’s (2011:
223-238) article, ‘Slumdog Cities: Rethinking subaltern Urbanism’, “seeks to understand and transform
the ways in which the cities of the global South are studies and represented in urban research, and to
some extent in popular discourse”. In doing so, the article’s primary concern is “formation of ideas –
subaltern urbanism – which undertakes the theorization of the megacities and its subaltern spaces and
subaltern class, of which the ubiquitous slum is the most prominent”. Roy outliens how “writing against
apocalyptic and dystopian narratives of the slum, subaltern urbanism provides accounts of slum (and
slum dwellers) as a terrain of habitation, livelihoods and politics”. Roy’s article specifically engages with
four categories, namely: peripheries, urban informality, zones of exception and gray spaces.

Anant Maringanti (2011: 64-70) in an article titled, ‘No Estoppel: Claiming Right to the City via
Commons’ highlights how “in Indian cities, unprecedented and unregulated growth, incremental land
use change, privatization and chaotic civic infrastructure provisioning are fracturing resources created
over centuries and reducing the right to the city to mere right to housing and property, thus short-
charging the concept’s transformative potential”. Drawing on the experience of activism around
protecting waterbodies in Hyderabad to build an expanded conception of urban commons, Maringanti
(2011: 64) argues that “urban actors need to draw inspirations from the way social movements world
over including in India have deployed the notion of commons as a defense against corporate
exploitation of biodiversity”. Maringanti (2011: 65) reminds us that in order “to grasp the import of the
concept right to the city, we need only to consider the 1985 ruling of Supreme Court in the Olga Tellis &
Others Vs Bombay Municipal Council case”. Maringanti (2011: 68) proposes that “in cities like those of
India, an engagement between the right to the city and the right to the commons – the right to oppose
enclosures of shared resources in cities can open up several new possibilities for creating better cities”.
For realization of such a proposal, Maringanti asks us to consider asking two questions:

“What is the just and efficacious political praxis that produces commons in defence against
unethical and exclusionary exploitation that facilitates an unjust order of accumulation and
social oppression? What kind of praxis can facilitate appropriation that is sensitive to a new
ethic of the commons and fosters the right to the city, with an Indian sensibility?”
Talking about urban commons Gidwani and Baviskar (2011: 43) states that “urban commons include so
called “public goods”: the air we breathe, public parks and spaces, public transportation, public
sanitation systems, public schools, public waterways, and so forth”. They quickly add that “urban
commons can also include the less obvious: municipal garbage that provides livelihoods to waste-
pickers, wetlands, waterbodies, and riverbeds that sustain fishing communities, streets as arteries of
movements but also as places where people work, live, love, dream and voice dissent and local bazars
that are sites of commerce and cultural invention”. They raise the concern over the ongoing diminution
of urban commons that “are critical to economic production in cities, to the cultural vibrancy and the
cement of community, to “learning” how to do democracy through practices of creating, governing and
defending collective resources, to regenerating the sense of place that forms communities, and
ultimately, to the reproduction of urban populations and ecosystems”.

In a conversation with Rohan D’Souza, Dr. Bhuwaneswari Raman, who has studied local markets in
Bangalore and wrote her doctoral dissertation on this theme at London School of Economics, says that
“it is difficulty to formulate a generic definition of commons and community because the shared interest
and values that underpin the production of commons themselves are in a flux, often generating fluid
and flexible groupings of people and different interpretations of histories and, therefore, claims”ii. She
adds that this difficulty brings up questions like, on whose behalf commons are mobilized, and by whom.
She views “the commons as a contested space of a field where local populations compete among
themselves and with actors outside their territorial boundary over the use, control and protection of
valuable resources such as land, water and other types of resources”. According to Raman (2011), “there
are two problems with the dominant conception of the commons”. The first one gets represented in
the tendency to romanticise the commons, particularly among civil society actors. Raman (2011) states
that “at one end of the spectrum is the tendency to ‘museumise’ the commons, viewing them as pristine
terrains, with efforts to conserve them”, while “at the other end of the spectrum is the belief that
enshrining particular groups’ rights to the commons in law will automatically strengthen their claims,
often drawing on history and culture”. She adds that the problem arise when a realization dawns upon
us that “there is no single history, rather many histories, and law is a social construct and its violence is
reflected, in the words of Nicholas Blomley (Professor of Geography at Simon Fraser University),
through (limited) processes and mechanisms such as the “survey, grid, and plan””, ultimately creating
situations where “these attempts may prove counterproductive”.
Writing about the contradictory situation of ever expanding urban sprawl, a noted researcher on urban
commons, Harini Nagendra states, “From my office, on the 9th floor of a tall building in an academic
campus in Bangalore, I have a birds-eye view of the city’s peri-urban surroundings. To the west, I can see
a 6-lane high-speed highway choked by traffic, full of people frenetically commuting from their homes in
city to their jobs in the globally famous Information Technology campuses located just outside. To the
east, I am fortunate to witness a completely different picture. A tranquil marshy wetland and freshwater
lake, with dozens of cows grazing and cooling down in the water while the mid-day sun blazes overhead,
accompanied as companions by hundreds of cattle egrets feeding on the insects that annoy the cattle.
This idyllic picture of cooperation, mutualism, and rural bliss has evolved and been sustained over
centuries in Bangalore. (Bangalore’s lakes are not natural, but were created and maintained by local
communities, with a history that can be traced as far back as 450 AD.) Yet even this picture is marred by
construction and dumping of large mounds of debris onto the wetlands at one side of the lake.”

Twelve years before Harini Nagendra penned these thoughts, in the year 2002, city authorities in
Bangalore had taken a decision to lease out in public-private partnership 60 of its tanks (keres). This
would have meant that the spaces and resources which had undergone a change from being part of six
streams of irrigation tanks to lakes would undergo yet another transformation into places for recreation
and amusement and commercial spaced with closed access. Citizens came together to organize a
resistance movement that culminated into a 2008 high court order and managed to prevent the
enclosure of commonsiii. Simultaneously, urban communities organized themselves to revive wetlands
and created an example of how through collective actions citizens can create urban commons the form
of Kaikondrahalli Lake Initiativeiv. On 29th June 2015, a CAG audit report on the performance of Lake
Development Authority in Karnataka was tabled in state assembly. This performance review outlines the
ecological health of lakes as well as issues on the institutions of governance and management of lakesv.

Raman (2011) claims that competing groups mobilise different institutions and conventions to establish
their control over resources. She states that “in contemporary times, one of the ways in which this
competition plays out is in terms of restricting power relations by enacting changes in law, institutional
structure (State) and the role of agents inside and outside the state domain”. In short, she deciphers the
crisis as shrinking of the political space to maneuver claims and urges that rather than assuming
bureaucratic politics and civil society as above that of the electoral local politics, those who are
concerned about urban commons should spend energies to realign the levers of political realm and
strengthen local governance institutions.
The slums that emerge when migrant families come together and occupy a public space create its
peculiar culture of shared space in many urban locations in India, where the governments have failed to
ensure Right to Housing. Mumbai saw the largest conglomeration of such slums in Dharavi, where what
used to be mangrove swamp inhabited by Koli fisherfolk gradually moved in by making room for
Kumbhars from Gujarat to create a potters’ colony and Tamils who came and opened tanneries and
migrant workers from Uttar Pradesh who came in to work in the booming textile industries. Closely
linked to the issue of housing is how the public spaces come to be used by tenacious migrant
entrepreneurs to earn livelihood by operating in informal economy.

The millions of hawkers and street vendors do have a very intimate inter-dependence with the streets of
urban locations that they trade from. Anjaria (2006: 2140-2147) talks about “the essential presence of
hawkers in Mumbai city, which requires a critical understanding of the functioning of public space”.
Anjaria proposes that despite a long historical presence in Mumbai, street hawking today is viewed with
deep resentment by elite NGOs and residents’ association and hawkers as “a menace who
inappropriately use streets and footpaths, block traffic, depress real estate values”. To such an elite
imagination of affluent citizens of Mumbai, hawkers appear as an eyesore that prevents the financial
capital of India to stand in the league of “world-class cities”. By narrating the experience of hawkers in
Mumbai, and elsewhere in India, Anjaria (2006) states that they do not fear “a regulatory state, but a
predatory one, a state that constantly demands bribes and threatens demolitions, against which a
license provides security”. Towards end of that article, Anjaria (2006) draws attention to Mike Davies
writing about north American cities and arguing how “the immigrants from the south and central
America, because of their vigorous and multifarious use of public space for commerce and sociality,
form one of the most important constituencies for the preservation of urban commons” to suggest why
not “take heed from studies such as Davis’ as well”.

Elaborating on the theme of ‘Creation of Urban Commons’, Marxist thinker David Harvey argues that
“While the public spaces and public goods contribute mightily to the qualities of the commons, it takes
political action on the part of citizens and the people to appropriate them or to make them so…
Syntagma Square in Athens, Tahrir Square in Cairo, and the Plaza de Satalunya in Barcelona were public
spaces that became commons as people assembled there to express their political views and make
demands.” Harvey adds that “The common, is not therefore something that existed once upon a time
that has since been lost, but something that is, like the urban commons, continuously being produced”.
However, as Harvey points out, “the problem is that it is just as continuously being enclosed and
appropriated by capital in its commodified and monetized form, even as it is being continuously
produced by collective labour. So as argued by Harvey, “the distinction between urban public goods and
urban commons is both fluid and dangerously porous” and it is very important to reflect on “social
practice of communing”. Harvey calls our attention to “these practices that produce or establish social
relations with a common whose uses are either exclusive to a social group or partially or fully open to all
and sundry”. So, Harvey views urbanization as “the perpetual production of an urban commons (or its
shadow form of public places and public goods) and its perpetual appropriation and destruction by
private interests”.

For example, the roads in cities are being re-envisioned with the wealthy few pressing for more flyovers,
elevated highways and expressways, even as the urban authorities neglect underpass and sky walks for
pedestrians. In New Delhi, the Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) Corridor have proved out to be catalyst
for debating how much of a road space shall be prioritized for public transport, just like the older
debates of cycle rickshaw pullers staking claims on the roads and streets in old Delhi. In 2011 when
lobby groups got the government to launch a costly 200 crore most expensive Tender Sure roads in
Bangalore, citizens put up resistance under the banner of Forum for Urban Commons and Governancevi.

Talking about the research studies on urban commons in India, Parthasarathy (2011: 55) states that
“Research on urban commons in India is scarce, though there are signs of increasing interest”.
Parthasarathy claims that the focus is on issues that reflect core concerns of urban sociology and critical
urban studies; such as streets, maidans, lakes, parks and garbage disposal sites. He claims that “the
identification of the commons by researchers does recognize issues of class, gender, inequality and the
concerns of the urban poor, but on the whole seems to be more of a reaction to exclusionary tendencies
and the takeover of common facilities and sites by the middle classes and elite”. He also argues that
while destruction of commons (or diminishing commons) is a recurrent theme in the literature on urban
commons, the continued use, preservation, maintenance and regeneration of natural resource enclaves
in the city is linked to an Indian bourgeois logic whose significance is not adequately grasped, and
cannot be explained purely in terms of short-term capital accumulation and class struggle. Outlining a
series of questions that needs to be posed, Parthsarathy (2011: 55) shows that in existing research
literature on urban commons, “questions are rarely raised beyond the routine ones of struggles over
access and exclusion with reference to common civic natural resources such as lakes and parks, common
facilities (playgrounds), or the use of streets and footpaths for vending, hawking, housing, and so on”.
According to him, the research on urban commons need to urgently address the following questions:
 “How and from where do the urban poor meet their fuelwood needs? What are the sources of
food and fodder for urban livestock holders? How do the urban poor and lower middle classes
meet their food requirements? What kind of resource dependencies are exhibited in the
livelihood strategies of street vendors and hawkers, and of sundry artisanal groups working in
the city? Are urban and periurban natural resource pools and commons (for instance, fish from
lakes, rivulets, creeks, ponds and other water bodies) integrated into the supply chains of small
retailers, wholesalers and supermarkets, as well as of eateries and restaurants?”

Parthsarathy (2011: 55) claims that “it is these kinds of commons – ecological commons – used for
livelihood dependencies, but also feeding into domestic and transnational commodity chains, that are of
interest for his article, ‘Hunters, Gatherers and Foragers in a Metropolis: Commonising the Private and
Public in Mumbai’.

Amita Baviskar (2011: 45-53) in her essay, ‘What the Eye Does not See: The Yamuna in the Imagination
of Delhi’ traces “the shifting visibility of the river Yamuna in the social and ecological imagination of
Delhi” and argues that “the riverbed has changed from being a neglected “non-place” to prized real
estate for private and public corporations”. In recent times, Delhi has witnessed encroachment of
floodplains of the river, not by poor squatters as it has often been assumed, but by a grandiose temple,
by the public sector undertaking that manages transportation and several such interests. Side by side
there have been mobilizations of citizens across Yamuna River under the banner of Yamuna Jiye Abhiyan
and environmental litigations that contested such takeovers of floodplains.

[3000 Words]

 The Uncommon Story of an Urban Commons, A short 27 minutes documentary on citizens’

initiative to revive Kaikondarahalli Lake. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uR1_qcVA4vc
 There is a dynamic global directory for urban researchers and practitioners working on Urban
Commons. For more details see www.globalurbancommons.org
 Commoning the City: Beyond Ownership, Saki Bailey speak on the Wealth of Urban Commons
https://vimeo.com/67513018

References

Anjarai, Jonathan Shapiro (2006) ‘Street Hawkers and Public Space in Mumbai’, Economic and Political
Weekly, Vol 41, No 21, (May 27-June 02), pp. 2140-2146.
Baviskar, Amita (2011) ‘‘What the Eye Does not See: The Yamuna in the Imagination of Delhi’, Economic
and Political Weekly, Vol Vol XLIV, No 50, December 10,
http://indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/files/file/Yamuna.pdf

Borsch, Christian and Martin Kornberger eds. (2015) Urban Commons: Rethinking the City, Routledge,
New York.

D’Souza, Rohan and Harini Nagendra (2011) ‘Changes in Public Commons as a Consequence of
Urbanisation: The Agara Lake in Bangalore, India’; Environmental Management, No 47, pp. 840-850,
DOI: 10.1007/s00267-011-9658-8 http://www.atree.org/sites/default/files/news-
events/2011_agaralake_bangalore.pdf

Foster, Sheila R. (2011) ‘Collective Action and the Urban Commons’, Notre Dame Law Review, Vol 87, No
1, pp. 57-134.

Gidani, Vinay and Amita Baviskar (2011) ‘Urban Commons’, Economic and Political Weekly, Vol XLVI, No
50, pp. 42-43.

Harvey, David (2013) ‘The Creation of Urban Commons’, in Event as Process, Athens Biennale, Agora.
http://athensbiennale.org/event-as-process/the-creation-of-the-urban-commons/?from=ab4

Harvey, David (2012) ‘The Creation of Urban Commons’, chapter 3 in Rebel Cities: From the Right to the
Cities to the Urban Revolution, Verso: London, New York.
http://abahlali.org/files/Harvey_Rebel_cities_0.pdf

Jain, Angela and Massimo Moraglio (2014) ‘Struggling for the use of urban streets: preliminary
(historical) comparison between European and Indian cities’, International Journal of Commons, Vol 8,
No 2, pp. 515-530.

Lee, Shin and Chris Webster (2006) ‘Enclosure of the Urban Commons’, GeoJournal, Vol 66, No 1-2, pp
27-42, DOI: 10.1007/s10708-006-9014-3

Nagendra, Harini and Elinor Ostrom (2014) ‘Applying the Social-Ecological System Framework to the
Diagnosis of Urban Lake Commons in Bangalore, India’, Ecology and Society, Vol 19, No 2, Art 67.
http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol19/iss2/art67/ES-2014-6582.pdf

Nagendra, Harini (2014) ‘The Cooperative Governance of Urban Commons’, blogpost on Team Blog the
nature of cities, May 28th, http://www.thenatureofcities.com/2014/05/28/the-cooperative-governance-
of-urban-commons/

Parthsarathy, D. (2011) ‘Hunters, Gatherers and Foragers in a Metropolis: Commonising the Private
Public in Mumbai’, Economic and Political Weekly, Vol XLVI, No 50, pp. 54-63
http://re.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/files/file/Metropolis.pdf

Raman, Bhuvanesvari (2011) ‘The fuzzy logic of urban commons’, Agenda No 21,
http://infochangeindia.org/agenda/enclosure-of-the-commons/the-fuzzy-logic-of-urban-commons.html

Sundaresan, Jayaraj (2011) ‘Planning as Commoning: Transformation of a Bangalore Lake’, Economic and
Political Weekly, Vol XLVI, No 50, pp. 71-79.
Verma, Sushmita (2014) ‘Public Spaces or Urban Commons?’, Counter Currents,
http://www.countercurrents.org/verma250414.htm

Report on the Workshop on the Urban Commons, 18-19 August 2010, NIAS, Bangalore
http://www.nias.res.in/docs/urpp/Urban%20Commons%20Workshop%20URPP%20final.pdf

(For Further Reading, Weblinks etc ppt)

Resources on Urban Commons

The Global Urban Commons is a dynamic global directory for urban researchers and practitioners.
Employing a searchable database, news and research section, it enhances sharing data, collaboration,
and learning in real time. The idea for the Global Urban Commons had emerged at the Rockefeller
Foundation’s Global Urban Summit at the Bellagio Study Centre in July 2007.
(www.globalurbancommons.org)

Project for Public Spaces was founded in 1975 to expand on the work of Wiliam (Holly) White, author of
The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces. It is a nonprofit planning, designing and educational organization
dedicated to helping people create and sustain public spaces that build stronger communities. The
website of this organization (www.pps.org)

Reclaiming Land, Building Urban Commons

This event expanded the discussion started at Studio-X NYC on October 17 concerning Occupy, protest,
and public space into a consideration of the politics of land use in the city. It brought together
researchers and activists to address the role of land in urban political struggles, and to brainstorm
strategies and visions for cultivating the commons at the scale of the metropolis. Some of the questions
addressed included how might urban land be liberated from the overlapping powers of private property,
real-estate speculation, and neoliberal state policies? What tools, skills, and knowledges might enhance
our efforts to both liberate and cultivate a new commons? What role does collectively-held land play in
expanding our capacity to create non-capitalist social relations? What lessons can we learn from
histories of land-liberation in the United States and throughout the world? Issues explored included
campaigns against eviction and displacement, squatting tactics, housing as a human right, Community
Land Trusts, urban agriculture, food justice, and more.

Moderator: Christina Daniel; Yates McKee

With: Rob Robinson, Take Back The Land; Caroline Woolard; Manissa McCleave Maharawal; Picture the
Homeless; Benedict Clouette, C-Lab, LA Open Acres; Quilian Riano, DSGN AGNC, #whOWNSpace

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SWxl-_uN_c

Global Urban Lectures Season 1

UN-Habitat, January 21, 2015

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTQZbEc6Bv5-Hja_AppdM6gkXp98C01Ca
i
For an understanding of the importance on the Hull House Social Science Club and how the space carved out for
immigrants in 19th Ward of Chicago, read ‘Forging the Urban Commons’, http://www.onthecommons.org/forging-
urban-commons
ii
For the essay based on this conversations see, http://infochangeindia.org/agenda/enclosure-of-the-
commons/the-fuzzy-logic-of-urban-commons.html
iii
For an account of how in early 1980s, the government of Karnataka set up a committee under the chairman ship
of ex-bureaucrat Laxman Rao and how these irrigation tanks was handed over to city authorities – Bangalore
Brihad Mahanagar Palike (BBMP) and Bangalore Development Authority (BDA), and the citizens’ movement against
the privatization of lakes, see D’Souza, Rohan (2011) ‘Privatising Bangalore’s Lakes’, Agenda No 21,
http://infochangeindia.org/agenda/enclosure-of-the-commons/privatising-bangalore-s-lakes.html
iv
For an account of the Kaikondrahalli Lake Initiative see, Harini Nagrandra in conversation with Rohan D’Souza
(2011) ‘The Kaikondrahalli Lake Initiative’, Agenda No 21, http://infochangeindia.org/agenda/enclosure-of-the-
commons/the-kaikondrahalli-lake-initiative.html For a detailed case study of another such initiative by
communities around Rajpalya Lake, see Sundaresan, Jayaraj (2011) ‘Planning as Commoning: Transformation of a
Bangalore Lake’, Economic and Political Weekly, Vol XLVI, No 50, pp. 71-79.
v
For a reportage on the audit findings, see Upadhyaya, Himanshu (2015) ‘Bengaluru lacks buffer zones, raja
kaluves, data and will to protect lakes: CAG’, Citizen Matters, August 4th,
http://bangalore.citizenmatters.in/articles/bengaluru-lacks-buffer-zones-raja-kaluves-data-and-will-to-protect-
lakes-cag
vi
For details on the protests to Tender SURE road project in Bangalore, see Prasad, Akshay and Parina Dhilla (2015)
‘Citizens not so sure about Tender SURE’, The New Indian Express, 10th April 2015,
http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/bengaluru/Citizens-Not-Too-Sure-of-
TenderSURE/2015/04/10/article2756886.ece
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Urban Ecology – Part III

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Biodiversity, Green Patches, Urban Sprawl, Species

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary The module is a third part of the Urban Ecology which focuses on Urban
Biodiversity and why it is essential. The module will spend some time talking
about the causes of the reduction of the species and also about the species
that have started using urban structures as their habitats.

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Dhwani Shah Independent Researcher

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Language Editor (LE) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Contents
Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 2

Urbanization and Biodiversity ........................................................................................................ 3

Transformation of Land and Systems ............................................................................................. 4

Feedback loops and Resilience ....................................................................................................... 5

The urban – rural patterns of biodiversity....................................................................................... 6

Biodiversity found among the urban water bodies ......................................................................... 7

Wells ........................................................................................................................................... 7

Lakes ........................................................................................................................................... 7

Rivers .......................................................................................................................................... 8

Biodiversity found among the urban green patches ........................................................................ 8

Gardens ....................................................................................................................................... 8

Parks............................................................................................................................................ 9

Forests ......................................................................................................................................... 9

Katas or Ashwat Kattes or community spaces ............................................................................ 9

Disappearing of species .................................................................................................................. 9

Sparrows ..................................................................................................................................... 9

Butterflies and Honey bees ....................................................................................................... 10

Amphibians – Frogs .................................................................................................................. 10

Bats ........................................................................................................................................... 10

Mosquitoes ................................................................................................................................ 11

Commons and biodiversity ........................................................................................................... 11

Bibliography ................................................................................................................................. 12

1|Page
Introduction
In the earlier two modules we spent some time discussing about the green patches in urban areas,
their importance and threats to the green patches of the urban areas and we also discussed about
the urban commons and their importance in the urban areas. We move further to the next topic
which talks about urban biodiversity. Biodiversity is a word usually used for the variety or the
types of plants and animals or insect species found in a particular area. Biodiversity is different in
different areas and differs from climate to climate and also landscape wise. All the species found
in a particular area have their own importance and play an essential role in the ecology. Also the
more the biodiversity we can determine the productivity of the ecosystem and its contribution to
the larger environment as the effects are not local but affect the global level too. In this module we
shall discuss in detail about the biodiversity found in an urban area and how it differs from
controlled green patch setting like in gardens and lawns and uncontrolled areas like urban forests
or in areas natural growth of trees and plants are found. It would also in detail discuss about the
water bodies that are an essential part of the urban areas, playing an important role in the
environment and the life they support.

As diverse India is in its customs, traditions, culture, languages etc. equally diverse it is in the
species of its flora and fauna. India falls in tropic zone with rich soil and rain. India is also home
to a diverse range of climates where there is a desert, high peaks with snowfall, rich with alluvial
soil and rain the eastern coast of India, rich and thick evergreen forest in the northeast and the rain
fed south and western India with the biodiversity hotspot Western Ghats cutting across. India has
seen growing urbanization since the development of industries. Post-independence India followed
the same path of development as the British and the industrialization is full-fledged and cities are
growing. With recent development in India the metropolitan cities will be developed as smart cities
and infrastructure development would be the objective of the cities. It is hence essential that we
understand the environment around us and the biodiversity that our neighborhoods are home to.

This module would try to discuss the complex settings that the urban areas are home to. The
objective of the module shall be to have a broader understanding of the life that we see around us
and its complexity. Urban ecology refers to the patterns of species occurrence, distribution of
habitats and the biodiversity that is found in these spaces and habitats. Further in this module we
will first start with understand the various strata of biodiversity like microorganisms, plants,

2|Page
insects, birds and animals. India is rapidly urbanizing and in the coming years it is expected that
50% of the country’s population would be living in the cities. This means that more and more
demand for land and place to live and more of the green areas shall be compromised to provide for
the growing city. There is a vast variety of biodiversity found in cities and also there are examples
and circumstances where the urban buildings have provided a place to live and grow for many
species.

Urbanization and Biodiversity

Urbanization is inevitable and has major impacts on its surroundings. As discussed in the first part
urbanization, urban sprawl and other issues that are accompanied with the urbanization have major
impacts on the green patches urbanization also has great impacts on the waterbodies that are found
in the cities and the biodiversity that is found. Though urbanization and urban development is
responsible for one of the greatest extinction of the species it also keeps frequently eliminating the
majority of native species of trees which are replaced by the exotic species of trees which do not
support as wide range of biodiversity as the native species would. This affects the biodiversity
found in the cities of insects and birds who would reside and live on those plants and trees. Hence
urban development and biodiversity are very

Figure 1 - A panoramic view of urbanizing Bangalore, India Picture by – Dhwani Shah

The above picture is a panoramic view of Bangalore’s peri-urban areas which are a witness to
growth and development. The two lakes in the image, one which can be seen far away in the left
corner and one which is a prominent one which has already been started to be reclaimed to pave
way for development. Urbanizing Bangalore and other cities in India has always posed a threat to
gardens, urban forests, lakes and other water bodies, and green patches.

3|Page
Figure 2 - A peri urbn Bangalore setting. Lake, green patches and development. Picture by – Dhwani Shah

Transformation of Land and Systems

As we have earlier discussed when urbanization takes place large areas of wet lands, agricultural
lands, waste lands etc. are converted into concrete buildings, gardens, parking lots etc. changing
the earlier landscape into a completely different landscape. As the urbanization increases the urban
sprawl increases and the patches where the biodiversity can be found shrinks and get divided into
patches. These patches are home to various insects, plants, animals, birds, aquatic life but the gene
pool of these organisms is limited to the green patch they live in. There is no interaction among
the other species that live in the other places and this also leads to the organisms to have a smaller
niche and lesser resistance and adaptability.

4|Page
Figure 3 A google view of Mumbai showing the urban sprawl and distribution of green patches and water bodies

These green patches and waterbodies not only shrink in size but are highly polluted and gets
heavily impacted due to the increase in the temperature and change in climatic patterns. These
impacts also are transformative for the ecosystem and there are no means for that system to come
back to its original state. For example the mangroves that are converted to for prawn cultivation
and salt pans is transformation of the system and the system shall not go back to its previous state
again.

Feedback loops and Resilience

In an ecosystem there are some factors like a feedback loop and resilience. Both is determined by
the number of species in the ecosystem and the kind of species that are present. The more the
species the higher the resilience as the feedback loop is also stronger. Feedback loops play an
important role in the natural selection. Feedbacks are of two types positive feedback and negative
feedback and on the basis of the feedback received the species adapt themselves to the changing
conditions. If a species gets a negative feedback for a particular characteristic that they have then
they adapt and change the characteristics and the other characteristics which get a positive
feedback are developed and enhanced. For example, the monarch butterfly has developed its
appearance to that of a honey bee. This is an example of mimicry in a natural selection example.
This adaptations help the butterfly protect itself from predators who wouldn’t feed on honeybees.

5|Page
Resilience can be understood as “Resilience is the long-term capacity of a system to deal with
change and continue to develop” (Centre, n.d.). The system survives the shocks and imbalances
that the system faces in the process. Shocks can be manmade changes or natural changes that affect
a system. There are many such incidences which are temporary like floods in which the system
shows resilience to an extent but if the whole system is chopped off and buildings and concrete
roads come there the system becomes completely non-resilient and a new system is formed. The
species that are lost and then found later are different and the system type is completely different
from the system it was prior to the change.

The urban – rural patterns of biodiversity

It is probably intuitive to even the most casual observer that the increasing fragmentation of natural
habitat by human disturbances in the direction toward urban centers will tend to reduce species
richness (number of species) in that direction (MCKINNEY, 2002). Urbanization, in its intensity
is one of the most unstable system and are not at an equilibrium with the local environment and
nature and other species that were present in the same place. Urbanization is the homogenizing
activity of all major human activities today. Cities homogenize the physical environment the way
that is best suited to meet the relatively narrow needs of just their own. Cities are maintained by
the importing vast resources of energy and materials that are not locally found/ cultivated.
Consequently, as cities expand across the planet, biological homogenization increases because the
same ‘‘urban-adaptable’’ species become increasingly widespread and locally abundant in cities
across the planet (McKinney, 2005). In rural set ups the energy import, energy consumption is
much less than a city and hence the local dependence and the conservation is higher. Also the
species there have vast areas to grow, and be protected and resilient. The systems in a village/ rural
areas are much more resilient and stronger than that of urban areas. Rural areas – diverse species,
species higher in numbers (population), and local species are abundant. Urban areas –
homogenized, lower in numbers (population) and homogenizing species are higher as only a few
can adapt to the changing environment and are away from the local/ native species of flora and
fauna. In rural areas, another reason why the species flourish is because there is minimal levels of
disturbances that is created.

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Biodiversity found among the urban water bodies
Wells
Wells are present in every city as the city before becoming cities were villages where the main
source of water was wells and not pipelines that travel for Kilometers and kilometers with pure
and safe drinking water. Today there are wells that still exist in the cities and the water is mainly
used for the purposes not for drinking. These wells were private and public and were usually
having a temple around it as it was a sacred place because it was a source of drinking water i.e.
source of life. today with increasing urbanization and the changing life patterns and the notion of
upscale living the wells are no more considered as important and have been disappearing as also
stated by Hita Unnikrishnan and Harini Nagendra in their paper on Open Wells and Urban
Resilience. They in their paper mention about an experience that they had with a friend who said
that disappearing wells were a good sight and they also mention that “…….the comment
exemplified the mind-set of an urban population that has become reliant on piped water supply.
The availability of piped water 24/7 often leads to the perception of traditional water storage,
supply, and recharge structures, such as open wells, as useless, a waste of space that could be more
usefully utilized for construction, or even as an environmental and physical hazard.” It helps us
further understand the changing mindsets of people. Wells support vast forms of life like people
and they recharge the ground water giving the trees and the areas around a good water supply.
Fishes, turtles and other creatures are also found into the well.

Lakes
In a metropolitan cities like Bangalore, Mumbai and other cities like Thane, Bhopal etc. have lakes
within the boundaries of the city and are at times of an aesthetic value for the community/ urban
areas but these are of high importance to maintain the biodiversity and ecological balance. Lakes
are not necessarily naturally occurring but majority of the lakes are manmade and are built to cater
to the water needs of the community. In Bangalore Kempegowda and his successors has built more
than 100 lakes and today there are only a few that are alive and in good state. What happened to
these lakes and how important they were in protecting the biodiversity? Majority of the lakes gave
way to projects like golf course, parks, fire brigade etc. see – Bangalore Lakes for getting an idea
of the lakes and what happened to them. Lakes being manmade are today an essential center for
environment and the birds and the marine life that it catered to. Flocks of birds and many fishes

7|Page
live on the lake. Many migratory birds stop by the lake for a few days or stop by the lakes for
breeding. The lakes are also of high social importance as it supports the cattle and the life stock.
Lakes with good fish life have provided support to the local community fishing community. Today
the Bangalore lakes are fed upon the sewage from the neighborhood communities and high
amounts of eutrophication also takes place. Bellandur lake is one such example where the foam
from the sewage released by the communities around is found on the streets. The lake today stinks
day in and day out but yet the land around the lake and the residential colonies are constantly
coming up in the vicinity which are highly priced.

Rivers
Few urban areas also have rivers that flow within the boundaries. Mumbai for example has 2 rivers
that are a part of the city – Mithi and Dahisar. Both these rivers have their origins from the lakes
that overflow and provide water to these rivers. Both the rivers today have transformed into sewage
“nalas/ gutters” as the amounts of pollution in both these rivers is very high in a city like Mumbai.
Both these rivers at the juncture of the sea have vast areas of mangroves that safeguard the city.
Both these rivers were sources of fresh water and fishes. Today huge lands have been reclaimed
from the Mithi River and the course of the flow has also changed. In the floods of 2005 which hit
the city, the siltation and the plastic that chocked up the river flow were the biggest factors
contributing to the floods and increasing the death toll. Similarly Vapi, the industrial hub of Gujarat
has a river flowing through it – Damanganga which today is high in toxicity with metals like
mercury which is affecting the biodiversity in the river and further the sea also. Rivers all through
the history were and are an important source of water for drinking and irrigation and lately for
power generation. Rivers provide fishes and other livelihood options for the communities that live
around it. The birds that are resident or migratory both find the rivers essential.

Biodiversity found among the urban green patches

Gardens
Gardens as discussed in the first module are the altered and unnatural surroundings where a limited
amount of species are found and are highly maintained and controlled. These spaces have a limited
amounts of species that are found there. Gardens are also home to majority of shrubs and
ornamental plants, trees and grasses that are nonnative and can be maintained easily. the species

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also cannot live there because there is a constant application of fertilizers and pesticides as insects
and some rodents are an unpleasant sight in the gardens. The botanical gardens are an exception
as in such spaces the species are preserved and maintained for the park to be more diverse and
better.

Parks
Parks as discussed in the previous module can be of various kinds ranging from national park to
zoos can have varied kinds of biodiversity that they would be home to. These parks also become
a link in the human animal interaction where the species that are found are a part of study for the
people who pay a visit to the area. Parks still have traces of human interventions as in many zoos
there are gardens that are created and maintained eliminating some species of insects. In
amusement parks, the entire system of lake, waterfalls, fountains all the systems are artificial and
chlorinated and hence many species cannot sustain in such places.

Forests
Forests in urban settings have been constantly degrading but yet a home to a majority of the species
that have found a shelter in the forests in the process of urbanization. Also the forests serve as ideal
homes to the plants and animals that could not survive the shock of urbanization. Forests and the
biodiversity found in the forests are under threat today because of the increasing urbanization and
encroachments.

Katas or Ashwat Kattes or community spaces

In India plants have been of great importance in religious context and have been used as
community spaces. The Katas or structures that are built around the native species serve as a home
to a number of plants and animals like bats, ants, earthworms and high numbers of microorganisms
and fungus that grows on the trees. These structures are also important as they also provide space
for the humans to interact with other species (nature).

Disappearing of species
Sparrows
The sparrows in the cities have been disappearing from the cities and have moved to other spaces
which are less populated and polluted. There are several studies available that claim that the

9|Page
sparrows that have been living with the human settlements eating the grains etc. and were found
in abundance in the cities but lately the sparrows have been disappearing and only in a few spaces
you would find the sparrows in the cities. There are a various range of reasons that affect the
sparrows and with the sparrows many more birds are migrating away from the cities. Urbanization
also causes a threat to the birds like vultures etc.

Butterflies and Honey bees

With the native flowers and other flower producing trees and other plants disappearing the
butterflies and bees are found in limited patches. This affects the gene pool and the species niche.
Honey bees have been under constant threat as they are a keystone species and they are affected
highly in the cities due to vast numbers of trees being cut down, removal of honey combs and high
amounts of chemical use in our day to day life has been affecting the honeybees in cities. Through
honeybees have been able to adapt to the changes in the urban spaces they have adapted themselves
to the tall and high rising buildings which provide home in the balconies, ducts and windows. Yet
in all this the honey bees were and are under threat.

Amphibians – Frogs
Amphibians are very sensitive to environmental change and the difference can be seen in their
behavior patterns very easily. It is rare that the frogs are seen in the lakes around the cities. They
have been moving away from the city centre to outskirts and rural areas. There are several reasons
for the same like the pollution in the cities has created skin diseases caused due to a fungus
‘Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis’ which is the most dreaded infection to the. If you see frogs
around your home in an urban city means the climate and other required parameters for the frogs
is suitable to survive there and it also means that we are living in a good environment.

There are many more species that have moved away from the cities. Many more to be explored.

Bats
Bats are the only mammal species in the avian category and these are highly sensitive to any
changes that happen in their surroundings. Urbanization has led to deforestation and also has made
it difficult for the bats to survive in such settings. Bats are usually dependent on fruits. When
urbanization happens either the fruit growing plants are cut down and a building comes up or exotic
species of trees and plants are planted. The bats cannot eat the fruits of exotic variety of trees and

10 | P a g e
also cannot live there. Another hindrance to the bats is the sound bright lights that the cities have.
Lights are a hindrance to the bats when they fly. Bats move on the bases of frequency of the sound
they produce. In bright lights and loud sounds of various activities in the urban settings, it becomes
difficult for the bats to travel and search for food and survive.

Mosquitoes
Not all the species have been affected negatively but there are many species that flourished in the
cities. mosquitoes is one such example. As the honeybees, mosquitoes have successfully found
homes in the cities where they regenerate and affect the cities. Why so? Majority of the mosquitoes
reproduce in the places where there is water available, favorable temperatures due to heat islands,
urban sprawl and the capacities of the concrete to maintain heat levels. Cities are ideal spaces as
there are constant constructions taking place, the also the water storing in the slums have provided
a good space for the mosquitoes to reproduce and flourished.

Commons and biodiversity

Further understanding the commons in the module urban commons, we need to understand the
biodiversity and the importance of the biodiversity in the urban commons. These spaces be it a
footpath or a gardens, which are shared and nurtured by all the members of the communities.
Considering the Dahisar River, the patch which flows inside the Sanjay Gandhi National Park. The
river is a shared and a common property there of animals, plants, insects, birds, reptiles, fishes and
humans (Tribals) and other people who religiously consider the river sacred. In these commons it
is important to have biodiversity as they all are a part of the food chain and depend on them. For
example plants are eaten by insects and herbivores, they are eaten by frogs and carnivores, which
are further eaten by snakes and secondary carnivores. This way the food chain that is found there
is interdependence among the species. In all this humans too are dependent on the river in a large
extent. Humans find their food in the form of fishes, crabs, plants etc. These are not only useful
for them for eating, humans also sell these and make their money and hence it is a source of their
livelihoods. The river is also used as the source of water for bathing, washing and growing
vegetables. In such a complex relationship that is shared among the river and other species around
them it is important to have biodiversity maintained in any system.

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In conclusion we can say that urbanization has affected biodiversity of the systems that exist in an
urban setting and goes on further to pollute the system and make it difficult for any life to sustain
specially in the waterbodies.

Bibliography
Centre, S. R. (n.d.). What is Resilience? Retrieved October 2015, from Stockholm University:
http://www.stockholmresilience.org/21/research/what-is-resilience.html

MCKINNEY, M. L. (2002, October). Urbanization, Biodiversity and Conservation. BioScience,

pp. 883-890. Retrieved 2015

McKinney, M. L. (2005, November 2). Urbanization as a major cause of biotic homogenization.

Elsevier, pp. 247-260. Retrieved October 2015, from
http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.455.4173&rep=rep1&type=pdf

Wikipedia. (2015, October). Ecological Niche. Retrieved from Wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecological_niche

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 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Environmental Movements in India Part I

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary This module will describe India’s environmental movements. It introduces

students to how environmental concerns entered social movements
discourses in India. This paper is divided into two major sections. The first
section, on popular environmental movements before 1990, deals with the
characteristics and concerns of these movements and why certain
movements are more popular than the others. The third and final section
are case studies of the Kashipur anti-bauxite mining struggle as well as the
Niyamgiri struggle spearheaded by the dongria-konds

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Rupesh Kumar Independent Researcher

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Language Editor (LE) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Introduction
Concern about environmental problems, present in most developing countries, as in India, is of
relatively recent origin. Even the recent awareness and environmental concern at the policy level
is due to the advocacy and lobbying of mass movements as well as research by support
organisations. At the grassroots level, it is due to efforts by individuals and to a profound sense
of experiencing the effects of environmental problems on ecology and livelihood first hand.

The environmental movements in India, therefore, are not necessarily "green" or "clean" or to
save heritage and species in danger of extinction, as in the West, but for the very survival of the
poor (Rao, 1994). In order to understand the nature and trajectory of environmental movements
in India, it is intended herein to reflect on the experience of some of the important movements
during the 1970s as well as the period post 1991 when India liberalized its economy. It should be
noted that grassroots movements are not necessarily synonymous with movements across the
country. These movements can be described only in terms of their popularity instead of their
support base (or affected areas). Although the main objective of these movements is to influence
policy they also work towards sustainable development practices. The main focus of this paper is
to look at the reasons for their success and popularity rather than accomplishments as the process
in movement building are what define the movements and their impact in society. This paper is
divided into two major sections. The first section, on popular environmental movements before
1990, deals with the characteristics and concerns of these movements and why certain
movements are more popular than the others. The third and final section are case studies of the
Kashipur anti-bauxite mining struggle as well as the Niyamgiri struggle spearheaded by the
dongria-konds.

Environmental movements
Although the origin of modern day environmentalism and environmental movements in India is
often attributed to the Chipko movement in the region of the central Himalayas in the 1970s, in
fact protests against the Mulshi dam were the first to combat large-scale displacement in India in
1927 following the approval of the Mulshi Dam hydroelectric project in Bombay Presidency,
Western India. The fight was a milestone in the history of opposition to involuntary displacement
of people from their land. The project was owned by the industrial conglomerate Tata family, and
was commissioned in 1920. A total of 11,000 people were displaced and alienated from their
traditional rice fields due to this project. Men, women and children from the Malva community
organised a nonviolent protest to stop work on the dam site. Finally, several hundred people were
arrested and the struggle lasted for two and a half years. Autocratic British rule suppressed this
movement (Fernandes and Paranjpya, 1997, pp. 1-34).

The Chipko movement, launched to protect the forests of the Himalayas from destruction, had its
roots in the days before independence. Many battles were organized to protest against the
colonial forest policy in the early decades of 20th century. The main demand of the people was
that the benefits of forests, especially right to fodder, must go to the local population (Bahuguna,
1990). These struggles continued in the post-independent era as forest policy of independent
India was no different from that of the colonial times. However, the origin of the "Chipko" can
be traced to early 1973.

In early 1973, the Forest Department refused to assign the ash trees to the Dashauli Gram
Swarajya Sangha (DGHS), a local cooperative organization based in the Chamoli district to
manufacture agricultural tools. In addition to this, the forest department assigned the ash trees to
a private company, Symonds. This incident caused the DGHS to fight, this injustice of providing
timber to a company rather than the local cooperative, by placing themselves in front of the
trucks of firewood and wood resin and deposits, which were being taken to Symonds, as has
been done during the Quit India Movement. When these methods were found unsuccessful,
Chandi Prasad Bhat - one of the leaders, suggested the activists should hug trees and therefore
"Chipko" was born (for details see Bahuguna, 1990 and Guha, 1989). This form of protest helped
in stopping private enterprise felling of ash trees as the people were literally between the axe and
the tree. With its success, the movement spread to the neighboring regions and came to be
popularly known as the Chipko Movement.

Chipko movement with its huge following in the neighboring areas as well and the successful
intervention with regards to forest protection through non-violent methods, although modest in
achieving some of its objectives, can be termed as a turning point in environmental movements
in India. This development of movements in India, in fact, turned on the environmental aspects
of development in the country and led to many conflicts and protests for natural resources and
the environment. However, despite many forest movements developing in the past two decades
in India, none of them attracted public support or influenced state policies. This can be attributed
to three main aspects of the Chipko movement. First, the close relationship between the
livelihoods of the local population and the nature of the movement. Local people considered
Chipko as a struggle for basic subsistence denied to them by the institutions and state policies
(Guha 1989). In addition, there was also the specificity of the region in which the participation of
women in contributing to the livelihoods of households and the campaign against alcohol led to
the overwhelming support of women. Also, as aptly described by Guha (1989, p. 178) the
"private" face of the Chipko movement was more peasant oriented, while the public profile was
considered an ecological movement. It also had characteristics of a women's movement (Omvedt
1993). Interestingly, in later stages, when Chipko stopped going beyond environmental concerns,
that is, limited its focus to the protection and preservation of trees, the problems began to
emerge.

The second aspect is about the nature of the turmoil. Unlike other environmental movements, the
Chipko movement strictly followed the Gandhian tradition of the struggle for freedom, that is,
nonviolence. To quote Guha 'there is the veneer of Gandhianism with which Chipko is cloaked, a
matter of some embarrassment for a state claiming to be the rightful successor of the freedom
struggle and upholding Gandhi as the Father of Nation. In this manner Chipko had, knowingly or
unknowingly, successfully exploited the ambiguities in the dominant ideology of the Indian state'
(Guha, 1989, p 177). Thirdly, the sincerity of the leaders as Shri Sunderlal Bahuguna, and access
to national leaders like Indira Gandhi and other politicians and officials, due to the prominence
he gained over the course of the movement, also contributed to the success of the movement
greatly.

In fact, at first, the Chipko movement had six main objectives- one of which was the total
cessation of commercial tree felling. Other demands included: (i) based on the minimum needs
of the population, a reorganization of the traditional rights should take place; (Ii) the dry forest
should be green, with the participation of the people and the increase in the cultivation of the
trees; (Iii) village committees should be trained in the management of forests; (Iv) national
forest-related industries should be developed and raw materials, money and technology to be
made available; and (v) based on local conditions and needs, priority should be given to the local
varieties of afforestation (Mukul, 1993).

Other important popular movements in India which have the protection of the environment as
one of their objectives, relate to large dams. Among them are the Tehri Dam, Silent Valley
Project and Narmada valley projects. The longest anti dam struggle was the Tehri dam which
was under construction on the river Bhagirathi in the Garhwal region. The Tehri Baandh
Sangarshan Virodhi Samithi (Committee for the fight against Tehri dam), founded by veteran
freedom fighter Veerendra Saklani Datta, opposed the construction for more than a decade. The
main objections included seismic sensitivity of the area, the flooding of forest areas and the town
of Tehri, etc. (for more details see D'Monte, 1985 cited in Gadgil and Guha, 1994).

One of the first successful environmental movements leading to the cancellation of a

hydroelectric power project, was the Silent Valley hydroelectric power project in Kerala. This
movement was organized by the Kerala Sastra Sahitya Parishat (KSSP) in collaboration with
wildlife conservationists. The movement was led mainly for environmental reasons and
especially intellectually by eminent people writing about the impacts of the project on the
ecosystem, talking in public meetings both at a national as well as international level. The main
concerns of this movement were the negative environmental impact on Silent Valley, one of the
last remaining natural tropical forests of India and to protect a rare species of monkey, lion-tailed
macaque. With the active support of international organisations such as the World Wide Fund for
Nature and the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources the
movement gained international importance (Sethi, 1993). Although it has grown in popularity
and coverage, the ultimate success of the movement has been attributed to the desire of Prime
Minister Indira Gandhi to improve her government's image within the International Conservation
Community (D'Monte 1985 as quoted in Gadgil and Guha 1994).

The most popular movement in the history of environmental movement in India is against the
Narmada river valley development projects. Although the movement began in late 1970 as a
result of the authorisation of the project, it gained prominence and spread in late 1980s. First, this
movement focused on the issue of human rights as an outcome of displacement of the people. In
fact, some of the main leaders of the movement at the time worked for the rehabilitation
programs for displaced. Due to the poor implementation of programmes of rehabilitation of the
people displaced due to the dam, human rights activists became part of the anti-dam protests.
Their demands included complete stoppage of the dam construction and resettlement and
rehabilitation benefits to the oustees (Wood, 1993). These claims were duly supported by
environmentalists who oppose the construction of large dams on environmental grounds. The
movement, however, gained more public attention due to the mobilization and organization of
the oustees (mostly indigenous people) and the union of the eminent social workers such as Baba
Amte, Medha Patkar and Sunderlal Bahuguna. Although its focus is the general public because
of its impact in three states, the most notable feature of this movement is the international
support it received in late 80s and early 90s. In fact, the main reason behind the withdrawal of
funding from World Bank project was due to international pressure. To list a few examples:
Japanese ecologists persuaded their governments to block the money advanced for the project.
Similarly, US environmental groups worked hard to stop the financing from the World Bank
(Gadgil and Guha, 1994, p 173). Such international support was unprecedented in the history of
the environment movement in India. The completion of the Narmada Valley project was not
directly related to the World Bank funding, and therefore the success of the movement. Also,
without international pressure, it would have been difficult for the leaders of the Narmada Bacho
Andolan (Save Narmada agitation) to stop World Bank funding on their own. The movement
petitioned the Supreme Court of India and the dam construction was stayed by the Supreme
Court for six years (1994-2000). On 18th October 2000, Supreme Court gave a judgment giving
the go-ahead to dam construction, albeit conditional to the fulfillment of the resettlement and
rehabilitation as per Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal stipulations. Supreme Court during the
course of hearing the case had instituted ‘new beaurocracy’, known as Grievance Redressal
Authority and wished that complaints about incomplete and inadequate resettlement be resolved
by these authority, in the event of ‘old beaurocracy’, created by NWDT stipulation failed to
ensure rehabilitation. For last 15 years, it has been an ongoing struggle where in oustees have
kept arguing that successive governments have been raising height of the dam without ensuring
complete resettlement and rehabilitation (see, TISS: 2008)

Significance and Popularity of Environmental Movements

At this point, it is important to understand the characteristics and qualities of certain movements
which contributed to them becoming so popular, while others are not. According to the standard
definition of a social movement, it is a deliberate collective endeavor to make changes in all
directions and by all means, which should have a certain degree of organisation and policy
commitment and active participation by its members (Shah, 1990, pp.16-17). Movements with
multiple objectives and rapidly changing strategies can sustain for long periods. The
cohesiveness involved in the integration of multiple objectives without losing sight of the
protests on the ground are essential for success. When we analyze the movements described
above, the movements mentioned have three distinct support bases on the ground: Chipko with
the base as the forests, Silent Valley, Tehri and Narmada being big dam controversies.

The success or popularity of the Chipko movement can be attributed to its long history, many
goals which have changed with time, and committed leaders who are respected both at local and
national level. As the fight against the forest policy of the state had begun during the time of pre-
independence that accumulated during the period, a broader base of local support provided a
solid foundation for the Chipko movement. Chipko's strength lies in its multiple targets with a
wide range, such as, protecting the livelihoods of farmers, the anti-alcohol campaign, the
greening of the hills in a sustainable manner, etc. Over time, the mode of addressing these
problems has also changed. For this reason Chipko is often called a
farmer/environmental/women's movement.

The lack of popular support in the Tehri dam case can be attributed to its more or less single
target which focused on the seismic impact and submersion of forest land due to the construction
of the dam. In addition, the Tehri struggle followed different strategies to attract support from
various national and international fora which did not get enough attention or support. Although
successful, the movement against the Silent Valley Project, with limited popular support, is
essentially intellectual in character but the popularity of Narmada has several dimensions. The
Narmada Movement, as Chipko, began articulating livelihood issues of local populations, moved
to human rights and focused on environmental concerns while suggesting an alternative
development paradigm. Interestingly, the strategy was to meet all these dimensions
simultaneously and effectively. The mass base of the movement are tribal communities affected
by dams which are homogeneous and removed from modern influence and therefore easier to
organize (Patkar, 1992). Narmada agitation, besides trying different goals, followed different
strategies to influence national and international forums, to explain things from a perspective of
human rights activists, and another for environmental groups without losing contact with the
locals (Patkar, 1992). In addition, activists are involved in the socio-economic development of
tribal communities, namely the construction of schools, clinics, etc. The Narmada Andolan
became prominent in the late 1980s, when North-South conflict had sharpened on environmental
issues. Environmental protection in the South has become one of the main agenda of
international activism in the North. This led to the recognition and active support of the Narmada
agitation by governmental and non-governmental organizations abroad. This support in turn
contributed to pressure the World Bank to stop funding the project because it was anti-
environment.

During the same period there were also other movements that one can attribute as an
environmental movement as well. For instance, the movement against the mining of Bauxite in
the Gandhamardhan range in Odisha has been one of the most successful anti-mining movements
in Central India. Gandhamardan is a 90 km long and 20 km wide hill range spread over
Padmapur in Baragarh district and Patnagarh subdivision in Bolangir district. It is a part of the
Eastern Ghat mountain range of Western Odisha and is popularly known by many other names
like ‘Vindhya Giri’ and ‘Gandhagiri’. 800 meters above sea level, it is located between 82-54
East longitude and 20-54 north latitude.
BALCO had come in search of bauxite deposits in Gandhamardan after completely destroying
the hydrological stability and sanctity of another important mountain ‘Amar Kantak’ in Madhya
Pradesh– the source of the waters of the Narmada, the Sone and the Mahanadi rivers. The
destruction of Amar Kantak to feed its one lakh tonne aluminium plant at Korba in Chattisgarh
was a high cost to pay for the reserves. In 1978-79, after BALCO abandoned Amar Kantak Hill
range in Madhya Pradesh, the then Central Cabinet Minister for Mines, Biju Patnaik showed the
way to the holy hills of Gandhamardan in Odisha. In the eighties, the Congress Party and the
then Chief Minister of Odisha J. B. Patnaik were only too eager to act on a deal with BALCO. In
1983, the then union minister for mines N.K.P. Salve along with CM J.B. Patnaik laid the
foundation stone for BALCO’s mining project in Gandhamardan that was to mine bauxite worth
1,500 crores of rupees annually. BALCO promised to give employment to hardly 2,000 local
people with the requisite qualification and experience. This was a mockery on the local people
who hardly had any education and experience in the process of mining bauxite.

Two specific incidents inflamed people to join the movement to save their hill god from the
brutalities of mining. Firstly, a test blast in the Gandhamardan hills shook the ancient
Nrusinghanath temple to such an extent that the Garuda Stambha collapsed and tremors were felt
both in distant villages including the two major centres of belief Hari Shankar and
Nrusinghanath. Cracks due to the tremors were so strong in many places that utensils and other
household materials fell down making people feel the effects of blasting first hand. Secondly, the
catch dam made by BALCO at Manabhanga in the name of supporting irrigation turned out to be
a sham as instead of building anything beneficial for the public, it submerged about 30 acres of
fertile land and the famous orchards of Madhuban – the primary source of livelihood for the
people of 5 Gram Panchayats. These two incidents fueled the movement against BALCO. The
mass dissatisfaction took a fierce shape in the Nrusinghanath temple congregation and the seed
of an organised movement to save Gandhamardan was sown in February 1985. The news of
Paikamal agitation did spread like wildfire to the districts of Bolangir, Bargarh, Sambalpur,
Kalahandi, Nuapada and even to the neighbouring state, Chhatisgarh.

In the summer vacation of 1985, a group of NSS volunteers of Sambalpur University had
camped in the Gandhamardan hills. The campers observed the situation and could feel the
impending danger to Gandhamardan and the complete ecosystem if mining was to continue in
the region. Some of the campers formed a group for the protection of Gandhamardan. In an
organised manner they spread awareness amongst the people of that area. On the 14th of August
1985, 19 young men joined hands to form the Gandhamardan Surakshya Yuva Parishad and
shouted with the slogan that echoed in every household - “Amar dabi maan Sarkar, BALCO
asura nai darkar”, which means - 'Government must concede to our demand; we do not need
BALCO monster'. The reverberation reached the government and BALCO was forced to move
out and the people’s movement won the battle temporarily.

After several rounds of discussions with the people of the area to motivate them in support of
BALCO, the then Chief Minister Janaki Ballhav Patnaik realised the significance of
Gandhamardan and its links with the life and sentiment of the people. In meetings between the
public, the representatives of BALCO and Chief Minister Janaki, the BALCO officials were at a
loss to answer the public questions raised by the Chief Minister. In an endeavour at justice, J.B.
Patnaik withdrew the permission given to BALCO on 15th September 1989 to mine
Gandhamardan.

Environmental movements in the era of liberalization

The processes of globalization have greatly increased environmental conflicts. Earlier, the
penetration rate was limited by the availability of resources and state-based development model.
With the liberalization of the Indian economy, there was an increase in foreign direct investment
(FDI) in India, particularly in the industrial and mining sectors. In Jharkhand, Orissa,
Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh, which is the centre of the central tribal belt, state governments
have signed several memorandum of understandings (MOU) with private companies for
development projects. It should be noted that one fifth of the total population of the overall tribal
population has already been displaced since independence. The displacement of the population
during the era of liberalization moved beyond the earlier phases. The tribal people of Jharkhand
fell from 60 percent in 1911 to 27.63 percent in 1991 (Saxena, 2005, pp. 266-267).
Since the beginning of the current era of economic liberalization, tribal communities across the
country and central India have been involved in protests and movements against these
development projects. It is argued, by a section of academics who have been writing about the
importance of a liberal market economy, that multinational investment in industries based on
minerals in the tribal region, which are rich in natural resources, increase export earnings and
accelerate economic growth, which in turn accounts for the socio-economic transformation of the
tribal population. An important aspect of this development is that the tribes who resisted all
efforts of the state to deprive them of their lands are now faced with large national and
international capitalist companies.

The combined power of the state capital and business is too daunting an opposition for the tribes
to take for themselves. These so-called development projects interfere with every aspect of life
and tribal control over the means of production they need to survive (land, forests, capital and
technology) (Meher, 2009, pp 457-480 Saxena 2005, pp. 266-267). The tribal belt of the district
of Koraput, Bolangir and Kalahandi (KBK) in Orissa has experienced unrest and tribal mass
demonstrations since the 1990s. The majestic plateaus of the northwest part of Rayagada district
in Odisha contain almost one third of bauxite deposits in the India. These plateaus are home to
almost 1,000 permanent rivers and huge dense forests. The region is mainly inhabited by Indian
tribes, which are highly dependent on forest-covered mountains in the area for their livelihood.
Permanent streams are needed for local agriculture during the rare periods of drought or rain and
were the lifeline of tribal peoples. The land inhabited by them is increasingly invaded by several
multinationals seeking to exploit the large deposits of bauxite in the region. Among the
multinationals, there are two large corporations (Utkal Alumina International Limited and
Vedanta Alumina Limited (VAL) that have signed memoranda of understanding with the
Government of Odisha to mine bauxite (Meher, 2009, pp. 460-462).

In 1993, Orissa began its project to create aluminum plants in the Kashipur region rich in
minerals. The (UAIL) Utkal Alumina International Limited has signed a memorandum of
understanding with the government for the bauxite mine in Orissa Baphlimali Hill area and a
process bauxite refinery in Ramibeda. The project UAIL displaced more than 5,000 families
moved in about 100 villages. However, it is supposed to create jobs for about 1,000 people, but
no employment opportunities for 5,000 tribal families which would be affected by the project.

Mining activities have been destroying habitats and forest ecosystems with perennial water
streams that provide natural resources for survival and livelihood of the tribal families in more
than 14 villages. In the period between 1998 and 2000, the tribals in this region have resisted the
UAIL project and the movement was particularly strong in the Kashipur block. The movement
was not only against UAIL but also against proposed bauxite mining Bharat Aluminium
Company Limited (BALCO), Larsen & Toubro (L & T) and Sterlite Industries India Ltd (SIIL)
in the same area.

Local movement were supported by several organizations, international and local NGOs. Some
of the organizations were Prakrutika Surakhya Parishad (PSSP) of Kasipur, Bashundhara
Surakhya Samiti (BSS), Vanasampada Surakhya Samitis (in the villages of Kashipur block) and
Baphlimali Surakhya Samiti in Kashipur and Chasi Mulia Sangha Rayagada / Koraput. Local
NGOs like the Laxman Nayak Agragamee Ankuran Company, and the Weaker Section Integrated
Development Agency (WIDA), and international NGOs such as ActionAid, Care India, Hivos
and Norwatch supported the movement. Despite huge protests and support in all areas, the
government of Orissa has not responded to the movement. Activists involved in the movement
have been recognized under the provisions of the National Security Act (NSA), which allows no-
bail warrant are arrested and subjected to intimidation. The company was authorized to start
work on this project and the work continued to grow while the movement has been reduced
(Pattnaik, 2013, pp. 53-78).
The London-based company proposed to operate VAL reserves of bauxite in Niyamgiri Hills
Lanjigarh Tehsil area of Kalahandi district of Odisha in conjunction with Orissa Mining
Corporation (OMC). Under the agreement, the company has launched an aluminum refinery
plant in Lanjigarh. The total investment was approximately 4,000 crore for this purpose and
723.43 hectares of land was required by VAL. This involved 232.75 hectares of private land,
most of which belonged to the Kondh tribe and is considered forest land. Twelve villages in the
gram panchayat and Batelima Lanjigarh will be affected by the proposed aluminum refinery in
Lanjigarh. In these villages, 60 families were supposed to be moved and 302 families acquired
land for the project. However, in reality, 102 families and 1,220 families lost their land.
Consequently, a resistance movement was formed by the tribes, who were forcibly evicted from
their land.

Kondh tribes mainly depend on forests for their livelihoods in Niyamgiri Hills and therefore
proposed bauxite mining is a major threat to their livelihoods. The movement was not only
against the displacement of tribal peoples, but also about the violation of environmental laws and
forest conservation. Extensive farming in the mountains of Niyamgiri threatens the entire
ecosystem and destrucion of rivers that flow into the mountains. In addition, it is also a violation
of the 1996 law, Panchayat Extension Scheduled Areas (PESA). The Ministry of Environment
and Forests (MoEF) consented to the mining of the jungle after a request was made March 28,
2005, although the MoEF refused logging on September 22, 2004. This change in the stand of
the MoEF is attributed to access VAL had to key ministries, both the state and central
government and the administration. The gravity of events and the movement against the project
forced the National Environmental Authority of Appeal to suspend the authorization granted to
medium VAL environment on September 17, 2010. Therefore, the Government of Odisha made a
desperate appeal to the Supreme Court in April 2011 against the withdrawal of the environmental
permit for VAL. On April 18, 2013, the Supreme Court ordered gram sabhas village meetings to
be held in 12 villages in the area to determine the views of forest dwellers on mining in their
area. It was the first referendum on environmental issues in the history of India and gram sabhas
gave their verdict against proposed mining VAL Lanjigarh. (Ibid.) As for the dynamics of events
and movements in Kashipur and Lanjigarh, the results are mixed. Although the causes of events
and movements were the same and the movement was supported by several national and
international NGOs, organisations and human rights activists, the movement in Kashipur failed
but was successful in Lanjigarh. The contrasting findings raise questions about the factors that
determine the success and failure of such struggles.

Looking at the dynamics of events and movements in Kashipur and Lanjigarh, the results are
mixed. The contrasting findings raise questions about the factors that determine the success or
failure of these struggles. In Kashipur, the major political parties like the Congress party, Biju
Janata Dal (BJD) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have formed an all-party committee to
support the project and act in the project, which involved a private army which threatened
indigenous peoples from their lands so that UAIL could continue with the construction contracts.
The two ruling parties and the opposition supported the project and the environmental movement
and its supporters were thus easily removed. The link between the state and Utkal Alumina
International Limited (UAIL) and strategy against the movement led to the suppression of
popular movement (ibid.).

As with the movement of the Kashipur, in Lanjigarh the movement received broad support from
various national and international environmental NGOs, human rights organizations and
activists. However, the most important aspect in this success was that they received the full
support of the opposition parties in the state, as the Congress Party and the Communist Party of
India - Marxist Leninist (CPI-ML). The leaders of these opposition parties in the state were very
active in the resistance movement. This project caused a serious political conflict between the
party in political power, the BJD and the opposition Congress Party. The BJD supported the
project and called for the development of the income field and increasing use of production
through mega projects like the VAL project. The opposition parties have highlighted the serious
impact on the ecosystem and biodiversity of Niyamgiri mountain, despite support for industrial
policy of the state in the Legislature.

The member (Lanjigarh) local tribe of the Legislative Assembly (MLA), who was also minister
in charge of the Orissa Tribal Development, helped organize some tribes to mount a protest
outside the Supreme Court in favour of the company project. However, interestingly, the member
of Parliament (MP), seat at the national general election of 2009 was won by the opposition
(Congress Party). The new MP Bhakta Charan Das Kalahandi, mobilized support among pro-
Congress and Congress intellectuals of the party leadership in the capital New Delhi against the
project. Thus, the Congress Party which was in charge of the central government at the time
decided to paralyze the VAL project. As the movement in Kashipur in Lanjigarh was a link
between the government leaders in charge of the government of Orissa and the VAL company
and together they mobilized a strategy against the suppression of the opposition movement, but
the opposition parties, particularly the Congress Party were able to put a lot of pressure on the
government in power in Odisha to stop the project (ibid.).

In conclusion
As for movements in India during the immediate post-independence period, most of the
environmental movements had been crushed under the weight of dreams of a young post-
colonial nation-state which was on a nation-building mission. However, since the mid-1970s,
several movements began to succeed such as the Chipko movement, Narmada Bachao Andolan
movement and Silent Valley movement, when they were supported by several organizations of
human rights, national and international, environmental groups, NGOs and activists.

Arriving in the current era of liberalization since the 1990s, a large number of demonstrations
and environmental movements have taken place all over India. Most movements are focusing on
industrial and mining sectors, which have received much foreign investment and have placed a
huge impact on the natural environment, where the livelihoods of tribal people are at stake.
Although almost all environmental groups have received substantial support from national and
international human rights and environmental NGOs and activists, only some of these
movements have had no success. An analysis of movements in Kashipur and Lanjigarh
movements shows that those who succeed tend to have strong support from the political parties
of the opposition. On the other hand, where there is no support from opposition political parties
and there are close links between the state and transnational corporations, it is easier for the state
to repress the environmental movement.

REFERENCES
Bahuguna, Vimala (1990), "The Chipko Movement" in I. Lina Sen [ed], A Space Within
Struggle: Womens Participation in Peoples Movements, Kali for Women, New Delhi.
Burgess, Michael (1992), "Dangers of Environmental Extremism: Analysis of Debate
Over Indias' Social Forestry Programme", Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. XXVII,
No. 40, 3 October.
Das Veena (1995), Critical Events: An Anthropological Perspective on Contemporary
India, Oxford University Press, New Delhi.
Deshpande, R.S. and V. Ratna Reddy (1990), 'Social Dynamics and Farmers Society: A
Study of Pani-Panchayat', Indian Journal of Agricultural Economics, Vol XLVI, No 3,
July-September.
Fernandes, W., & Paranjpya, V. (1997). Hundred years of involuntary displacement in
India: Is the rehabilitation policy an adequate response? In W. Fernandes & V. Paranjpye
(Eds), Rehabilitation policy and law in India:A right to livelihood (pp. 1–34). New Delhi:
Indian Social Institute.
Gadgil, Madhav and Ramachandra Guha (1994),"Ecological Conflicts and Environmental
Movement in India", Development and Change , Vol 25, No 1, January.
Guha, Ramachandra (1989), The Unquiet Woods: Ecological Change and Peasant
Resistance in the Himalaya, Oxford University Press, New Delhi.
Meher, R. (2009). Globalization, displacement and the livelihood issues of tribal and
agriculture dependent poor people: The case of mineral based industries in India. Journal
of Developing Societies, 25(4), 457–480.
Mukul (1993), "Villages of Chipko Movement",Economic and Political Weekly, Vol.
XXVIII, April 10.
Omvedt, Gail (1993); Reinventing Revolution: New Social Movements and the Socialist
Tradition in India,East Gate Book, London.
Pagare, Ganesh and Vasudha Pagare (1994), "A Village Like Ralegan",Economic Times,
6 June (The World Report on the Environment).
Patkar, Medha (1992), "The Strength of a Peoples' Movement [Interview with Medha
Patkar]", India International Centre Quarterly , Spring-Summer.
Pattnaik, B.K. (2013)- Tribal Resistance movements and the Politics of Development
induced displacement in contemporary Odisha. Social Change, 43(1), 53-78.

Rao Suneeti (1995), "Radicals in Search of an Identity" Journal of Indian School of

Political Economy, Vol. 6, No.1, Jan- Mar.
Reddy, V. Ratna (1995), "Environment and Sustainable Agricultural Development:
Conflicts and Contradictions", Economic and Political Weekly , Vol.XXX, No.12, 25th
March [Review of Agriculture].
Reddy, V. Ratna, et.al (1997)," Water: A case of Policy, Institutional and Market
Failure"Economic and Political Weekly.
Sethi, Harsh (1993), "Survival and Democracy: Ecological Struggles in India", in Ponna
Wignaraja [Ed](1993) See below.
Saxena, K.B. (2005). Development as destitution. Alternative economic survey, India
2005–2006: Disempowering masses. (Retrieved from
http://www.daanishbooks.com/product_downloads/c/aes20050620kbsaxena35543.pdf).
Shah, Ghanshyam (1990), Social Movements in India: A Review of Literature, Sage
Publications, New Delhi.
TISS (2008) Performance and Development Effectiveness of Sardar Sarovar Project,
TISS, Mumbai.
Wignaraja, Ponna [ed](1993), New Social Movements in the South: Empowering the
People, Vistaar Publications, New Delhi.
Wood, John R. (1993), 'India's Narmada River Dams: Sardar Sarovar Under Siege', Asian
Survey, Vol XXXIII No 10, October.
 Details of Module and its Structure
Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Environmental Movements Part II

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Industrial Disaster, Public Health, Environmental Justice, Corporate

Accountability

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary The industrial disaster that took place at midnight on December 2, 1984, in
the pesticide plant of Union Carbide India Limited in Bhopal, India is
considered the worst industrial accident ever to have happened in the
world. The purpose of the examination of this case for this class is to locate
the struggle of the survivors of Bhopal in a broader context of a movement
for environmental justice and corporate accountability in India. The Bhopal
disaster is an instance of international environmental injustice and
corporate impunity, and as the world's worst industrial disaster it is an
important global precedent in this context

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Rupesh Kumar Independent Researcher

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Language Editor (LE) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
The Bhopal Struggle: A struggle for Environmental justice.
Introduction
The industrial disaster that took place at midnight on December 2, 1984, in the pesticide plant of
Union Carbide India Limited in Bhopal, India is considered the worst industrial accident ever to
have happened in the world. Official figures recorded that 3,000 people died that night, but
unofficial estimates are about 8,000 to 10,000 deaths (Bogart, 1989). Since then, the total death
toll has risen to more than 30,000 over the years, with people in Bhopal still dying as a result of
effects caused by chronic health conditions due to the gas leak and consumption of contaminated
groundwater.
This is a complex case involving critics by all parties like the NGOs, Survivors and other public
intellectuals who accuse the government of India, the US government and Union Carbide (UCC),
now part of Dow Chemical, of shirking off their responsibilities during the disaster as well as
throughout the last 30 years. The purpose of the examination of this case for this class is to locate
the struggle of the survivors of Bhopal in a broader context of a movement for environmental
justice and corporate accountability in India. The Bhopal disaster is an instance of international
environmental injustice and corporate impunity, and as the world's worst industrial disaster it is
an important global precedent in this context. Large industrial companies such as UCC invested
in developing countries like India because it had a cheap labor force and no regulations to limit
good business.1
History
The 1960s was a period when India tried to stabilize its agricultural sector after two droughts
post 1947. The droughts caused widespread famine leading to the introduction of a variety of
grains from across the world. But with the introduction of these varieties, the need for pesticides
and fertilizers (chemical) increased, leading the Indian government to approve pesticide factories
across India, one of which opened in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, in 1969 (Morehouse and
Subramaniam, 1986).

1 Bullard, Robert, “Anatomy of Environmental Racism and the Environmental Justice Movement,” in
Debating the Earth: The Environmental Politics Reader, ed. John S. Dryzek and David Schlosberg (New York:
Oxford University Press 1993), 471; World Bank economist Lawrence Summers famously voiced this profit-based
perspective, as he showed the true colours of corporate behavior in 1991, seven years after the Bhopal disaster. (See
Memorandum from Lawrence H. Summers to Distribution, GEP (Dec. 12, 1991.) In a memorandum that was leaked
to the press, he wrote, “A given amount of health impairing pollution should be done in the country with the lowest
cost, which will be the country with the lowest wages. I think the economic logic behind dumping a load of toxic
waste in the lowest wage country is impeccable and we should face up to that.” The shrewd business sense that
Summers describes here, and which is surely reflected in most corporate management, appraises human life
depending on factors such as the income, political power, and stability of the nation to which they are citizens. Such
“business sense” is evident in UCC’s methods of corporate expansion and overseas manufacturing. This valuation of
human capital creates a hierarchy of humans that is all at once xenophobic, racist, and classist.
This plant produced carbaryl, also called Sevin (Kurzman, 1987). The first intermediate in this
process was phosgene, which was produced by reacting carbon monoxide with chlorine.
Phosgene in turn reacts with monomethylamine to produce methyl isocyanate (MIC), the lethal
gas held in the storage tank which leaked resulting in the disaster. MIC is highly combustible so
it was kept under a nitrogen blanket in two storage tanks. It was highly ill-advised to store MIC
on the site of the plant, as the plant was located among the densely populated areas of Bhopal
(Morehouse and Subramaniam, 1986). This site was originally rejected by the authorities of the
Municipality of Bhopal, the city administrator and notifications were sent to the UCC officials.
But rather than following the directions, the administrator was transferred rather than the storage
facility due to the preassure from the political class in Delhi.
As a result of the malfunctioning of the valve, on the night of December 2, 1984, water entered
the storage tanks where the MIC was stored, and reacted with nitrogen leading to the leakage of
MIC. Within 2 hours the storage tank was empty.
The gas leaked across the city, carried by the wind to the slums inhabited by squatters in
residential areas where people both poor and rich lived, as well as to the railway station, where
at least 200 people were found dead lying on the platforms the next morning. The wind blew the
cloud of toxic gas over a vast area of nearly 40 square kilometers.
The next morning, several thousand bodies were found lying in the streets of Bhopal, with
autopsies revealing necrotic fluid-filled lungs and in some cases, holes appeared in the lungs due
to reaction with the MIC (Morehouse and Subramaniam, 1986). To date, 30,000 were killed and
at least 600,000 experience chronic illness.2
India Today, in its 15th edition in February 1985 wrote "...the dead may not have been so
unlucky after all. Their end came horribly; it is true, choking on air that had suddenly gone vile.
But at least the nightmare was brief. And then it was over. For those who survived the poisonous
methyl isocyanite leak from the Union Carbide plant, release will not come so quickly.
Thousands of seriously affected survivors have suffered such extensive lung damage, that they
no longer can apply themselves physically. Their vision often gets blurred, spells of dizziness
overtake them and walking briskly even for a few minutes sends them gasping to their knees,
their chests aching. There are women who have peculiar gynecological problems. And there are
others particularly children who keep reliving those hours over and over again. "
In the few years before the disaster, Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) was losing money.
During this period, safety and maintenance were made the lowest priority in an effort to turn
around the profits from the plant. In October 1982 a mixture of MIC, chloroform and
hydrochloric acid escaped from the plant, but despite this and the insistence of officials at the

2 Sarangi, Satinath, “The movement in Bhopal and its lessons,” Social Justice 23: 4 (Winter 1996), 316.
factory to increase safety measures, none was taken.Approximately one-third of engineers and
specialists who were trained at the factory since its inception, left for better jobs elsewhere
before the accident.
The question of the danger and the need to relocate the plant when put to the Assembly of
Madhya Pradesh state government in December 1982 was rejected by an official stating ".... A
sum of Rs. 25 million rupees were invested in this unit. The plant is not a small stone, which can
be moved elsewhere. There is no danger of Bhopal, there will never be."
Several factors have been identified by Lloyd-Jones, Chawla and Shah (1996) as contributors to
disaster. They were:
 The gradual erosion of good and regular maintenance operations as part of cost-cutting
measures.
 The high attrition of trained professionals, especially in management positions.
 Declining inventories of vital spare parts.
 Staff exodus and demoralization.
 Under-manning of important workstations in the plant.

Social, Economic and Enviromental aspects of the Disaster

India, still a poor nation in 1984, also has its sets of norms and traditions with one of its
inhumane ones being the caste system and the treatment of women. These norms based on the
scriptures of Hinduism in which the majority of people belong to the group of lower castes and
ex-untouchables. The ex-untouchables are the most downtrodden of Indian people, and have
politically organized themselves since the start of the 20th Century, adopting the term Dalit to
refer to their communities.
Even before the factory opened in Bhopal, people belonging to the lower caste communities
began migrating from villages as the promised 'green revolution' in agriculture, rather than
supporting the small peasants had pushed them to the brink of poverty as mechanised agriculture
was a more profitable option for the large landowning farmers. The small peasants moved
towards cities like Bhopal and began squatting in vacant land around the cities, doing small
business and working in odd jobs or as servants. These areas developed as shantytowns which
were considered to be vote banks for the major political parties, but bereft of any social security
measures like- electricity, water, sanitation, health centres and schools. This was the surrounding
where the UCC plant set up its MIC storage tank.
Delayed reactions to the disaster, by the state administration, law and order machinery, UCC
officials, could have been due to the fact that most of the victims were people from these
communities. Class actions by the survivors to the Supreme Court were also affected due to this
factor. Union Carbide India Limited had the means and influence to hire the best lawyers. How
could the poor afford the best? Moreover, even the distribution of compensation was affected by
the rampant corruption in Indian bureaucracy. Even Rs. 10,000 ($ 250) for the families of the
survivors were not paid properly. Even the decision to authorize the agreement of $470million by
the Government of India, as representative of the victims, was made without prior consultation
with the victims. Dominic Lapierre in his book Five past midnight in Bhopal (2002) reports a
New York lawyer promised 100 million rupees in a meeting with the survivors, and while most
of them then received only Rs 300 (under $ 20), yet apparently the survivors were jubilant. After
many years while researching for the book, he met the same couple who had not received much
compensation, and were asking for "at least an apology from Union Carbide.”
The social system of India contributed to the tenacity of relief and rehabilitation. The problems
were exasperated with the change in Western methods of thought, the work ethic and lifestyle
and Oriental. There was a lack of coordination by the Union Carbide officials in India and
Danbury, the world headquarters of Union Carbide in managing the operational details of the
plant, as well as, most disturbingly, management of maintenance and safety. This is particularly
important because Union Carbide promoted a story ofsabotage by a disgruntled employee , but
details have not been tested or proven, and this was arguably PR spin by the company trying to
distract attention from its culpability.
Several studies published after the disaster note (Salinger, 1992; Marcus et al .., 1991), the
abnormal returns of the stocks had increased Union Carbide after a one-month delay. This lag
might not have contributed by the catastrophe, but previous events prior to the tragedy such as
profits for the corporation dropping and several takeover bids (Salinger, 1992), for example a
failed takeover bid by GAF, after a year of the disaster. The increase in the stock prices was
explained as a result of restructuring and recapitalization of the company before the sell-off.
A study published in the Journal of Management Sciences (Marcus et. Al., 1991) shows that
stock prices react positively to the advocacy by the administration of a company in the case of a
crisis rather than accommodative moves by managers towards the victims. This explains how
managers try to divert the prosecution, suppress their personal human reactions to tragedy and
try to deny responsibility (Marcus et. Al., 1991). This can be used to answer the question, why
Union Carbide officials promoted a story of sabotage by a disgruntled employee or an attack by a
"Sikh terrorist". Shareholders see accommodative signals, such as the settlement of $470 million,
as the acceptance of responsibility for the tragedy and react negatively(Marcus et al, 1991), but
could not reject their null hypothesis (H0: When a company is involved in an accident, investors
react more positively to the defensive signals than accommodative signals).
In 1991, survivors and activists submitted to the government data which showed that the plant
was potentially leaking hazardous substances. In fact, the Research Laboratory of the state of
Madhya Pradesh produced reports between 1991 and 1996, finding the water in the bastis near
the abandoned factory site was "unfit for consumption" but refused to warn residents, release
reports or act on their results.3
A provisional application filed by the Bhopal Group for Information and Action indicates that the
government agency, the Research Institute of the National Environmental Engineering (NEERI)
produced several reports about the plant, which have been plagued by methodological problems
and omissions (Writ petition no. 2802/2004, August 11, 2005). One, funded by Eveready
Industries India Ltd (subsidiary trained in India by the division of the UCC), famous, said in
1997 that pollution would take twenty-three years to reach the groundwater.4 Even Arthur D.
Little, UCC's consulting firm, commented internally that NEERI's weaknesses included ignoring
standard sampling processes, and also expressed serious doubts as to the validity of NEERI’s
conclusions, based on the inferior quality and misinterpretation of data. However, internal
correspondence indicates that UCC chose to work with NEERI because they expected to have
"an opportunity to participate and put forward our views during the progress of study, and try to
protect company's interest."5
Dow chemical company successfully subsumed Union Carbide on February 6, 2001, after Union
Carbide became a wholly owned subsidiary of Dow. Dow owns all shares of Union Carbide UC,
but remained a separate entity. The company then maintained that shareholders Dow and Union
Carbide had no role in the tragedy (www.bhopal.com/position.htm). The details of this statement
are explained in the next section thoroughly.
Several residual environmental aspects persist in Bhopal,31 years after the tragedy. According to
a study by Greenpeace (www.greenpeace.org), contamination of groundwater, soil and breast
milk through drinking water pose a serious threat to health, not only for those who are currently
exposed, but also to future generations. According to experts, evidence suggests that toxic
chemicals not only have moved through different means, tropic transfer of these chemicals,
mainly through the food chain, the causes of these toxic substances becomes a part of the body
burden. The survivors for long have been stating the polluter pays policy and continue to
articulate that Dow Chemicals should take responsibility for the cleanup efforts in Bhopal, Dow

3 Amnesty International, Clouds of Injustice: Bhopal Disaster 20 Years On (London, UK:

Amnesty International Publications, 2004), p. 12. A complete copy of the report is
available in PDF at http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGASA200152004?open&of=ENG-IND.
4 National Engineering Environmental Research Institute (NEERI), Assessment of Contaminated
Areas Due to Past Waste Disposal Practices at EIIL (Nagpur, India: NEERI, 1997), UCC
01099-01100.
5 C.K. Hayaran to A. Chakravarti, Feb. 14, 1995, “Re: Disposal of Sevin and Naphthol Tar
Residues Lying at Our Plant,” UCC 02148. Sambhavna Trust Documentation Center, Bhopal,
India.
Chemicals on the other hand claim that they have no responsibility.
Laxmi Murthy claims (http://www.boloji.com/wfs/wfs0001.htm), “The post- Bhopal era also saw
worldwide regulation on chemicals and toxicity and a demand by communities to the right to
information and to be participants in the process of industry- siting.” However, as the report of
Tomas Mac Sheoin on Union Carbide Corporation said. "It's one of the bitter ironies of Bhopal
that its major reformist effects were felt in Union Carbide's home country. "Inspired by the
disaster and the public reaction to it, the United States has increased its regulatory activities. An
important step was the establishment by the 'Toxics Release Inventory and other measures of
freedom of information they increased significantly public access to information on emissions of
toxic chemicals.
In India, however, the struggles of the community have had little success in getting the "right to
know" where people can identify contaminated sites in their areas. A legal system in which the
resident is informed of the problems in this area is still in its infancy. In addition, most of the
people in the disaster area are poor and uneducated, are not aware of the problems caused by
exposure to the toxic waste at the site. Most residents are aware of the pollution of groundwater
in the region. Others, although aware of the contamination, continue to consume the local water
because the government failed to provide alternative sources of drinking water.
An article by a new web service in India states (http://in.new.yahoo.com/030216/2178w.) “What
about 700 tons of toxic waste in the form of corroded metal and other debris from Union Carbide
now? They are dispersed and exposed on the premises of the factory and have aggravated the
suffering of the victims who live nearby.”
A scientific study undertaken by Greenpeace in 1999 and others by government agencies have
confirmed the presence of several potentially lethal poisons such as mercury and other heavy
metals, pesticides and chlorinated contaminants in the scattered debris at the factory site. The
Greenpeace study, which also analyzed groundwater samples from sources which residents
around the plant are using, revealed toxic contaminants, some of which are carcinogenic. These
have been linked to chronic illnesses suffered by residents, some of which were listed at the
beginning.
The survey found 20 tonnes of hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) in bags dumped in an open shed
in the abandoned factory. HCH is a persistent organic pollutant and an environmental poison
linked to immune system and reproductive disorders. According to a study by NEERI, Nagpur,
the plant area recorded a high concentration of toxic waste, indicating the possibility of
contamination "greater depths." Groundwater contamination was still to be discussed at this
point of time.
None of these reports, NGOs or government agencies, or the legal battles that have been ongoing
for decades have brought a semblance of relief for the survivors. But despite all this, the
survivors have organized into different groups. Bhopal-Peedit Mahila Stationery Karmachari
Sangh, Peedit Mahila Udyog Sangthan Bhopal, Bhopal Peedit Mahila Purush Sangharsh Morcha,
Bhopal Peedit Nirashrit Pension Bhogi Sangharsh Morcha, Bhopal Group for Information and
Action and a recent Children against Dow Carbide are some of the most important groups
fighting for justice in Bhopal for the past three decades. Their articulation of justice for Bhopal
has led to a more nuanced approach since the 1990s.
A fight for 'No More Bhopals'
During the first period of activism on Bhopal, from 1985 to 1989, campaigns focused on local
struggles for relief and rehabilitation programs of health, treatment and national and
transnational campaigns focused on the legal front against -first Union Carbide in the United
States, then in the Indian courts. From 1989 to 1991, the campaign focused on a legal and
political fight
against unfair regulations invented by Union Carbide and the Indian government. After 1991, the
campaign re-located to a struggle for the disbursement of the remuneration to the survivors held
in the grinding daily presence in the courts and offices of the bureaucracy of the State of Madhya
Pradesh. It was followed by a phase that focused on health issues and treatment, first to
document the poor health status of ongoing gas health affected, then set a clinic controlled by
movement. At the end of the millennium, there were significant developments in the country,
with the participation of a large international NGO, Greenpeace, and the production of research
reports confirming the toxic contamination of groundwater and waste at the abandoned factory
site.
The campaign also revitalized the original guilty when Union Carbide was taken over by Dow
Chemical in 2001 and a new objective of the company became available. The campaign to force
Dow to take responsibility for Bhopal continues today, accompanied by several attempts to force
the Indian government to take responsibility for the Bhopal survivors.
The beginning of this struggle goes back to December 3 in the morning after the gas leak, where
about 1,000 people organized and marched to the plant which was still on fire. The next few
months saw spontaneous demonstrations outside government offices, hospitals and relief camps
that were organized mainly by local people with the support from many of the others who came
from the other parts of India to support the locals.
In January 1985, 10,000 people planned to take over the Chief Minister's residence demanding
the elimination of toxic chemicals stored at the factory. The chief minister promised to create a
team of scientists to investigate and take action, but no action was taken with respect to
chemicals.
In April 1985, 300 pregnant women stood outside the hospital with their urine samples
demanding testing for thiocyanate in the urine, when they realized that the presence of the
substance would affect their pregnancies. This led to the beginning of a long struggle carried out
by members of the affected community with a strong participation of women. Then, on 1st June,
1989, seventy-five women from the Bhopal Gas-Affected Women Stationery Workers’ Union
began to march from Bhopal to Delhi. They demanded wages and salaries as regularized factory
workers in the stationery shop where they were trained to produce paper products. They had
discovered the provisions of the Factories Act and the Minimum Wages Act, and were
determined to get their legal due for their work. Having not been able to get a job in the legal
form of payment, they decided to march to Delhi to meet Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi even
though they did not know the way. They decided to go even though they had not made
arrangements for food and shelter along the journey. They did not have the means to inform
either the press or the office of Prime Minister about the trip. When they arrived in New Delhi
after a march full of difficulties, they did not have the funds to stay there and did not know how
to communicate with the Prime Minister. After investigation, they were told that the prime
minister was away for the weekend, and then will travel for another ten days.
Suresh Pachauri,a Minister from their own state, came and assured them that once back in
Bhopal their problems would be solved and promised to personally take care of the case and get
their demands met. He persuaded the women to return to Bhopal. With the guarantee of the
minister, the women decided to go home. The promises were not fulfilled. Later Rajiv Gandhi
visited Bhopal to address a public meeting. Women stormed it despite police attempts to stop
them. They interrupted the meeting and placed their complaints in front of Prime Minister
Gandhi and they finally won a victory of 100 women gettting Rs 2,000 as regular salaries.
The 2000s saw two more padyatras in 2006 and 2008, the demands for which were clean and
uncontaminated drinking water, clean-up of the factory site by Dow Chemical Corporation, a
higher compensation and to hold Dow Chemicals accountable for environmental crimes they are
responsible for after taking over Union Carbide Corporation in 2001.
The gas disaster survivors were relentless during the last 30 years in campaigning at local,
national and international level for justice in Bhopal and holding Union Carbide Corporation and
Dow Chemicals responsible for the disasters and making them pay for cleaning and accepting
responsibility for the disaster.
The tragedy of Bhopal and the longfight for justice made the Indian government strengthen
environmental laws for the approval of draft standards for plant emissions or effluents.
Statements, prepared by expert committees, should in future contain expert analysis on the
ecosystem and the management of water resources, control of air pollution and water, flora and
wildlife conservation, planning land use, social sciences, ecology and environmental health.
Closing statements
Bhopal activism, at its best, represents Bhopal as an ongoing catastrophe defying platitudes
about poverty, health, justice, and the permissible parameters of corporate behaviour. Effective
campaigns aside, however, Bhopal is still in crisis. Initiatives such as those carried out by
Sambhavna clinic6 and Permanent Peoples' Tribunal7 that function as examples and
opportunities, can not replace the operation of national and international structures. Groups in
Bhopal have struggled to avoid losing their rights by developing broad support across borders,
and constantly challenging the government of India to proclaimed their responsibility to the
survivors, and place responsibility on Dow/Union Carbide, where it belongs. In this long and sad
story, hope is bigger than ever that these two possibilities will become reality.
Bhopal is both exemplary and exceptional, and unfortunately reflected (at different scales) on the
experiences of millions of people worldwide. Therefore, it is crucial to understand the problems
that were made explicit in the various responses to the Bhopal disaster, as a sophisticated balance
of these tensions is still necessary to devise permanent solutions. First, the lack of government
and corporate responses helped fuel a global discourse of rights among the (especially women)
survivor groups, which resulted in the transformation of their own sense of rights and
necessitated them to focus on their resilience, with experience, and anger towards the global
targets that embody injustice and impunity. Second, to try to overcome, the fundamental
structural inequalities that established (and it could be argued, caused) the disaster, survivors and
activists found themselves trapped in the alternation of these structural frameworks and
singularly launched to subvert and change them through democratic processes. The problems and
the rewards of translation between cultures and classes, and the subversion of the legal and
scientific organizations, Bhopal was marked as a place of global innovative communication,
community health and activism. Finally, Bhopal survivors and activists have reshaped the terms
of engagement both in chemistry and corporate strength and consistently refute government and
the efforts of companies to define the disaster as a discrete "event", and effectively strengthen
reclaim and articulate against Dow and UCC in the same time as they try to dissolve their
responsibility.
Bhopal illustrates the consequences of a model of progress and a global system in which
governments still prefer to collect the (potentially infinite) costs of the rehabilitation of an
industrial disaster rather than taking action against the perpetrators. Under pressure from

6 For more information about the Sambhavana clinic do read- http://bhopal.org/about-

us/sambhavna-clinic/
7 http://bhopal.bard.edu/resources/PermanentPeoplesTribunal.shtml
activists, the Indian government finally appears to be acknowledging that development comes at
a cost, and if they try to avoid developmental problems, they will be responsible to pay for it if
they can not regulate foreign players.

References

 Bogart, William., 1989, The Bhopal Tragedy: Language, Logic, and Politics in the
Production of a Hazard (Westview Press, Colorado)
 Kurzman, Daniel., 1987, Killing Wind: Inside Union Carbide and the Bhopal Catastrophe
(McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York)
 Lapierre, D. and J. Moro., 2002, Five Past Midnight in Bhopal (Warner Books, New
York)
 Marcus, A. A., and R. S. Goodman, 1991, Victims and Shareholders: The Dilemmas of
Presenting Corporate Policy during a Crisis, The Academy of Management Journal 34(2),
281-305
 Morehouse, W., and M. A. Subramaniam, The Bhopal Tragedy: What Really happened
and What it Means for American Workers and Communities at Risk (Council of
International and Public Affairs, UN, New York)
 Salinger, M., Value Event Studies, The Review of Economics and Statistics 74(4), 671-
677
 Dominique Lapierre and Javier Moro, Five Past Midnight in Bhopal: The Epic Story of
the World’s Deadliest Industrial Disaster (New York: Warner Books, 2002).
 Ingrid Eckerman, The Bhopal Saga: Causes and Consequences of the World's Largest
Industrial Disaster (Hyderabad, India: Universities Press, 2005).
 Basu, A. (1994) Bhopal revisited: the view from below. Bulletin of Concerned Asian
Scholars 26 (1/2): 3-14.
 Erler, C. (2009) Memory and erasure: applying visual narrative power analysis to the
image war between Dow Chemical Corporation and the International Campaign for
Justice in Bhopal. Journal of Cultural Research in Art Education 27: 42-62.
 Thirty years after Bhopal: Articles published in the statesman, International
Environmental Law Research Center, December 2014.
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Environmental Movements Part III : Narmada Bachao Andolan

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Sardar Sarovar Project (SSP), NBA, Narmada, NVDP, NCA, NVDA, NWDTA

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary This module narrates Narmada Bachao Andolan, as an environmental

movement in India. Right from independence, there were several proposals
to harness the waters of the river Narmada. In 1961, Nehru laid a
foundation stone for a dam near the village Navagam in Gujarat. This
module engages with the history of the protest movement against
Narmada Valley Development Projects

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR) Savyasachi Jamia Milia Islamia
Language Editor (LE) Savyasachi Jamia Milia Islamia
This module talks about Narmada Bachao Andolan (Save the river Narmada movement) as an
example of environmental movements in India.

Resistance Movements prior to Narmada Bachao

While the Narmada Bachao Andolan is believed to be the most talked about resistance movement
challenging the large dam, it would be wrong to assume that large dams in India were always
celebrated as ‘modern temples of India’ and had not met with protests. McCully (2001: 299) states
that, “Harakud, the first huge multi-purpose dam project completed in independent India, provoked
opposition from local politicians and bureaucrats as well as the people to be evicted”. McCully’s
brief narrative on resistance movements against large dams in India, in his book Silenced Rivers,
informs readers that around 30,000 people marched in protest against Hirakud Dam in 1946.
Mentioning another incident, McCully reports that “in 1970, some 4000 peope occupied the Pong
dam construction site to demand resettlement land, and the work was stopped for more than two
weeks”. McCully narrates to us the widespread popular resistance by people affected from large
dams in the state of Bihar in late 1970s, on the banks of Subarnarekha river. He refers to a protest
march by around 1 lakh people to the site of Chandil dam. A month after this spectacular
mobilisation, police had opened fire at a demonstration by around 8000 affected people killing
three protestors. In the decade of 1970s, there arose protests against the proposed Tehri dam on
Bhagirathi and from the people affected by Chandil and Icha dams on Subarnarekha. There were
also movements by downstream people affected by construction of Sipu and Dantiwada dam, led
by Gandhian activists, raising concerns about water security.

Around 1980s, the earlier romanticism of looking at large dams as temples of modern India was
losing an appeal, and as we have discussed while talking about hydroelectric power and large
dams, Nehru was a precursor to the critique of large dams as representing “disease of gigantism”.
In addition to that, Gandhian activists such as Jugatram Dave, who conceptualised a school and
commune at Vedchhi, to exhibit Gandhi’s ideas on Nayi Talim, had started to rethink the earlier
impressions on large damsi.

Planning to Harness Waters of River Narmada

Way back in late 19th century during the British Raj, the idea of harnessing the waters of Narmada
rivers had grabbed attention of colonial irrigation planners. The first Irrigation Commission of
India, which was constituted soon after the devastating famine of the year 1900, mentions a
proposal to construct a barrage near Bharuch. However, the soil condition at the proposed site was
found to be unsuitable for flow irrigation and hence the scheme got shelved.

Inter-State Water Sharing Disputes and Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal’s Award

The Sardar Sarovar Project [SSP] is one of the 30 large dams planned to be built on the Narmada
River. During the early years of its long history [1964-'65], the rationale used for SSP height of
530 feet was to prioritise the requirement of irrigation water for arid zones in Gujarat and Rajasthan
over power.ii However, this proposal of Khosla commission to allocate 13.9 Million Acre Feet
(MAF) water to Madhya Pradesh and 10.6 MAF to Gujarat was not agreeable to upstream riparian
state and the proposal got mired into disputes. So under Inter State Water Disputes Act (1956),
Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal [NWDT] was constituted in 1969. After hearing the arguments
from different riparian state, and a non-riparian beneficiary state that was made party along the
proceedings for ten years, NWDT passed Award in 1979 apportioning Narmada water between
four states, fixed the height of SSP at 138.68 metres [455 feet] and laid down binding rehabilitation
clauses by promising oustees cultivable and irrigable land and alternative housing with civic
amenities.

While much proverbial water has flowed down the river basin since then and also through turbines
in the last one decade, in writing accounts and narratives about the Narmada controversy, authors
in recent times slip into the tendency to present the discourse as a "minefield", "bibliographer's
nightmare", "voluminous and tendentious" and the stand taken by opponents and proponents as
"confrontationist" and "attrition of forces" whereby a middle ground of dialogue and compromise
is lost. However, those narratives have seldom tried to probe the responses from the proponents
and State, who wielded propaganda, hate speech and emotive power of thirst aiming at "discourse
breaking", rather than responding to criticism and alternative proposals – such as the one put
forward by Joy and Paranjpe (1995) - in a discursive fashion. Many a time such narratives are also
seen faltering at the review of literature chapter itself.

For example in his book, The Politics of Water Resource Development in India: The Narmada
Dam Controversy, John R. Wood’s narration of the NWDT years with singular focus on how
different state governments and opposition parties in state level politics perceived and participated
in the process. However, he neglects to draw upon the Vidhan Sabha resolution dated November
24, 1967 and letter sent by Madhya Pradesh MPs to Prime Minister on December 16, 1967. Wood
(p. 112) says, "periodically, the Tribunal and its Assessors toured the disputant states to
investigate…they made a point of not meeting politicians. They did not hold public hearings…
Hearings and consultations had never been held before, nor remarkably were they asked during
1969-'78," but fails to draw from the petition submitted by Nimad Bachao Samiti to the chairman
of NWDT dated October 28, 1974. Sangvai [2002: 16] describes how there were widespread
protests during the visits of NWDT Assessors to Nimad drawing upon newsclips from Indore
edition of two newspapers - Sandesh and Nai Duniya.

Wood (p. 120) says, "fairness in whose eyes was a question rarely asked in 1969-'78…there was
some grumbling on both sides", while ignoring to narrate immediate response to NWDT Award's
announcement - August 18, 1978 - in the form of 10000 people taking out a protest rally in
Badwani and 5000 farmers from Nimad taking part in protest demonstration at Bhopal on 23rd and
28th August respectively. Khagram (2002: 206-231) not only describes the protests that followed
NWDT Award's announcement but also reviews events that took place between '78 and '81
drawing upon newsclips from Bhopal edition of The Statesman and The Times of India. Isn't it
surprising that an academician whose "news clipping files on Narmada and Indian water resources
development now go back 30 years and fill many feet of filing cabinet space" should have picked
up clips only from Ahmedabad edition of The Times of India while writing about NWDT process
and ignored two books on the subject that have been in public domain for many years before the
publication of his book! Sangvai and Khagram engages with the first phase of resistance against
the large dams under the banner of Nimad Bachao Andolan, which couldn’t sustain the
mobilization beyond initial few years.
Narmada Valley Development Projects and consolidation of resistance

The full details of the Narmada valley Development Projects (NVDP) started to emerge only
towards mid-1980s, when an ambitious plan to construct 30 large dams, 135 medium dams and
3000 smaller dams was announced.

The next prominent event was the World Bank decision in 1985 to provide US $ 450 Million to
finance the construction of dam and canal network. The Planning Commission accorded
investment approval to the project in October 1988 for Rs. 6,406.04 crores at 1986-‘87 price levels.
Environmental clearance was denied to the project in the year 1983. But, after considerable
correspondence between Union Ministry of Water Resources and Ministry of Environment and
Forest, the conditional environmental clearance was accorded to the project on June 24, 1987.

Narrating the history of the second phase of resistance where people got mobilised with a view to
seek full information about the extent of submergence and displacement to be faced by affected
villages and the promised rehabilitation, McCully (2001: 301) states:

“Medha Patkar was a 30-year-old social activist, when she first came to the Narmada valley
in 1985 to work in the villages to be submerged by the Sardar Sarovar Dam. Over the next
few years, Patkar travelled by foot, bus and boat throughout the nearly 200-kilometre long
submergence zone, which includes parts of three states and people speaking five different
languages. Patkar lived with the villagers to be displaced, listened to their fears for the
future, and urged them to organise to force the government to respect their rights… Her
oratorical and organisational skills helped build the trust of many local people and also
attracted a committed coterie of young outside activists to come to the valley. These
activists, who included engineers, social workers and journalists, were to pay a vital role
in the Narmada movement”.

During those initial years, there were different formations that had started to emerge with a concern
on the proposed dams over the river Narmada. In Gujarat, several NGOs had been petitioning the
state governments and the World Bank to cover those getting affected indirectly by the construction
of dam under the rehabilitation process. Early in 1986, in Maharashtra, an organisation of displaced
persons had acquired considerable visibility under the banner Narmada Dharangrast Sangharsh
Samiti. Medha Patkar had worked in North Gujarat before relocating to the Narmada valley with
prominent social activists like Bhanubhai Adhwaryu, Achyut Yagnik and Girishbhai Patel and had
seen the efforts to organise communities affected by large dams in places such as Shamlaji and
Ukai.

On 18th August 1988, several such formations working on the issue of social and ecological
impacts of Narmada dams came together and resolved to announce their total – but strictly non-
violent – opposition to the terminal Sardar Sarovar dam and Narmada Sagar Dam. Almost a year
after this, on 28th September 1989, at Harsud a massive rally took place where several thousand
affected people participated and debated the nature of development. Harsud Sammelan brought
many social movements of India together and was a major milestone in formation of nation-wide
coalition of people’s movements in early 1990s called Jan Vikas Andolaniii.
Solidarity forged on International Front

Parallel to this there was an internationalisation of the cause and environmental movements in
other parts of the world got to learn more about the Narmada controversy thanks to two trips by
Medha Patkar to Washington in 1987 and 1989. Narrating about the events that unfolded on
international front, McCully (2001: 302) states:

“Lori Udall from the Environmental Defense Fund was inspired by Patkar to take the lead
role in raising the NBA’s concerns with the World Bank. Udall also helped build a network
of committed and informed activists in North America, Europe, Japan and Australia who
become known as the Narmada Action Committee”.

McCully (2001: 311) also tells us that “Bruce Rich from Environment Defense Fund and Marcus
Colchester of the UK based Survival International both visited the Narmada valley before Patkar’s
first trip to the US, and were the first to lobby actively against the World Bank support of the
project”.

In March 1990, NBA had decided to petition government to suspend the construction pending a
comprehensive and independent review. Later that year in May 1990, NBA organised a protest in
front of Prime minister, VP Singh’s residence in New Delhi, which convinced prime minister to
reconsider the project. The next big protest, was a long march on feet starting from Rajghat bridge
on 25th December 1990 on Narmada near Badwani in Madhya Pradesh which resolved to reach
the dam site and carry out non-violent demonstration to get the construction work on Sardar
Sarovar stopped. When the protestors reached a village named Ferkuva, which marked Madhya
Pradesh-Gujarat boundary, they were stopped by armed policemen. An angry month long stand-
off ensued. In a non-violent protest action, NBA volunteers repeatedly sent teams of volunteers,
with their hands tied with a rope to face the barricade and face the violent police repression,
reminding people of the days of Dandi Satyagrah. Medha Patkar and six other began fast and on
29th January of 1991, the twenty-first day of fast came the news from Washington DC that the
World Bank would institute an independent commission to review the project.

On 1st September 1991, an independent review mission headed by Bradford Morse and Thomas
Berger began the review process and submitted a voluminous report to the World Bank president
on 18th June 1992. Independent Review (1992: xxiv-xxv) concluded that:

“Important assumptions on which the projects are based are now questionable or are known
to be unfounded. Environmental and social trade-offs have been made, and continue to be
made, without a full understanding of the consequences. As a result, benefits tend to be
overstated, while social and environmental costs are frequently understated … We have
decided that it would be irresponsible for us to try to patch together a series of
recommendations on implementation when the flaws in the project are as obvious as they
appear to us. As a result we think that wisest course would be for the World Bank to step
back from the project and consider them afresh. The failure of the Bank’s incremental
strategy should be acknowledged.”

The report by independent review mission remains an important document that has gone into
details of the social and ecological impacts that would be caused by Sardar Sarovar Dam.
Following independent review, October 1992 meetings of the World Bank’s executive directors
witnessed several directors calling for suspension of loans. However, majority voted to continue
financing the project, and authorised management to proceed with a six-month action plan to
address the environmental and social problems. Six months later, when the conditions of that
patchwork action plan had not been fulfilled and it became crystal-clear that the World Bank will
be forced to withdraw financing the dam, Government of India announced as a face saving measure
that it wished to cancel the remaining balance of the World Bank assistance.

Away from the events unfolding in Washington DC and New Delhi, in the Narmada valley affected
people had staretd to bear the brunt of continued construction work. NBA now announced that in
the face of rising waters and imminent submergence, a committed group of activists will rather
embrace drowning by water than move out. A series of violent repressive actions began to unfold,
but the police couldn’t locate Medha Patkar and her colleagues, who had declared that they would
commit Jal Samarpan (drowning by water) on 4th August, 1993.

On the eve of that protest action, on August 5, 1993 Union Water Resources Ministry appointed
the Five Member Group. However, project authorities soon whittled down committee’s mandate
and pro-dam groups in Gujarat approached Gujarat High Court to set aside the ministry’s
memorandum and restraining the government from releasing the report to the publiciv. High court
passed an order in October 1993, which substantially restrained the government from releasing the
report to the public. This was challenged in the Supreme Court, which eventually allowed the
report to be made public in December 1994.

In the meanwhile, in November 1993, project proponents announced an issue of high interest
bearing Deep Discount Bonds to raise Rs 300 crores through market borrowing. These bonds had
a long maturity period and at the expiry of twenty years return to be paid to investors itself
amounted to be higher than the project cost of Rs 6406 crores, but that point was conveniently
missed in euphoric propaganda that had made SSP some sort of “article of faith”.

The dam construction was stopped at a height of 80.3 metres since January 1995, with Madhya
Pradesh assembly taking a unanimous decision to this effect, after 26 days of fast by
representatives of Narmada Bachao Andolan on December 16, 1994. While the Supreme Court
had first declined to stop the work on dam in May 1994, a year later in its order dated May 5, 1995;
it agreed to the suspension of the work and maintained this stand for nearly four years. Thus
unsustainable interest liability of dam building corporation – Sardar Sarovar Narmada Nigam
Limited [SSNNL] was of its own making.

Supreme Court’s nod to go ahead and afterwards

In an interim order in February 1999, the Supreme Court allowed the height to be raised to 88
metres [85 metres + 3 metres humps]. On October 18, 2000 court gave a split verdict (2:1), with a
majority – and thereby operative – judgement allowing the dam height to be raised to 138.64
metres, but in stages after ensuring compliance with NWDTA’s provisions for rehabilitation and
compliance with the environmental issues as required under the Ministry of Environment and
Forest clearance conditions. Minority judgement by Hon Justice S P Bharucha, however asked
project authorities to seek environmental clearance a fresh. While allowing the construction to
proceed in the stages, the court had reposed a considerable amount of faith on a condition, an
innocent looking linguistic phrase called pari passuv.

Soon after the dam wall started rising, and one and a half year later, project authorities clinched a
clearance to raise the dam height from 90 to 95 metres on May 14, 2002 by inventing further
linguistic tyranny due to an arbitrary distinction between temporarily and permanently affected
that led to diminishing number of PAFs in Madhya Pradesh. Similarly, the dam height was raise to
100 metres and to 110.64 metres following a clearance in May 2003 and April 2004 respectively.

On March 15, 2005 Supreme Court gave a judgment that was critical of the resettlement and
rehabilitation process and reiterated the binding nature rehabilitation clauses of NWDTA, by ruling
that they have to rehabilitate “temporarily affected” PAFs, major sons and unmarried daughters.
The judgment also reiterated “land for land” rehabilitation and lamented the SRP mechanism. A
year later, on March 08, 2006; project authorities once again clinched the clearance to raise the
dam height to 121.92 metres. Union Water Resources Minister immediately decided to review the
decisionvi. While this led to intense debate over the state of resettlement and rehabilitation, political
expediencies put haze over the discourse. Although, the construction stopped at 119 metres at the
onset of monsoon, by December 2006 the dam height was further raised to 121.92 metres.

The seven year period (2007-2014) witnessed repeated efforts by project proponents - some of
those even before they carried out inspection of status of radial gates that are lying in stockyard at
dam site for last fifteen years - to get the clearance to install the radial gates and raise the height of
the dam to 138.64 metres.

In June 2014, Narmada Control Authority granted clearance to raise the dam height to the final
138.64 metre level, by installing gates, even as affected people have been arguing that
rehabilitation of displaced persons remains far from over. In its three decades of existence as an
environmental-social movement, NBA has articulated the pertinent questions on the development,
has forced powers that be to review the destructive development paradigm and urged for exploring
alternatives. Concluding his narrative on the history of NBA, McCully (2001: 306) states:

“The NBA sees its role as much more than challenging a single dam or even dam building
in general. Patkar and other NBA leaders have travelled throughout India supporting other
struggles against destructive state and corporate development projects which strip the poor
of their right to livelihood. Together with other leading environmental, women’s, lower-
caste and Gandhian groups, the NBA has helped establish a National Alliance of People’s
Movement (NAPM). In March 1996, representatives from around 100 groups in 17 states
drew up a ‘People’s Resolve’, a common ideological platform for the NAPM around which
it is hoped India’s many thousands of diverse people’s organisations can unite in a ‘strong,
social, political force’”.

NBA continues to raise the violations in rehabilitation process by knocking the doors of courts
through legal petitions. In a recent judgment, Supreme Court of India upheld the argument by NBA
that legal entitles promised to major sons cannot be diluted by Madhya Pradesh state government.
While in the submergence zone villages, communities keep the struggle asserting their right to life
and livelihood and willing to put up resistance against rising waters that have drowned their homes
more than once during monsoon, on the side of command area, governments have de-notified land
that were supposed to get irrigation water to industries. The progress on canal network has been
such that Gujarat has repeatedly failed to optimally use the waters stored behind dam wall in Sardar
Sarovar. Recently, communities in immediate downstream of the controversial dam has also
mobilised in protest against the proposed Garudeshwar weir that is slated to submergence lands in
61 villages. Downstream communities have also sought justice from National Green Tribunal on
the continued violation of environmental norms and has challenged the Statue of Unity project and
other eco-tourism proposals.

The questions raised by Narmada Bachao Andolan will continue to haunt the development
planning and would continue to work as magnifying glass for them showing them the words uttered
by Gandhiji appealing to behold the face of last man while taking decisions. In October 2010,
Delhi Solidarity Group – a formation that commits to stand in solidarity to contemporary social
movements around India – published a book titled, Plural Narratives comprising historical
narratives on the history of Narmada Bachao Andolan articulated by various activists in the form
of long conversations. In the year 2015, Andolan published a calendar giving a snapshot history of
the thirty years of struggle and an academician found in that act, an effort “to speak memory to
silence, conscience to indifference and truth to the centrality of power”vii.

References

Joy, K J and Paranjpe, Suhas (1995) Sustainable Technology: Making Sardar Sarovar Project
Viable, Centre for Environmental Education, Ahmedabad.

Khagram, Sanjeev et. al. (2002) ‘Trans-national struggle against large dams’, in Restructuring
World Politics, University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, pp. 206-231.

McCully, Patrick (2001) Silenced Rivers: The Ecology and Politics of Large Dams, Zen Books,
London.

Sangvai, Sanjay (2002) The River and Life, Earthcare Books, Mumbai and Calcutta.

Wood, John R. (2007) The Politics of Water Resources Development: The Narmada Dam
Controversy, Sage, Delhi

i
For details see his autobiography, Mari Jivankatha (Navjivan Prakashan). Also see, Upadhyaya, Himanshu
(forthcoming) Challenging Temples of Modern India: An Obituary to Technological and Political Dreams and Plea
for Gandhian Ethics.
ii
Khosla, A. N. 1965 Report of the Narmada Water Resources Development Committee, Government of India,
ministry of Irrigation and Power.
iii
For more on Harsud Sammelan, see Kumar, Madhuresh (2010) ‘Ordinary People: Extra Ordinary Movement: 25
Years of Struggle and Quest for Alternatives in Narmada Valley’, Movement of India, Vol 5, No 3, November 2010,
http://napm-india.org/sites/default/files/MOI_NOV%2010.pdf
iv
Special Civil Application No 9366 of 1993, Narmada Abhiyan and others Vs Union of India and others.
v
A phrase that means “side by side,” first occurs in the discourse when the environmental clearance was awaited.
This phrase envisaged that construction work will not outpace environment mitigation measures and completion of
rehabilitation of all oustees. In other words, it had envisaged that pace of construction will be determined by the
pace of environmental mitigation measures and rehabilitation of oustees and not the other way round. As we have
discussed below, even the supplementary agreement with Jaiprakash Associates that SSNNL entered into within two
month after the Supreme court verdict was violating pari passu condition.
vi
Parsai, Gargi Centre puts on hold the decision on Narmada Dam, The Hindu, March 11, 2006.
vii
For details see, Viswanathan, Shiv (2015) ‘Chronicles of a struggle retold’, The Hindu, August 06, 2015
http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/chronicle-of-a-struggle-retold/article7504666.ece
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Religion, Rituals and Ecology

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Ecology, Environment, Religion, Greening of religions,

Symbolism, Traditional knowledge, Eco-religion, Eco-theology,
Earth Charter, Subaltern eco-theological

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary This module will explain key concepts in ecology and religion,
such as the ‘greening of religions’, while using illustrations to
demonstrate eco-friendly ritualistic practices of religious and
nature worshipping traditional communities. The module will
engage in detail with the Ecotheology in the light of integration of
the world religions on the issues of environmental degradation
and ecological crisis of present times. This module will enable
basic yet detailed understanding of the genesis of the growing
ecological concerns globally, processes and interreligious
engagements involved in effecting common platforms for
bringing the diverse religious and traditional practices towards
the single goal, i.e. protecting the planet.

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Investigator
Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Lee Macqueen Tata Institute of Social Sciences

Writer/Author (CW)
Content Reviewer Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
(CR)
Language Editor Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
(LE)
Introduction

The natural human tendency is to seek its place in the universe, the answer for which it seeks
in moral philosophy and in modern religion. Human beings have been both influenced and
engineered by their own ideas, for centuries in the past and will continue to do so in the
future. However, probably for the first time, it is facing an economic and ecological crisis in a
scale as today that threatens its future existence. The increasing awareness and recognition of
the ecological disruptions by unscrupulous anthropocentric activities, propelled by neo-liberal
economic interest, and the accompanying destruction on account of natural calamities, loss of
biodiversity et cetera, continues to bring together multi-stakeholders, including multiple
religions into the realm of environmental protection and conservation ecology. This subfield
is founded on the understanding that, in the words of Iranian-American philosopher Seyyed
Hossein Nasr, "the environmental crisis is fundamentally a crisis of values," and that
religions, being the primary source of ethics and values in any culture, are thus implicated in
the decisions humans make regarding the environment.

The relationship between religion and environment is a well-established subject of academic

discussion (White 1967; Worldviews passim; Gottleib 1996; Daedelus 2001) and has
attracted formal responses from all of the major world religions1. Religion and
environmentalism is an emerging subfield in the academic disciplines of religious studies,
religious ethics, the sociology of religion, and theology amongst others, with
environmentalism. It is in this broader ecological context that this module will study the
religious concepts and thought processes vis-a-vis the issues surrounding ecology.

Ecology, Ecosystems and Environment

The term Ecology was coined by Earnst Haeckel in 1869. It is the scientific study of the
distributions, abundance and relations of organisms and their interactions with the
environment.2 Ecology includes the study of plant and animal populations and ecosystems. It
is a sub-discipline of biology and unlike the descriptive study of organisms, it is the study of
life, which is evolution. Tansley (1935)3 described Ecosystems as basic unit of nature to
study Ecology, as he considered that organisms cannot be separated from the “environment of
the biome”.

An ecosystem is a self-regulating group of biotic communities of species interacting with one

another and with their non-living environment exchanging energy and matter. Now ecology
is often defined as ‘‘the study of ecosystems’’. Ecology is closely related to the disciplines of

1
In September 1986 the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) celebrated its 25th anniversary by bringing
together authorities from five major world religions to declare how the teachings of their faith leads each of
them to care for nature.
2
Begon, M.; Townsend, C. R., Harper, J. L. (2006). Ecology: From individuals to ecosystems. (4th ed.). Blackwell.
ISBN 1405111178
(http://environment-ecology.com/what-is-ecology/205-what-is-ecology.html#cite_note-Begon_2006-0)
3
Functional Ecology, Volume 11, Issue 2, Article first published online: 19 SEP, 2008. Accessible on :
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2435.1997.00081.x/pdf
physiology, evolution, genetics and behaviour and is not synonymous with environment,
environmentalism, or environmental science.

Studies relating to life processes explaining adaptations; distribution and abundance of

organisms; the movement of materials and energy through living communities; the
progressive development of ecosystems, and the abundance and distribution of biodiversity in
context of the environment are broader areas of study to understand the concept of ecology,
like many of the natural sciences (for the scope of ecology see, Begon et al 2006).

The term Environment, over a period of time, advanced from mere meaning of physical
surrounding, to include in it, all biological (biotic) factor such as genes, cells, organisms of
same or different species; and the ‘abiotic’ that includes non-biological entities (non-living
factors like inorganic materials and physical aspects such as oxygen, carbon dioxide,
temperature, light, climate, rainfall, et cetera). Environment is thus defined as “the sum total
of water, air and land and the inter-relationships that exist among them and with the human
beings, other living organisms and materials”.4

Religion and Ecology

Religious concepts have been prominent in discourse on environmental responsibility. For

example, “caring for creation”, “co-creation”, “Earth goddess”, “Earth theology”, “ecological
sin”, “integrity of creation”, “nature as Eden”, “stewardship”. Such ideas emphasise on the
wider identity of environment including spiritual whole beyond materialistic and human
concerns, embracing the wider community of life. Environmental issues may thus provide a
new context in which religious traditions, or individuals and groups within them, may
reinterpret their beliefs, challenge dominant views, and regain legitimacy and public
relevance through re-imagining the environment providing explanations of and answers to
environmental problems5.

The environmental crisis faced by the humanity currently, which J. Baird Callicott called
homo petroleumus6 threaten the Earth’s ecosystem in a biocide that is seen as the defining
challenge of our age. The solution to this crisis lay more than in economic or technological
adjustments and extends to moral, social, and spiritual issues. This puts in question a
particular cultural view of the world: the modern secular worldview, described as the
Enlightenment mentality. Proponents of this worldview initially saw it as a way to liberate
individuals from the authority of the Christian Church and natural environment, by placing
priority on reason, objectivity, and progress. However, this also led to the germination of the
desire to exercise dominion over nature, leading to its exploitation, with little thought of the
consequences or of the moral issues involved. This scheme separated humanity and
environment and the previous animistic7 ways of perceiving the environment were replaced

4
http://www.newagepublishers.com/samplechapter/001795.pdf
5
Watling T. The Field of Religion and Ecology: Addressing the Environmental Crisis and Challenging Faiths,
Available on-
http://www.academia.edu/427942/The_Field_of_Religion_and_Ecology_Addressing_the_Environmental_Crisi
s_and_Challenging_Faiths
6
Callicott, J.B. Earth's Insights: A Survey of Ecological Ethics from the Mediterranean Basin to the Australian
Outback (Berkeley, Los Angeles,London: University of California Press, 1997)
7
Animists perceived nature as a living sacred cosmos.
with a secular mechanical one, with nature reduced to material resources without life or spirit.
Tu Weiming sees this as the crisis of modernity, an inability to experience nature as the
embodiment of spirit, seeing it merely for economic or technological needs, resulting in an
ecological illiteracy and bio-phobic destructiveness where humans, for Mary Evelyn Tucker
and John Grim, make macro-phase (environmental) changes with micro-phase wisdom8.

Greening of religions

Peter Beyer, in particular, sees environmentalism as one possible way to revitalize religion
and influence the global system, in an eco-theology that would have eschatological
implications for all of humanity. In this scheme, religion would address residual matters of
the dominant system (i.e., its ethical, environmental, or social consequences), bridging the
gap between private and public, linking religious function (belief) and performance
(application, public influence). Here environmental issues provide an arena for religious
expression, not only as critical matters of public concern but also as indicators of root causes
of the problems, which are seen as moral and spiritual values, with religion being necessary
for their resolution. Religious environmentalism may thus become a social movement based
on religious resources, giving meaning to and promising the power to overcome the
consequences of modern secular values and structures.9

By the 1990s, many scholars of religion had entered the debate and begun to generate a
substantial body of literature discussing and analyzing how nature is valued in various
religious systems of the world. A landmark event in this direction was a series of ten
conferences on Religion and Ecology organized by Yale University professors, Mary Evelyn
Tucker and John Grim held at the Harvard University’s Centre for the Study of World
Religions from 1996 to 1998. From these conferences, Tucker and Grim would form the Yale
Forum on Religion and Ecology. The Forum has been instrumental in the creation of
scholarship, in forming environmental policy, and in the greening of religion.

An explicit and overt ecological awareness on the part of religious traditions, a non-
anthropocentric re-interpretation of humanity, nature, and the sacred that extends beliefs,
ethics, identity, and sacredness beyond humanity to nature as a whole, has been encouraged
and growing during a period that Roderick Nash terms the “greening” of religion.10

The phenomenon of Greening of Religions, essentially involves infusion of religious

traditions into “resource” for environmentally sustainable livelihoods and activism. During
the last few decades a field known most often as “religion and ecology” emerged focusing
first on identifying these obstacles, secondly on the resources such religions may have
available for promoting environmentally beneficent behaviours. A third, normative agenda
often accompanied these two more descriptive ones, to promulgate the religious beliefs and
8
Watling T. The Field of Religion and Ecology: Addressing the Environmental Crisis and Challenging Faiths,
Available on-
http://www.academia.edu/427942/The_Field_of_Religion_and_Ecology_Addressing_the_Environmental_Crisi
s_and_Challenging_Faiths
9
See Beyer, “Religion and Globalization”.
10
Nash, Roderick (1996) ‘The Greening of Religion’, in Gottlieb, R., (ed) This Sacred Earth: Religion, Nature,
Environment, New York and London: Routledge, pp. 194-229.
practices that produce environmentally responsible behaviours, reappraising and
reconfiguring the traditions as needed so they can provide the needed conceptual, spiritual,
and practical ways for environmentally beneficent behaviour11. Such resources were usually
produced out by the scholars of specific traditions, where their efforts were largely towards
aligning their respective religious traditions with environment and ecology friendly and
sustainable life ways. Many examples of such religious production are reviewed in the
Encyclopaedia of Religion and Nature (2004).

These thinkers clearly believed that the roots of the environmental crisis reside in defective
religious perception (Tucker and Grim in Tucker and Williams 1997: xvii). For example,
Nelson (1998b) argues that one of Hinduism’s principle theological traditions, Advaita
Vedanta, is indeed founded on a dualism, in which the physical and conscious world is to be
renounced in the quest for moksha, or liberation from birth and re-birth. The world of
consciousness and matter, or maya (usually glossed as 'illusion'), is worthless and to be
despised. This proposition reads less favourable to a viewpoint for environmental concern
(see also Sherma 1998, on the gendering of maya).

Between 1997 and 2004, volumes of series appeared that were written by thinkers of world’s
major religious traditions: Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Taoism, Hinduism,
Indigenous Traditions, Jainism, Judaism, Islam, and Shinto, with a hope to revitalize the
green dimensions of all these religions. Max Oelschlaeger, for example, promoted the
greening of Christianity in Caring for Creation: An Ecumenical Approach to the
Environmental Crisis (1994), hoping for a paleo-counterrevolution, ecologically beneficent
lifeways of “Paleolithic” peoples, as modern religious traditions posed severe threat to the
spiritual and material worlds.

J. Baird Callicott on the other hand, ambitiously harboured the hope to contribute to the
greening of all world religions. In a series of works, culminating in “Earth’s Insights: a
Survey of Ecological Ethics from the Mediterranean Basin to the Australian Outback
(1994)”, he sought to identify the religious obstacles to and resources for green behavior in a
wide variety of cultures around the world. He nevertheless insisted that to be ecological and
compelling, they must be updated in such a way so as to cohere with evolutionary science
and was interested in developing “Natural History as Religion”. His reflections for nature and
religion rested on scientific understandings and narratives. For Oelschlaeger, on the other
hand, efforts were to be made to rekindle spiritualities that consider nature directly sacred in
some way12.

The recognition by diverse religionists, activists and scholars of the nature being endangered
by human activities have led to initiatives to bridge the gap between what is (ecological
decline) and what ought to be (environmentally sustainable lifeways). Without supernatural
beings there is no religion, for there are many examples around the world where people feel
and speak of a “spiritual connection” to nature, or of “belonging to” the earth (mother earth,

11
Taylor, Bron (nd) ‘A Green Future for Religion?’, The University of Florida <bron@ufl.edu>
Available on: http://users.clas.ufl.edu/bron/bron/Taylor--GreenFuture4Rel.pdf
12
Ibid
or even mother ocean), or speaking of the earth as “sacred,” without any concomitant
confession of supernatural beliefs.

Environmental degradation at the alarming rate has increasingly drawn world religions into
the task of addressing the concerns from the standpoint of environmental science. This
environmental science is, of course, built upon a Darwinian foundation which, on the one
hand, provides a way to understand the loss that comes with anthropogenic extinctions; while
on the other hand, this science erodes the super naturalistic beliefs that are the ground of most
religions, and most nature-as-sacred religions, which often retain some supernaturalism.

Symbolism and traditional ecological knowledge

Knowledge of the natural world is not confined to science. Societies around the earth have
developed rich sets of experiences and explanations relating to their environments. This
traditional ecological knowledge is passed from generation to generation, by rituals or oral
tradition. It has been the basis for agriculture, health care, education, conservation and the
wide range of other activities that sustain societies in many parts of the world. Indigenous
people have a broad knowledge of how to live sustainably. However, formal education and
academic learning has disrupted the practical everyday aspects of such indigenous knowledge
replacing the same with abstract knowledge. According to Geertz, the discovery of the
phonetic script was the dawn of an abstract way of life away from the nature connected to the
lively and bodily existence of human beings.

Living on limited resources and being closely interrelated to the ecology of life have enabled
many indigenous cultures to independently develop certain sustainable belief systems, such
as showing a sense of compassion and empathy for all forms of life, recognizing human
beings as a link in the network of relationships in the web of life, embracing sustainability as
a practice, legitimizing community needs before individual rights so as to increase the
collective ability to thrive and survive, believing that people belong to the land and not the
other way around, embracing sustainability as a community with the least possible intrusion
to the environment, and sanctifying and worshipping nature for sustaining life.

Prior to the development of monotheistic and polytheistic organized religions, although each
culture had its own myths and beliefs, a current of spiritual or supernatural perspectives were
shared among most of the indigenous cultures. This was to be termed as Animism, or
Pantheism. Rejecting the dualism of mind and a physical body, the belief maintains that the
spiritual and the material world are not two different entities and that souls exist not just in
human beings, but even in animals and plants, rocks and rivers and thunder, wind and
shadows. While in animistic cultures, everything is spiritual, pantheistic cultures see the
spiritual nature of everything in existence as united.

It is also interesting to note that nature religions, or green religions, “Nature-as-Sacred

Religions”, include paganism. Pagans generally express affinity with what they perceive to be
the nature-beneficent spiritualities and lifeways of indigenous peoples, viewing these as
kindred to their own religious outlooks. Many New Age and New Religious Movements,
environmentalism itself, and mainstream religions as well, have attempted to learn, borrow,
appropriate, or steal (depending on one’s ethical evaluation of such phenomena or the
specific example of it at hand) from indigenous religions.

In 1963, Lalita Prasad Vidhyarthi, who studied the socio economic life of the Maler tribe in
Bihar, came up with the Nature- Man- Spirit complex, a theoretical and methodological
model to describe the 'soul' of a culture. The Maler life revolved around the forests of the
hills and cultivation. A major part of the Maler resources and energy were also spent in their
religious beliefs towards making sacred performances to supernatural beings that they called
spirits. The third aspect was the network of relationships in terms of structure and
organization of the family, social institutions and the lifecycle of a typical Maler. Nature,
Spirit and man were three parts of a culture, inextricably intertwined and interwoven.

The rituals of the Maler tribe, s/he thus found, showed honour and reverence to the spirits and
nature which had a major influence over them but which they had no control over. By
performing rituals they believed they could bring pressure to appease the spirits and the
nature. It is a complex because the relevance on or the effect of one on the other - nature, man
or spirit - has to be seen as a whole in a culture.

Nature and spirit conditions some of the social practices while man adapts to or
accommodates them depending on the circumstances. The reliance of human beings on
nature or on the supernatural relates to his or her culture. So does the severity of the
traditions. Applied in a different cultural context to a different people in a different ecological
setting - be it a hunter gatherer society or a highly industrialized world. This complex gives a
useful scientific tool to study the complementarities of human and non-human world. Animal
sacrifices and veneration of the dead are common practices in most religions can be seen to
fit into this complex easily.

The Eco-religion

They laid down traditions, customs and rituals, to ensure that the complex, abstract principles
they had developed could be put into practice. Over time, these practices developed
agricultural technology, methods of environmental protection, and knowledge of medicinal
properties of trees (Banwari, 1992)13.

The importance of eco-religion in environmental conservation can be seen in the Bishnois of

Rajasthan. The Bishnois are a community of nature worshippers in the state. They also have a
sizeable presence in the neighbouring states of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra,
Gujarat, Haryana, Punjab and Delhi. For over half a millennium, the Bishnois, estimated to
be around 6 million, have evolved their lifestyle into a religion that fiercely protects the
environment, the trees and the animals.14

13
Prasad, Kiran (2007) ‘From Eco-religion to Political Ecology in India: Feminist Interventions in Development’,
No.2 2007. Accessed at- http://www.isiswomen.org/downloads/wia/wia-2007-2/02wia07_05Features-
Kiran.pdf
14
Prasad, Kiran (2007) ’From Eco-religion to Political Ecology in India: Feminist Interventions in Development’,
No.2 2007. Accessed at- http://www.isiswomen.org/downloads/wia/wia-2007-2/02wia07_05Features-
Kiran.pdf
In the Himalayan hills of Uttar Pradesh in India, in early 1970s, people collectively rose to
defend local interests against timber logging by contractors and private agencies that had
jeopardised ecological stability and reduced local people’s opportunity to benefit from sound
forest exploitation. The Chipko movement, which originated in the hills of Uttar Pradesh, was
spearheaded by women who protected the trees from felling by hugging them, inspired by the
eco-religious philosophy of the Bishnois.

Christianity and Eco-theology

The relationship of theology to the modern ecological crisis became an intense issue of
debate in Western academia in 1967, following the publication of the article, "The Historical
Roots of Our Ecological Crisis," by Lynn White, Jr., Professor of History at the University of
California at Los Angeles. In his work, White put forward a theory that the Christian model
of human dominion over nature has led to environmental devastation. It was in this context
that Eco-theology15 emerged as a form of constructive theology. The social and spiritual
movement focuses on the interrelationships of religion and nature in the light of
environmental concerns. It is based on the premise that there exists a causal relationship
between human religious/spiritual worldviews and the degradation of nature.

In 1973, theologian Jack Rogers published an article in which he surveyed published studies
of approximately twelve theologians, which had appeared since White's article. They reflect
the search for "an appropriate theological model" which adequately assesses the biblical data
regarding any relationship of God, humans, and nature. While St. Francis of Assisi is one of
the more obvious influences on Christian eco-theology, there are many theologians and
teachers whose works have profound implications for Christian thinkers.

Eco-theology is also defined as the web-of-life movement as it comprises concern over

environment and humans, both, as the central organizing principle of its social vision.
Agricultural peoples typically had a sense of the web of life, because their lives depended on
being integrated into nature and surrounding. The contemporary or post-industrial eco
theology while not against modern technology is averse to the mechanistic ways of
understanding the world and consumerism which lead to abuse of the planet. Rather than
being centrally attributed to any one religious authority in the world, eco-theology is seen as a
way of life which can be embodied from many different religious points of view by people
who seek a creative alternative to consumerism and fundamentalism.

Unbalanced development activities have caused natural disasters wreaking havoc to human
lives and property. The frequency and impact of disasters are exacerbated by the
commodification and plunder of the ecosystem for profit. Disasters are not only caused by
corporate interests but they also provide the corporations new opportunities to continue their
pillage in the name of humanitarian interventions and reconstruction. Naomi Klein calls this
phenomenon “disaster capitalism”. So, the groaning of the creation is engendering a public
protest compelling humans to perceive the ecological crisis as genocide and ecocide – which
could have been avoided, had it opted for a life-affirming and communitarian worldview as
well as just and egalitarian social relations as enshrined also in the Earth Charter. The

15
http://www.unitingearthweb.org.au/about-us/1-what-is-ecotheology.html
groaning here is used as a metaphor to display the inherent immorality, (at par with
‘sinfulness’ in Christian viewpoint) of the prevailing order, and the resilience of the victims
to transform it, while biblically the term groaning is also a form of God-talk. The groaning of
creation exposes the structural sin and injustices that eternalize death and destruction in our
communities. 16

During the eighties, theologians and religious groups alike had spent time articulating
particular viewpoints; by the nineties, a plethora of religious voices and organizations could
be found, and various ecumenical efforts flourished. Perhaps the most important was the
global religious, indigenous, and NGO (non-governmental organization) effort to he heard at,
and to influence, the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development
(UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and the subsequent Kyoto Conference on global climate
change. In many ways the result of the conference at Rio, was the Earth Charter17.

The Earth Charter18 was developed in the last decade of the twentieth century, which strives
for developing communities that are just, sustainable, participatory, nonviolent, and
compassionate. The charter was debated and commented by nongovernmental organizations,
professional societies, international experts in many fields, and by representatives of the
many world religions, and was presented at the UN Summit in Johannesburg. The foundation
of the charter is the idea that people of all religions—and people without religion as well—
should live with “respect and care for the community of life.” The religious and NGO
presence at the UN conferences, was an effort to make sure that the voices of those most
affected by economic development and environmental degradation - the indigenous, the poor,
and developing countries - were heard, and to demonstrate that a new, global, ecological, and
morally just vision was needed to guide Earth's citizens.19

The Subaltern eco-theological reflection

The Subaltern eco-theological reflection is the vision of the marginalised communities about
their lives on earth in communion with all other living beings. This perspective draws a
parallel between the perceived ‘otherness’ of the subordinate communities, and the exploited
nature. The personification of marginalised communities with nature as both being at the
receiving ends of vested economic interests is what forms the Subaltern eco-theology
perspective. Both marginalised and disposed communities and nature are being rendered
powerless by being reduced into commodities to be plundered and exploited. Subaltern eco-
theology envisions the interconnectedness between social justice, differences, and
environmental degradation. It unmasks the brutal face of development and neoliberal
globalization20. It recognizes and retrieves the libertarian strands in the religious traditions,

16
God of Life from Margins
17
Kearns L. The context of Ecotheology, Ch 29. Available at http://users.drew.edu/lkearns/eco-theology.pdf
18
More information about the Earth Charter is available at: <URL>http://www.earthcharter.org</URL>
19
L. The context of Ecotheology, Ch 29. Available at http://users.drew.edu/lkearns/eco-theology.pdf
20
An approach to economics and social studies in which control of economic factors is shifted from the public
sector to the private sector.
scriptures, rituals, and cosmogonies of subaltern communities, and uses them as resources in
their struggles.

Christian eco-theology draws on the writings of such authors as Jesuit priest and
paleontologist Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, process theologian Alfred North Whitehead, and is
well-represented in Protestantism by John B. Cobb, Jr. and Jürgen Moltmann and ecofeminist
theologians Rosemary Radford Ruether, Catherine Keller and Sallie McFague. Creation
theology is another important expression of eco-theology that has been developed and
popularized by Matthew Fox, the former Catholic priest. Abraham Joshua Heschel and
Martin Buber, both Jewish theologians, have also left their mark on Christian eco-theology,
and provide significant inspiration for Jewish eco-theology. Hindu eco-theology includes
writers such as Vandana Shiva. Seyyid Hossein Nasr, a liberal Muslim theologian, was one of
the earlier voices calling for a re-evaluation of the Western relationship to nature21.

Conclusion
While all world religions make claims about the foundational nature of human environment
interactions, and include certain proscriptions and regulations that relate to the non-human,
they do not directly or systematically address 'modern' environmental challenges, including
nuclear threats, global warming, toxic and chemical poisoning, and technologies that allow
extraction, processing and pollution on a previously unimagined scale. 22 But even if the
religious traditions may not be equipped to address or guide in dealing with these modern
crisis, yet by virtue of them being most influential in shaping the world views of humans,
religions are indispensable in providing environmental ethics. And while social justice
remains an ongoing agenda of peaceful co-existence of world religions, the challenge for
religions is also to enlarge their ethical concerns to include the more than human world.
Social justice and environmental integrity are now being seen as part of the continuum.23

21
http://environment-ecology.com/religion-and-ecology/321-ecotheology.html
22
Mawdsley Worldview
23
http://fore.yale.edu/religion/
Bibliography

A Green Future for Religion? Bron Taylor, The University of Florida bron@ufl.edu

A Spirituality That Reconciles Us with Creation, Nº 111, 2013/2, Social Justice and Ecology
Secretariat

Allee, W.; Emerson, A. E., Park, O., Park, T., and Schmidt, K. P. (1949). Principles of
Animal Ecology. W. B. Saunders Company. ISBN 0721611206.

Begon, M.; Townsend, C. R., Harper, J. L. (2006). Ecology: From individuals to ecosystems.
(4th ed.). Blackwell. ISBN 1405111178 (Accessible on- http://environment-
ecology.com/what-is-ecology/205-what-is-ecology.html#cite_note-Begon_2006-0)

Beyer, Peter (1994) ‘Religion and Globalisation’, University of Ottawa, Sage Publications,
Ottawa. http://www.religiousstudiesproject.com/podcast/podcast-peter-beyer-on-religion-and-
globalization/

Callicott, J.B. Earth's Insights: A Survey of Ecological Ethics from the Mediterranean Basin
to the Australian Outback (Berkeley, Los Angeles, London: University of California Press,
1997), pxiii; see Gardner, G. T, Invoking the Spirit: Religion and Spirituality in the Quest for
a Sustainable World (Worldwatch Paper 164, Washington, D. C: Worldwatch Institute,
2002), p7; Tucker, M.E. 2003. Worldly Wonder: Religions Enter Their Ecological Phase
(Chicago and La Salle, Illinois: Open Court Publishing Company, 2003), p10;

Geertz, Clifford (1966). "Religion as a Cultural System," in Anthropological Approaches to

the Study of Religion

India SUNY Press: New York, pp.89-132

Kinsley, D, Ecology and Religion: Spirituality in Cross-Cultural Perspective (Englewood

Cliffs: Prentice Hall, 1995); McGrath, A, The Reenchantment of Nature: The Denial of
Religion and the Ecological Crisis (New York, London: Doubleday/Galilee, 2003);
Oelschlaeger, M. Caring for Creation: An Ecumenical Approach to the Environmental Crisis
(New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1994).

L.E. Nelson (ed) Purifying the Earthly Body of God: Religion and Ecology in Hindu

Lalita Prasad Vidhyarthi (1963) The Maler: A Study in Nature-Man-Spirit Complex

Mawdsley E. The Abuse of Religion and Ecology: the Visha Hindu Parishad and Tehri Dam,
(2005) World Views Environment Culture Religion, Retrieved on 9 September 2015

McDaniel J. Ecotheology and World Religions, (2007) Ecospirit Fordham University Press,
Edited by Catherine Keller and Laurel Kearns
Nash, R, The Greening of Religion, In This Sacred Earth: Religion, Nature, Environment,
Gottlieb, R., ed:194-229 (New York and London: Routledge, 1996).

Nature”, in L.E. Nelson (ed) Purifying the Earthly Body of God: Religion and Ecology in
Hindu India SUNY Press: New York, pp.61-88.
Nelson, L.E. 1998b “The Dualism of Nondualism: Advaita Vedanta and the Irrelevance of

Paul A. Harrison (2004). Elements of Pantheism , p. 11

Sherma, R.D. 1998. “Sacred Immanence: Reflections of Ecofeminism in Hindu Tantra”, in

Smith, R.; Smith, R. M. (2000). Ecology and Field Biology. (6th ed.). Prentice Hall. ISBN
0321042905.

Tucker, M.F, and Grim, J.A. Series Forward, In Buddhism and Ecology: The Interconnection
of Dharma and Deeds, Tucker, M.E, and Wi1liams, D.R., eds:xv-xxxiiiv (Cambridge, Mass.:
Harvard University Press, 1997); Weiming, T. Beyond the Enlightenment Mentality. In
Worldviews and Ecology: Religion, Philosophy, and the Environment, Tucker, M.E, and
Grim, J.A., eds:19-29 (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1994).

White, L. Jr. (1971). "The Historical Roots of our Ecologic Crisis." Reprinted in A.E. Lugo &
S.C. Snedaker (Eds.) Readings on Ecological Systems: Their Function and Relation to Man.
New York: MSS Educational Publishing

Zachariah G. Re-imagining God of Life from the Margins, (2013) World Council of
Churches
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Commons: Understanding Common-pool Resources

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords CPRs, Urban Commons, Global Commons, Open Access, Tragedy of

Commons, Collective Action, Prisoners’ Dilemma

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary This module looks at the concept of Commons within the discipline of
economics of natural resources. It talks about how CPRs are very important
for livelihoods in South Asia. It talks about the institutions around commons
in Indian sub-continent and some major debates in academia on Governing
the Commons.

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR)
Language Editor (LE)
Common Property Resources

Defining Commons

Importance of Commons in South Asia Region

Institutions around Commons: Dying Wisdom?

Nationwide Assessment of CPRs

Some academic debates around CPRs

New and Emergent Commons: Urban and Global

Common Property Resources: Defining Commons

What do we mean when we use the term Commons, or Common Property Resources (CPR)? Common
property resources have been defined in a number of different ways in available literature. According to
the most popular understanding of this concept, “CPRs are owned by an identified set of people, who
have the right to exclude non-owners and duty to maintain the property through constraints put on use”.
Common property resources are owned, held in trust and managed by an identified set of people, who
have control over its access, use and extraction – as against the private or government ownership. In
short, the term commons denotes forms of collective ownership over a resource as opposed to private
property where the ownership lies exclusively with an individual or a family or a corporate entity. Thus
some of the examples of commons are pastures, sacred groves, village ponds and so on.

The conceptual approaches on commons vary over a wide range. At one extreme there is an approach
that treats all that is not private property as common property. The approach at the other extreme adopts
a much more stringent view to distinguish between common property and “free rider” or “free or open
access” resources. The latter category is characterised by the absence of any rules for management of
resources. The proponents of this approach hold that “a resource becomes common property only when
the group of people who have the right to its collective use is well defined, and the rules that govern their
use of it are set out clearly and followed universally”. In their view, common property implies the existence
of an institutional arrangement for management of the resources. Studies on commons also include the
“information commons” with issues about public knowledge, public domain, open science, open data,
open budgeting, and the free exchange of ideas; all issues at the core of direct participatory democracy.
There is a growing volume of scholarly work on “new” and “non-traditional” commons such as urban
commons, the Internet, electro-magnetic spectrum, genetic data, budgets etc.

The urge of creating global commons to enable inter-cultural contact and communication has also got
reflected through the desire and several efforts – many unsuccessful and few successful – to create a
universal language, that every human being potential can have a stake into and a right overi.

Some have argued that the idea of commons comes from the English tradition emerging from the Magna
Carta and then the concept gets universalized with the shaping up of ‘ecological commons’. In his brilliant
essay, The Secret History of Magna Carta, Peter Linebaugh explains in details how the Magna Carta has
inspired generations to draw upon while stating that “The Magna Carta is not a manifesto of the medieval
commons, yet it refers to substantive customs of the wooded realm that supported a material culture”.
Elinor Ostrom, the renowned scholar who studied commons, outlines eight design principles which are
prerequisites for stable CPR arrangements, in her 2009 Nobel Prize winner book, Governing the Commons:
The Evolution of Institutions for Collective Action:

1. Clearly defined boundaries

2. Congruence between appropriation and provision rules and local conditions
3. Collective-choice arrangements allowing for the participation of most of the appropriators in the
decision making process
4. Effective monitoring by monitors who are part of or accountable to the appropriators
5. Graduated sanctions for appropriators who do not respect community rules
6. Conflict-resolution mechanism which are cheap and easy of access
7. Minimum recognition of rights to organize (e.g. by the government)
8. In case of larger CPRs: Organisation in the form of multiple layers of nested enterprises, with
small, local CPRs at their bases.

Importance of Commons in South Asian region

In South Asia and in Indian sub-continent there has been several community institutions marking the
relationship between the community and natural resource base. In South Asia, property rights over many
different resources are either de facto or de jure held by communities. In this part of the world, the share
of community property is fairly voluminous in terms of resource inputs for sustaining local livelihoods and
rights over such land, water and forest resources are shared by multiple beneficiaries. As per different
estimates by scholars, the extent of livelihood dependence over CPRs ranges from 15 - 29 percent in South
Asia, whereas in parts of Africa, where pastoral societies abound, the livelihood dependence on CPRs has
been found to be in the range of 35 - 51 percent.

Studies on CPRs came into the forefront with a seminal article by N. S. Jodha in mid 1980s in the journal
Economic and Political Weekly, titled ‘Common Property Resources and the Rural Poor’, which presents
the scenario existing in semi-arid regions of India. Two decades after that moment, Jodha (2008: 51-69)
records, there has been a 40 to 50 percent decline in CPR area in his study region and 25 to 85 percent of
CPRS from his study area were reported to have attained degraded status. Part of the explanation
probably lies in the decline of traditional management institutions and rules reported from 88 to 97
percent of villages studied.

Institutions around Commons: Dying Wisdom?

Anil Agarwal and Sunita Narain traced the typology of myriad rain water harvesting systems around the
country and their status in their 1997 book, Dying Wisdom: Rise and Fall of India’s Water Harvesting
Systems. Most of these systems were rooted in village communities and had highly evolved governance
and management processes. While it is true that large number of people are supported by common
property for their livelihoods in developing world through stable forms of resource management, in last
two centuries developmentalist State has pursued an agenda that turns poor people’s resource proximate
status into a curse. Over the years many different factors such as population growth, technological
change, climate change and political re-alignments have led to destabilization of many existing common
property institutions. This has led to situation where both community ownership of resources co-exists
with evolving (and often incomplete) private property rights.
Similar to myriad rai water harvesting systems, India represents diversity of grasslands or village grazing
grounds and nomadic livestock keepers. Sumit Guha looks at the period 1600 to 2000 and states that
while four hundred years ago, 25 percent of India’s land mass was cultivable arable, and within this short
span the expansion of cultivation has meant that cultivable arable now occupies almost half of India’s land
mass. The logical corollary of this was that grazing land and land that was demarcated as permanent
pastures came under increasing attrition. L. B. Kulkarni in his 1928 monograph, Improvement of Grazing
Areas in the Bombay Presidency wrote about the diminishing grazing lands thus: “Until the last half
century, there were in this presidency extensive waste lands such as common grazing grounds, which in
good years, at any rate, provided for the village herds a fair quantity of fodder. But owing to the demand
for cultivation of food and commercial crops, which tend to increase at the same time the required
number of cattle and to reduce the grazing as well as the production of fodder on the cultivated lands,
the area available for common grazing by paying a small fee to a private owner has been reduced in almost
every part of the Bombay presidency. The very salutary old Mohameddan rule, which provided that there
should be one acre of grazing land to every ten acres of cultivated land has largely been forgotten and the
areas still available have been and are still being seriously overgrazed with evil results not only for cattle,
but also to the grazing land themselves.”

Nationwide Assessment of CPRs

In recent times, scholars who studies commons have tried to estimate both the magnitude of commons
as well as its diminishing status by employing various methodologies such as village surveys,
reclassification of land use categories, ethnography of commons dependent communities etc. Even
though satellite imagery helps in keeping a tab on changing land use and the status of natural resources,
its use has been rather limited. Prof Kanchan Chopra states that in 1980s, when economists started to pay
attention to CPRS, estimates fell within reasonable range, with states which had witnessed advanced
agricultural systems reporting 5 to 7 percent of land under CPRs and those other states supporting rainfed
agriculture and pastoralism reporting 25 to 32 percent of land under CPRs. Within two decades lands
under CPRs have faced so much attrition that it diminished from 25 percent to 21.25 percent.

The only large scale country wide survey of the size, utilisation and contribution of CPRs in the lives and
economy of rural Indias has been the 54th round of National Sample Survey Organisation in the year 1998.
Based on a sample survey carried out across 5242 villages, covering 78,990 households, from 12 agro-
climatic zones, this survey concluded that CPRs account for 15 percent of geographical area and amount
to 0.31 hectares per household. This survey also revealed that as many as 58 percent of fuel wood
requirements and upto 25 percent of fodder requirement are derived from CPRs. This survey also raised
the concern over the rapid depletion of CPRs, by estimating the decrease of CPR lands in rural India at 2
percent every five years.

Unfortunately, NSSO has not revisited the issue of CPRs with another large scale national wide survey,
which would have made it possible for scholars working on CPRs to understand the changes.

Some academic debates around CPRs

Daniel W. Bromley refers to the concept ‘Commons’ or ‘Common Property Resources’ in the literature on
natural resources and environmental policy making as a concept that is often misunderstood and
misrepresented. He argues that “the fallacy in traditional approaches to commons is that writers have
failed to understand the concept of property; they have very often treated a particular natural resource
as if it had inherent characteristics that suggested it would everywhere be controlled under a particular
type of property regime; and they have invariably failed to learn that the world is replete with reasonably
successful common-property regime”. Bromley advises us to understand that “there is no such thing as
common property resource; there are only resources controlled and managed as common property, or as
state property, or as private property”. He also asks us to acknowledge that “there are also resources over
which no property rights have been recognized, and hence those are suitable instances for the expression
“open-access resources” (res nullius, which is Latin for ‘no one’s property). Elinor Ostrom states in contrast
to Open Access Resources, in the instances of those resources on which “property rights exist – whether
private property, state property or common property – overexploitation and destruction depends on how
well the property rights regime copes with problem of allocating the costs and benefits of managing and
governing a particular resource”.

While there existed modes of resource use that assigned greater ethical import to the culture of sharing,
as Ostrom has shown, even before Garret Hardin’s oft quoted 1968 article in the journal Science, there
were views and opinions that referred to the metaphor tragedy of commons. However, when Hardin used
the metaphor of a grazing commons to refer to the general problem of population, he was doing so in a
world where livestock science had created terms such as ‘overgrazing’ and ‘overstocking’. Hardin asks his
reader to imagine a pasture open to all and invites him to examine the structure of the situation from the
perspective of a ration herder. Supposing each herder would receive a direct benefits by adding one more
animal on pasture and increasing his herd and bears deferred costs from the gradual deterioration of
grazing due to overgrazing. Hardin thus concludes: “There in is the tragedy. Each man is locked into a
system that compels him to increase his herd without limit – in a world that is limited. Ruin is the
destination towards which all men rush, each pursuing his own best interest in a society that believes in
the freedom of the commons”.

It has been argued that this parable ignores considerable historical evidence to the contrary and flows
from the failure to distinguish the problems of free and open access from those of common property.
These errors are now being increasingly acknowledged by economists and Dasgupta (1982: 13) has stated
without mincing words that “it would be difficult to locate another passage of comparable length and
fame containing as many errors”.

Writing a foreword to collection of essays on Commons, Robert B Hawkins refers to a common historical
myth, that has a tendency to perpetuate, suggesting that “Europe’s peasants and yeomen who worked
the commons were inefficient cultivators, and that it took the forced enclosure movements of the
fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, turning the commons into private property, to bring efficiency and
increased productivity to agriculture”. He also indicts contemporary social scientists who like “yesterday’s
nobility, often take a jaundiced view of common-property institutions, again making the commons and
object of derision and “reform”. He also points at another category of theorists who while “decrying the
“tragedy of commons” rely on the arid reasoning of the “prisoner’s dilemma” to demonstrate the
impossibility of long-lasting voluntary cooperation of effective collective action. In short, the working
assumption amongst economists and political scientists after Hardn’s essay and Mancur Olson’s The Logic
of Collective Action (1965) was that self-interested individuals will hesitate to act in a collective manner
to provide common goods or to conserve and protect shared resource. Yet as Elinor Ostrom has shown
through her writings, throughout this period and subsequent decades there was no dearth of evidence
that in poor countries there were many instances of people coming together for protection, conservation
and shared use of local commons. Ostrom and her contemporary researchers showed, theoretically and
empirically, that norms of cooperation and trust building could emerge and be sustained. Thus research
on the commons in last two decades has highlighted the dialogic space that could emerge between
economists and anthropologists, when they bring their respective disciplinary strength to inform the
governance issues in development policy. Two volumes that merit attention in this context are Ghate R,
Jodha N S, and Mukhopadhyaya P (edited) (2008), Promise, Trust and Evolution: Managing the Commons
of South Asia, Oxford University Press, and Bardhan Pranab and Isha Ray (edited) (2008). The Contested
Commons: Conversations Between Economists and Anthropologists, Blackwell Publishing.

At the Annapolis conferenceii – the Conference on Common property Resource Management –

participants strongly articulated a view of the type of policies that donors and governments of developing
countries should adopt on the governance and management of commons. The participants had
recommended that current presumptions that local rules and customs were lacking for most common-
pool resources be abandoned. Instead, donors and governments of developing countries were asked to
bear the burden of proof to demonstrate the absence of local customs and rules before intervening to
impose new one. Thus, concluding in nut shell the message of Annapolis conference, Elinor Ostrom states
that the advice was:

1. If people have lived in close relationship with common – pool resource system over a long period
of time, they have probably evolved some system to limit and regulate use patterns.
2. Before one imposes new rules on local systems, inquiries should be made to determine if some
rules and customs do not already exist.
3. If some customs and rules do exist, study these carefully in order to understand how they affect
use patterns over time.
4. Propose new rules only after you have convinced yourself that either no rules and customs exist,
or the rules and customs that do exist are not effective in achieving regulation or produce
substantial inefficiency, inequity, or both; and you are thoroughly familiar with the configuration
of institutions in existence that may affect how new rules operate in practice.
5. Maintaining and enforcing new rules depends upon people finding those rules to be an acceptable
way of ordering their relationships with one another as a community.
6. New rules cannot vary dramatically from the existing repertoire of rules in use or they will exist
only on paper and not in the minds of those who must understand the rules to make them work.

New and Emergent Commons: Urban and Global

Prof Kanchan Chopra also alludes to newer forms of commons that are emerging at two different sights
and scale. Chopra (2011) states, “Growing urbanisation means that newer kinds of urban communities
are coming up. These are often referred to as ‘gated communities’ with access to their assets and common
spaces being restricted to residents who are also responsible for their maintenance. The emergence of
these urban CPRs has come about as a consequence of the felt need for some common services by way
of security, green areas, and waste management. In some cases, we have fairly successful management.
Beyond the minimum level of common interests, these communities also run into problems of diversity
of interests, etc, of stakeholders. In the context of increasing urbanisation and migration, it is important
to see what makes these communities work. It also brings home the point that ‘the commons’ and issues
related to them will continue to emerge as long as humans live in close proximity and share resources and
the environment.”
Similarly in the context of climate change and global warming, Chopra (2011) puts forward a suggestion
of looking at atmosphere as an indivisible global common shared by all the inhabitants of the planet.
Chopra (2001) states, “At the start of the 21st century, the nations of the world are seeking solutions to
the damage inflicted on the global commons by greenhouse gas emissions. In this case, we have inequity
(across nations), we have prior history, and we have very few global institutions whose writ is accepted
by all. In other words, as nations of the world, constituting the so-called ‘global village’, interact on issues
of limiting greenhouse gas emissions that endanger the global commons, we find many similarities with
village communities. Will the ‘global village’ be able to exhibit similar foresight and wisdom in solving its
problems? The challenge will require the construction of a new international institutional structure,
focusing on efficient design rules for efficiency and drawing on shared values and trust for long-term
sustainability. Whatever be the outcome, the conceptualisation of the ‘commons’ as shared spaces
between societies, nation-states, and international corporations will continue to be significant.
Simultaneously, navigating interacting global changes and preparing for future uncertainty will continue
to present the challenge of setting up a co-evolving set of globally focused, collaborative institutions. And
what we learn from the village commons and the national commons will continue to be relevant.”

References

Bromley, Daniel W. (1992) ‘Commons, Property and Common-Property Regimes’, in Daniel W. Bromley
(ed) Making the Commons Work: Theory, Practice and Policy; Institute for Contemporary Studies, San
Fransisco, California.

Dasgupta, P. S. (1982) The Control of Resources, Blackwell, Oxford.

Hawkins, Robert B. (1992) ‘Foreword’ in Daniel W. Bromley (ed) Making the Commons Work: Theory,
Practice and Policy; Institute for Contemporary Studies, San Fransisco, California.

Kulkarni, L. B. (1923) Improvement of Grazing Areas in the Bombay Presidency, Bombay Department of
Agriculture Bulletin No 112, Poona.

Linebaugh, Peter (2003) ‘The Secret History of Magna Carta’, in Boston Review, 01 June 2003,
http://bostonreview.net/books-ideas/peter-linebaugh-secret-history-magna-carta

Ostrom, Elinor (1990) Governing the Commons: The Evolution of Institutions for Collective Action,
Cambridge University Press.

Ostrom, Elinor (1992) ‘Rudiments of a Theory of Common-Property Institutions’, in Daniel W. Bromley

(ed) Making the Commons Work: Theory, Practice and Policy; Institute for Contemporary Studies, San
Fransisco, California.

i
For details on these efforts, see Okrent, Akira (2009) In the Land of Invented Languages: Esperanto Rock Stars,
Klingon Poets, Loglan Lovers, and the Mad Dreamers who tried to build a perfect language, Spiegel and Grau.
ii
This conference that took place in 1985 was “both symbolic of and instrumental in the advancement of the
scholarship on the issues surrounding the development, evolution, performance and survival of institutional
arrangements for the management of common-property resources”, as stated by David Feeny. See, Feeny, David
(1986) “Conference on Common Property Resource Management: An Introduction” in National Research Council,
Proceedings of the Conference on Common Property Resource Management, 7-11, National Academy Press,
Washington, D.C. A number of prominent works on common property and collective action have appeared in print
since then.
 Details of Module and its Structure
Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Environmental Laws Part II: Evolution of Environmental Regulations in India

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Environmental Laws, EIA, MoEF, Environmental Justice, Environmental

Tribunals, NGT

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary In this module, we will discuss the evolution of environmental laws and
regulations in India.

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Geetanjoy Sahu Tata Institute of Social Sciences,

(CW) Mumbai
Content Reviewer (CR) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Language Editor (LE) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
 Environmental Laws and Regulation in India: An Overview
Geetanjoy Sahu1

Introduction
Over the last three decades, India has witnessed the evolution of a number of
environmental rules and regulations towards the protection and improvement of
the environment. Perhaps no other country in the world has as many environmental
laws as we have in India. Most of these laws came into existence in the post-
1970s period and by and large driven by judicial activism and the role played by
the Indian environmental movements and organisations. This write-up is an
attempt to understand the evolution of environmental laws and regulations in
India. This write-up begins by discussing the environmental discourse in India
and how the discourse influenced the evolution of environmental rules and
regulations, and more importantly, the intervention of the Indian Judiciary in
the protection and improvement of environment. The second section gives an
overview of environmental laws and their objectives. The reasons for ineffective
implementation of laws are discussed in the third section. The fourth section
outlines the role of the Indian Judiciary and National Green Tribunal in
environmental protection by highlighting selective judgments. Finally, the paper
concludes by identifying the major challenges for environmental regulation in
India and the possible ways to resolve them.

Environmental Debates in India

The word environment in India has different meaning for different sections of
the society. This section argues that there are different perspectives on
environment and these perspectives are framed, constructed and expressed by
different groups from their social, cultural, material, religious, political,
and livelihood concerns. One of the major perspectives of environmental debate
in India relates to the entitlement of different social groups to natural

1
Assistant Professor at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Deonar, Mumbai-400088,
email id: geetanjoy.sahu@gmail.com, geetanjoy@tiss.edu
resources and also how their immediate livelihood depends on their use and
management. It has long been argued by scholars that there is an intricate and
direct relationship between the use and management of natural resources and the
livelihoods of a majority of the people and that any change in this relationship
might result in a number of environmental struggles (Guha, 1991; Baviskar, 1995;
Guha and Alier, 1998). A majority of the people in India are mainly dependent on
the natural resources not only for their livelihood, but also for their
continued existence. Most of the environmental movements advocate the use and
alternative use of, as well as control over natural resources for the
subsistence of people’s livelihood options. Martinez-Alier (2002) calls these
movements the environmentalism of poor to distinguish them from the western
environmentalism which according to him is a product of affluence. Like
Martinez-Alier (2002) and Ramchandra Guha (1991), many scholars (Sethi, 1993;
Lele, 2011) have argued that Indian environmentalism is different from Western
environmentalism due to its emphasis on social justice and equity principles in
its demand for sustainable use of resources.

The above perspective on environment in India emphasizes that since a majority

of the people, especially the poor farmers and tribal communities in India are
dependent on natural resources for their livelihood, they should have a ready
access to the use and manages natural resources on a sustainable basis. Thus, a
major thrust of environment debate in India is directed more towards the
material interests of the environment as a source and a requirement for
livelihood rather than a concern with the rights of other species and of future
generations of humans as a concern for today’s poor humans (Alier, 2002). The
recognition of people’s right to use and manage natural resources for their
sustenance and livelihood would not only help address issues like equity and
social justice but also ensure social and cultural rights of people over natural
resources. The participation and protest made by people to protect their
immediate livelihood options from any kind of development or environmental
degradation has been identified as environmentalism of the poor. To quote Lele
(2011, p 211): “the normative concern of environmentalism of poor is directed
more towards the equitable sharing of or access to natural resources (land,
water, forests), with an additional social justice dimension that the livelihood
needs of the poor must be given a higher priority than the profit aspirations of
the rich or the corporate sector. Such an approach is evident in the Chipko
movement, which was not so much about the preservation versus destruction of
nature, as about who should have the right to extract forest resources- rural
communities or timber contractors”.

Another perspective of environmental debate in India, however, points out that

the increased concern for environment in India is not always necessarily for
material interest and that it can be for the non-material and intrinsic value of
nature. Many scholars argue that human concern for preserving the quality of
environment is directed towards seeking a change in the official policy for
ensuring a healthy environment and emphasizing the fact that human beings are
one among and equal to other species (Krishna, 1996; Sethi, 1993). They also
argue that the struggle for preserving the quality of environment is quite
different from the struggle for environmental protection for livelihood. First
of all, many conservationists contend that nature has an intrinsic value, in and
of itself, apart from its contribution to human well-being. They maintain that
all created things are equal and that they should be considered as ends in
themselves having a right over their own habitat without human interference.
They value biodiversity for its own sake and assign the rest of the nature an
ethical status at least equal to that of human beings. Some even contend that
the collective needs of non-human species and inanimate objects must take
precedence over man’s needs and desires. Animals, plant species, rocks, land,
water bodies, and so forth, are all said to possess intrinsic value in terms of
their very existence irrespective of their relationship to human beings
(Madhusudan & Shankar, 2003; Kolstad, 2006). These ideas have a significant
measure of support both from the state and the middle class2 environmentalists
in India in the form of wilderness movements (Guha, 1997). Conservation groups,
mainly consisting of the middle class, advocate the preservation of biodiversity
by preventing all human contact. In fact, such conventional environmentalism, as
argued by Prasad (2005), got reflected in the formation of national parks and
sanctuaries with the aim of preserving wildlife and biodiversity in the post-
colonial era. Although their earlier efforts were directed almost exclusively
towards the protection of large mammals, more recently, animal activists and
wildlife preservationists have used the scientific rhetoric of biological
diversity and the moral arguments in favour of species equality in pursuit of a
more extensive system of parks and sanctuaries and a total ban on human activity
in the protected areas (Gadgil & Guha, 1994).

In the recent years, animal rights activists and wildlife preservationists have
strongly emphasised that there should not be any kind of human activity within
the protected areas, wildlife reserves, parks and national sanctuaries. Many
scholars have pointed out that this exclusionary conservationist paradigm of
Indian environmentalism strongly advocates that the state play a dominant role
in terms of taking all measures including policy initiatives towards the
protection of endangered species and forest resources (Saberwal & Rangarajan,
2003). Under this paradigm, the rights of human social groups, including those
of the marginalized ones such as tribal communities or the rural poor, remain
subservient to the rights of non-human species. Conservationists by and large
encourage and welcome the efforts of the government of India towards
establishing networks of protected areas that include all major ecosystems even
as social activists challenge the displacement of people from the protected
areas. The number of people getting displaced due to conservation activities is
difficult to determine, but estimates suggest the number in millions and it is

2
There exists no precise definition of the middle class in India but scholars like Ghanshyam
Shah (2004) place the middle class between labour and capital. It neither directly owns the
means of production that pumps out the surplus generated by wage labour power, nor does it,
by its own labour, produces the surplus which has use and exchange value.
clear that poor people pay a disproportionately high cost for conservation,
while receiving a few of its benefits (Veit and Benson, 2004).

Writing from the perspective of environmentalism of poor in India, Ramchandra

Guha (1997) argues that conservation biologists and other conservation groups,
particularly urban middle class, tourism lobby groups, forest departments,
ruling elites and conservation organisations like World Wide Fund for Nature and
World Conservation Union (IUCN), in their commitment to biocentrism and
wilderness preservation, have failed to recognise the importance and needs of
humans. The strategy and campaign of conservation groups in blaming the poor and
forest dwellers for forest degradation or killing of tigers is also problematic,
as they often blame the forest dwellers and tribals as primitive and passive,
failing to recognise the active role traditional ecological knowledge has played
in stable and effective forest management.

Other scholars point out that the concern for preserving the quality of
environment for enjoying a healthy environment comes from the middle class which
has no direct material interest in the environment. Their concern for
environment stems from the fact that people have a basic right to live in a
healthy environment, which they claim is non-negotiable and that it has to be
ensured through various policy initiatives including scientific and technical
measures. This perspective and the strategy of the middle class groups deviate
significantly from the issues employed by the dominant strand of
environmentalism that emphasizes the devolution of powers from the state to the
community for sustainable use of resources for livelihood. Such kind of
environmental activism has, however, been criticised by social scientists, most
notably by the environmental sociologist and writer Amita Bhaviskar (2011), who
sees closing down industries in the name of larger public interests as a
strategy of middle class society along with various state and non-state actors
including the Court, lawyers, bureaucrats and environmental activists to decide
how environmental values of the city should be priortised without recognising
the rights of workers and predominantly missing the point. Many studies have
pointed out that pollution in Delhi was controlled due to an active judiciary
and civil society organization led by the middle class, but Amita's fundamental
point about health conditions of workers and their basic rights to livelihood
ignored by the Court and thereby served the interests of the middle class
remains pertinent.

The above perspectives on Indian environmental protection and improvement

suggests that there are multiple concerns and reasons why people want to protect
environment and how it should be done. These perspectives influenced to a great
extent in the evolution of Indian environmental laws and regulation and also the
decisions of the Indian Supreme Court. For example, the National Forest Policy
of 1988 for the first time recognised the livelihood concerns of forest dwellers
in the conservation of forest in India. Similarly, the Environmental Impact
Notification of 1994 resulted after a long demand by environmental groups for
people's involvement in the clearance process. Likewise, the Indian Judiciary
expanded the meaning of right to life to include right to environment as part of
fundamental rights. The following section gives an overview of environmental
laws in India.

Evolution of Environmental Laws in India

Over the last three decades, the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) of
Government of India has enacted a number of environmental laws and also has
restructured the environmental regulation process to ensure successful
enforcement of environmental law in an effective manner. Across the country,
government agencies wield vast power to regulate industry, mines and other
polluters to ensure the effective implementation of environmental laws and
regulations. The process of environmental regulation which started effectively
in the early 1970s has subsequently become comprehensive and stronger, in part,
by the spate of fresh legislations passed after the Bhopal gas leak disaster of
December, 1984.3 They cover hitherto unregulated fields, such as noise,
vehicular emissions, hazardous waste, hazardous micro-organisms, the
transportation of toxic chemicals, coastal development and environmental impact
assessment. Equally significant, in the environmental regulation process is the
creation of a number of regulatory structures to implement these laws
effectively. The enactment of the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution)
Act, 1974 provided for the institutionalization of pollution control machinery
by establishing Boards for prevention and control of pollution of water. These
Boards were entitled to initiate proceedings against infringement of
environmental law, without waiting for the affected people to launch legal
action. The Water Cess Act, 1977, supplemented the Water Act by requiring
specified industries to pay cess on their water consumption. With the passing of
the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, the need was felt for
an integrated approach to pollution control. The Water Pollution Control Boards
were authorized to deal with air pollution as well, and became the Central
Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs).

In view of the Stockholm Conference on Human Environment and growing awareness

of the environmental crises in the country, India made an amendment to its
Constitution through incorporating direct provisions for protection of
environment. The Constitution (Forty-Second Amendment) Act, 1976 makes it a
fundamental duty to protect and improve the natural environment. Article 48-A
states “the state shall endeavour to protect and improve the environment and to
safeguard forests and wildlife of the country”. Corresponding to the obligation
imposed on the State, Article 51 A (g), which occurs in Part IVA of the
Constitution dealing with Fundamental Duties, assigns a duty to every citizen of
India. Article 51-A (g) states “it 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”. Therefore, the

3
For more details, see Sanjay Upadhyay and Videh Upadhyay (2002), ‘Handbook on
Environmental Law: Forest Laws, Wild Life Laws and the Environment’, Volume 1, New Delhi:
The LexisNexis Group of Companies.
Constitution makes the twin provisions. This includes directing the State to
protect and improve environment and expecting citizens to help in the
preservation of the natural environment (Bansal and Gupta, 1992).

Similarly, in 1985, the Department of Environment was changed to the Ministry of

Environment and Forests (MoEF) and given greater powers. The Environment
(Protection) Act, 1986 (EPA), was passed, to act as an umbrella legislation. The
Act also vested powers with the central government to take all measures to
control pollution and protect the environment. The Environment (Protection)
Rules, 1986 were subsequently notified to facilitate exercise of the powers
conferred on the Boards by the Act. The EPA identifies the MoEF as the apex
policy making body in the field of environment protection. The MoEF acts through
the CPCB and the SPCBs. The CPCB is a statutory organization and the nodal
agency for pollution control. The EPA in 1986 and the amendments to the Air and
Water Acts in 1987 and 1988 furthered the ambit of the Boards’ functions.4 Other
major enactments that have followed include: Air (Prevention and Control of
Pollution) Act, 1981 (the Air Act), Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 (EPA),
the Manufacture, Storage and Import of Hazardous Chemical Rules 1989, Hazardous
waste (Management and Handling) Rules 1989, the Manufacture, Use, Import, Export
and Storage of hazardous Micro-organisms/ Genetically Engineered Organisms or
Cells Rules 1989, the Chemical Accidents (Emergency Planning, Preparedness, and
Response) Rule 1996, Biomedical Waste (Management and Handling) Rules 1998, the
Municipal Solid wastes (Management & Handling) Rules 2000, Recycled Plastic
Manufacture and Usage Rules 1999, Ozone Depleting Substances (Regulation and
Control) Rules 2000, the Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules 2000,
Batteries (management and Handling) Rules 2001, the Public Liability Insurance
Act 1991, National Environmental Tribunal Act 1995, the National Environment
Appellate Authority Act 1997, Biodiversity Protection Act 2002, National

4
For more details, see Sanjay Upadhyay and Videh Upadhyay (2002), ‘Handbook on
Environmental Law: Forest Laws, Wild Life Laws and the Environment’, Volume 1, New Delhi: The
LexisNexis Group of Companies.
Environmental Policy 2006 and National Green Tribunal Act , 2010.5 In this way,
India has enacted a wide range of regulatory instruments for preserving and
protecting its natural resources. Prior to 1970s, pollution and environmental
degradation had been addressed very generally in terms of nuisance, negligence,
liability, and a few principles of tort law (Curmally, 2002). At present, there
are stated to be over two hundred Central and State statutes having at least
some concern for environmental protection, either directly or indirectly. Many
of these Acts and Constitutional provisions attempt to provide effective
solutions through different institutional mechanisms for dealing with
environmental problems and preventing the degradation of environment. Apart from
the measures of command and control embodied in the above Acts and Rules, the
Government of India has, time to time, offered many economic incentives for
units endeavouring to control pollution. The scheme of ECO-Mark, introduced in
1991, operates on a notional basis and provides accreditation and labelling for
products, which satisfy certain environmental criteria along with quality
requirements of the Indian Standards. Other incentives include rebate offered on
water cess to units implementing pollution control measures and meeting the
standards, investment allowance to the actual cost of the new machinery or plant
which assists in controlling pollution, exemptions in indirect taxes, income
tax, etc.

However, a plethora of such enactments and Constitutional provisions has not

resulted in preventing environmental degradation in the country. The last three
decades have witnessed a rapid degradation of the environment. The enactment of
a number of laws both by the Central and State governments relating to
environment has not made much headway in controlling the depletion process and
the laws, by and large, remain unenforced or mismanaged. Further, despite the
existence of a national environmental policy, the constitutional mandate of
environmental protection, a flurry of legislations and administrative

5
The detailed provisions of all these environmental laws and policies are available at
http://www.moef.nic.in/
infrastructure for implementation, the problem of environmental degradation
continues to remain a great concern in India and in fact has intensified over
the years. An analysis of the impact of environmental laws at the implementation
level suggests that the implementing agencies have adopted a soft attitude
towards polluting industries and have done little more than issuing warnings.6
The reasons underlying this state of affairs appear varied and complex, however,
one major factor seems to be the ineffective implementation of the laws
concerned. A number of academic studies have documented environmental compliance
problems and challenges in India. These include: Compliance to Environmental
Regulations: The Indian Context (Keren Priyadarshini & Omprakash K. Gupta,
2003); Environmental Compliance and Enforcement in India: Rapid Assessment
(OECD, 2006); Environmental Governance and Regulation in India (Atiyah Curmally,
2002), Environment Protection: Role of Regulatory System in India (P M Prasad,
2006); Evaluation of Central Pollution Control Board (Indian Institute of
Management, Lucknow (2002); and Turn Around: Reform Agenda for India's
Environmental Regulators (Centre for Sceince and Environment, 2009). The
functioning of SPCBs has also been reviewed by four committees / study groups
viz. (1) Bhattacharya Committee, 1984; (2) Belliappa Committee, 1990; (3) the
Administrative Staff College of India Study of 1994; and (4) Sub-Group, 1994.
These studies have primarily been done at the instance of SPCBs / CPCBs. They
highlighted, inter-alia, the need for adequate financial backing and appointing
powers to the Boards, revising the categorisation of industries, use of economic
incentives, enhancement of awareness generation among the general public.

Environmental Protection and Role of the Indian Judiciary

The Indian Judiciary has played a significant role in the protection and
improvement of environment by recognizing the right to a healthy environment as
part of the fundamental right to life, directing polluters to follow the

6
For more details, see Geetanjoy Sahu (2010), Implementation of Environmental Judgments
in Context: A Comparative Analysis of Dahanu Thermal Power Plant Pollution Case in Maharashtra
and Vellore Leather Industrial Pollution Case in Tamil Nadu, Law, Environment and Development
(LEAD), International Environmental Legal Research Centre, London, December.
environmental norms and regulations, ordering the implementing agencies to
discharge their constitutional duties in terms of protecting and improving the
environment, determining the quantum of compensation for the pollution affected
people, taking suo moto action against the polluter, entertaining petitions on
behalf of the affected party and inanimate objects, expanding the sphere of
litigation, introducing environmental principles such as polluters pay
principle, precautionary principle, absolute liability and public trust doctrine
for environmental safety and protection as well as the well-being of people.7

The role of Indian Judiciary in environmental protection raises a question as to

why there is a need for judicial intervention in resolving disputes related to
environmental problems. The reasons underlying this state of affairs appear
varied and complex, however, one major factor seems to be the ineffective
implementation of the laws concerned. Many legal and social science scholars
widely agree that there is governance deficit in the field of environmental
protection and improvement. This has prompted environmentalists and the people,
as well as non-governmental organizations, to approach the Courts, particularly
the higher judiciary, for seeking suitable remedies. Interestingly, the
judiciary has responded in a pro-active manner to deal with these different
environmental problems. While conventionally the executive and the legislature
play a major role in governance, the Indian experience, particularly in the
context of environmental governance, is that the judiciary has begun to play a
very important role in the environmental governance process. The increasing
intervention of the judiciary in terms of resolving environmental disputes has
led to the emergence of a new phenomenon - Courts of Law in India, as perhaps,
the sole dispenser of environmental justice.

Through its intervention, the Supreme Court has emphasized the importance of the
preservation of natural resources for multiple purposes while also observing

7
For more details, see Geetanjoy Sahu (2008), Implications of Indian Supreme Court’s
Innovations for Environmental Jurisprudence, Law, Environment and Development (LEAD),
International Environmental Legal Research Centre, London, Vol.4, No. 1
that the increasing destruction and degradation of natural resources would pose
a serious threat to future generations. The Supreme Court has noticed that those
national and state agencies responsible for environmental protection and its
improvement have largely failed in their duties. In view of the national and
state governments’ inaction, the Supreme Court’s unusual assumption of
legislative and executive powers seems to be justified, especially in the
context of India’s increasing environmental problems. In many ways, the Supreme
Court’s aggressive stance towards environmental protection has had some
positive effects. India already has had environmental laws in place to protect
environment from different activities, but due to several reasons including the
failure of implementing agencies, sub-competence, insufficient staffing,
political interference and corruption, the executive branch and its underlying
agencies like the MoEF and regulatory bodies like Pollution Control Boards have
been prevented not only from enforcing policies but also adapting them to
India’s changing environmental needs. Hence, the Supreme Court’s increasing
intervention and its assumption of a wide range of powers has possibly reversed
two ecologically dangerous trends: an ineffective government and deterioration
of natural resources. Although its hastiness has caused many predictable and
perhaps avoidable effects, these efforts have, in many ways, benefited India’s
environment and thereby giving the civil society and environmental advocacy
groups a renewed opportunity to fight for protecting and improving the
environment in India.

Emerging Trends: The Role of National Green Tribunal

In view of the criticisms made against the increasing role of the judiciary in
environmental matters sidelining the current environmental structures and
regulatory bodies and also the Court's own expression to set up an independent
environmental court in the country, the Government of India has enacted the
National Green Tribunal Act of 2010 to specifically deal with environmental
litigation. The Green Tribunals, especially the National Green Tribunal
functioning from Delhi, has been given enormous power and also consists of
multi-disciplinary background experts to deal with environmental litigation. The
National Green Tribunal consisting of judicial and scientific experts is
considered one of the long awaited requirements to deal with a flurry of
environmental litigations across the country. The inclusion of different experts
to deal with different aspects of environmental problems on the National Green
Tribunal will undoubtedly go beyond the cost-benefit consideration of a project
or a production unit in addition to serving several long-term interests of the
environment and development.

The setting up of the Green Tribunal can help petitioners bring local
environmental problems to the notice of the Tribunal at a little cost, while
questioning the environmental impacts of government decisions. The new Green
Tribunal has been empowered to adjudicate disputes relating to environmental
protection. The Green Tribunal has the power to declare as illegal and invalid
any administrative action that contravenes or undermines environmental laws.
Also, the Green Tribunal is empowered to review orders passed under all the
environment protection laws, including those that cover water, air, forests and
wildlife. No other court or authority can entertain any application, claim or
action that can be dealt with by the Tribunal. This would make government
departments more cautious in clearing projects with potential environmental
impacts.

An analysis of its role over the last four years suggests that the National
Green Tribunal has been very active and progressive in its approach towards
environmental protection in general and rights of marginalized people in
particular. The National Green Tribunal has not only come down heavily against
micro structures but has also shown its teeth against big corporate sectors and
against both State and Central Government for not following environmental rules
and regulations. For example, in the Jeet Singh Kanwar and Vinod Kumar Pandey v.
Union of India and Others, the petitioners challenged the environmental
clearance given to the proposal for installation and operation of a Power Plant
proposed by M/s. Dheeru Powergen Private Limited. It was argued by the
petitioners that the mandate of various guidelines in Public Consultation
Process set out, vide EIA Notification dated 14.09.2006 issued by the MoEF, have
not been complied with and even flouted while granting the EC. The Executive
Summary of EIA Report in vernacular language as well as the full EIA Report were
not made available thirty (30) days prior to the scheduled date of public
hearing. The National Green Tribunal observed that by applying precautionary
principle, the environment clearance should not have been granted by the MoEF
and also emphasised that the economic interest shall be put in the backseat when
it is found that degradation of the environment would be long lasting and
excessive. The Court, further, pointed out that the impugned order of the MoEF,
granting EC to set up the coal-based Thermal Power Plant as sought by the
Project Proponent is illegal and liable to be quashed.8

It is, however, important that the government of India lay down certain
guidelines for the effective exercise of powers by the National Green Tribunal
while dealing with environmental litigations. The decisions of the National
Green Tribunal and expert groups should be respected and implemented by all
other departments in an effective manner. If this happens, the National Green
Tribunal’s role will benefit India’s long term environmental regulation
prospects. There should also be stringent guidelines in place for the
appointment of expert members to the Green Tribunal based on the suggestions of
different environmental groups, legal experts, judges, and academics. The entire
process should not be carried out under a veil of secrecy and also it is
necessary to ensure that it is amenable to public scrutiny and review by
judicial bodies preferably experts from different sections including scientists,
technicians, judge and NGOs.

8
For more details, see Jeet Singh Kanwar and Vinod Kumar Pandey v. Union of India and Others, Appeal
No. 10/2011 (T), 16TH APRIL, 2013
Conclusion
The above discussion suggests that there is no dearth of environmental laws and
also how over the years, environmental laws in India changed from centralisation
of resource management to involvement of people in the use and management of
resources. However, due to increasing conflicts over the use and management of
resources and the failure of state agencies has led to intervention of the Court
in resolving environmental problems. This has resulted in expanding and
recognising various socio-cultural and economic aspects of people in the
protection and management of environment. Also, the process of environmental
regulation has been closely scrutinised today by civil society groups who play a
major role in ensuring the ineffective implementation of law. Nevertheless,
there are a number of challenges which the current environmental regime in India
faces. These challenges include lack of strong financial, human and technical
resources of pollution control boards at the state level and the increasing
interference of state governments in the affairs of state pollution control
board are the dominant factors of non-implementation of environmental laws at
the implementation level. The most important challenge however is going to be
how to sustain and empower the environmental regulatory authorities in the ear
of deregulation.
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Environmental Protection- An Assessment’, in P. Diwan & P. Diwan eds.
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Constitutional
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Krishna, S (1996), ‘Environmental Politics’, New Delhi: Sage Publications

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Delhi

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Governance”, New Delhi: Oxford University Press
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Diversity Matters: Preservation versus Sustainable Use in India’, Conservation
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Economic and Political Weekly April 1, 2006, p.1728

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--------------------(2010), Implementation of Environmental Judgments in

Context: A Comparative Analysis of Dahanu Thermal Power Plant Pollution Case in
Maharashtra and Vellore Leather Industrial Pollution Case in Tamil Nadu, Law,
Environment and Development (LEAD), International Environmental Legal Research
Centre, London, December.

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 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Development and Ecology: Part 2 Mining

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Mining, MCDR, EIA, EMP, Ecology

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary In this module, we will discuss the ecological impacts of mining

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Investigator
Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content R. Sreedhar
Writer/Author (CW)
Content Reviewer
(CR)
Language Editor
(LE)
Mining in India

India is endowed with huge resources of many metallic and non-metallic minerals. Since
independence in 1947, there has been a rapid growth in the mineral production both in
terms of quantity and value. Currently, India produces as many as 87 minerals, which include
4 fuel, 10 metallic, 47 non-metallic, 3 atomic and 23 minor minerals (including building and
other materials).

The mining activities are extremely poorly regulated. As early as 1948, the founding fathers
of the constitution realized this need for proper regulation. During the Constitutional
debates, they said, “Industrialisation has brought in its wake an ever-increasing demand for
mineral resources. These resources are non-replenishable and mostly scarce. Proper control
over regulation and development of mines and minerals is therefore, a matter of national
concern.i” Today over 80,000 mines operate illegally as against nearly 10,000 legitimate
leases. Only a third of the legal mines actually report to the Indian Bureau of Mines, the
regulator and only a tenth of them is inspected.

The concerns of ecological damage and environmental impacts and the consequent effects
on people are therefore receiving less attention than it deserves. The Ministry of Statistics
and Plan Implementation (MOSPI) states that, “Mining, unless properly regulated, can have
adverse environmental and social consequences. On the one hand, mining disturbs the soil,
water and ecological regimes and on the other hand, unless accompanied by proactive
measures to promote inclusiveness through social education, health and other
interventions, it can lead to alienation of the local population and assume socially
unacceptable dimensions. Issues of Technology for zero waste or low waste mining, relief &
rehabilitation, mine closure which otherwise leads to land degradation are important issues
which require continuous attentionii.”

Typically mining takes place either by digging through the surface or by digging under the
surface and are called open-cast mining and underground mining respectively. While
underground mining does not show visible signature of destruction of land, but eventually
the area is affected either because of subsidence or the area getting parched for not being
able to retain the moisture. Thus, mining is one of the most destructive of human economic
activities. Therefore it is often called a “surgery of mother earth” to remove materials for
human use. We will only highlight the biophysical impacts of mining in this module.
Mining and Impact on Land
Mining devours a large area of land. The total area under mining and abandoned after
mining is exactly not known. The total land under mining is estimated to be greater than
1.30 million hectares. Land under coal mining and abandoned coal mines alone is around
0.36 million hectaresiii.

The impact of mining on land is not restricted to the mining lease are alone. The amount of
land affected depends on the topography, the quality of the mineral and the depth at which
the mineral is available.

The amount of material to be removed before reaching the mineral is called the
“overburden”. More the overburden more land is required for dumping this material. Coal
occurs in layers called “coal-seam” in between other sedimentary rocks such as sandstone
and shale. Often several hundred meters of rocks are to be removed before reaching a coal-
seam and after mining every seam, again the intervening rocks have to be removed. The
proportion of coal to overburden can be as high as 1:5 but in general it is never below 1:2.
This means that land is required to store the waste materials which will be twice as much as
the coal we mine and upto five times. This requires a large area of land as the dumping of
these materials has to be scientific and in low angles that will not allow it to slide and affect
adjoin areas. In several cases this is over twice the area involved in mining. If the region of
mining has an undulating topography with steep slopes more area will be required for
storing the overburden materials.

The quality of the mineral found also impacts the land area required. In we have a poor
quality of mineral the amount of material required to be mined will be higher. Again if we
look at the example of coal, most Indian coal deposits have 30-40 percent of non-coal
material along with it. So when the coal is burnt in a thermal power plant to produce
electricity we are left with 30-40 percent of the material used as ash. We once again need
more land to dump this ash. Over the life-time of a thermal power plant, ash dumps require
more land than the actual plant itself.

The amount of materials mined for securing small quantities of metals is generally not
understood by common people. For example to get one tonne of aluminium nearly 6 tonnes
of rock has to be mined.

In case of precious metals the ratios are staggering. A gold ring weighing 5 grams would have
required mining of nearly 6-8 tonne of rock. In case of diamond it is still higher. It is for this
reason that these metals are expensive. Uranium mining for instance requires almost 30
tonnes for a gram. This means that we require large land areas to place these waste
materials.

Average Viable Quantity to Mine As we go into the future, many of our shallow
Decade Grams/Tonne deposits would have been used and we would
1881-1900 47.50 need to dig deeper and also use poorer
1901-1910 28.00 quality of deposits to meet our needs.
1911-1920 18.19
1921-1930 19.60
If we look at gold mining over the past we find
1931-1940 15.40
that in the last century the amount of gold
1941-1950 12.43
1951-1960 7.15 required for mining profitably has dropped
1961-1970 5.35 significantly and proportionately the amount
1971-1980 7.38 of overburden and waste generated has
1981-1990 3.50 increased many times over.
1991-2000 2.20
2001-2010 1.80
The land area required is one aspect but the
Compiled by Environics Trust from various sources, 2014
quality and type of land being used for mining
and dumping of overburden and waste adds another dimension to the impact on land.

Mining alters the topography of the land and along with the manner in which the
overburden is dumped completely changes the initial contours. This has impact on the local
slopes and alters the drainage pattern in the area. We will look at the impacts it has on
water in a later section. If mining takes place in forested areas, agricultural lands and
common lands of people the impacts are not limited to just losing the land area.

Mining and Impact on Forests and Agricultural Lands

It is estimated that over 164,000 hectares of forests have already been lost to mining
activities. Considering the fact that in future we will be mining in the last of the original
forests the impact is going to be larger and far reaching.

The forests not only completely disappear because of mining, but with the initiation of
mining in a densely forested area the quality of the forest are also degraded. The forest
cover density reduces and because of the various activities going in the area the forests are
fragmented.
The Bellary district in Karnataka which has become infamous for its iron ore mining has
suffered severe loss of agricultural land in the last decade. Between 2005-2010 nearly 43000
hectares of agricultural land was lost due to mining including some irrigated lands.

Dr Patra Himansu Sekhar and Sethy Kabir Mohantiv of the Department of Geography of the
Utkal University undertook a study to understand the impact on forests because of iron ore
mining in Keonjhar through comparison of Satellite images of three periods - 1990, 2000 and
2012 provided insights regarding the changes in land use pattern especially in the forest land
during these years.

The results of land use / land cover assessment were based on visual interpretation from
satellite data. The land coming under forest refers to land with a tree canopy cover of more
than 10 percent and area of more than 0.5 ha. Forests are determined both by the presence
of trees and the absence of other predominant land uses within the notified forest
boundaries. Forest was classified into three categories on the basis of crown density viz;
dense, open and degraded. After observation of percent change analysis, it was found that
maximum deforestation occurred in the vicinity of iron ore mining areas.

The dense forests exhibit crown density of more than 40%. Periodic analysis of dense forest
shows that it covered an area of 5255.18 Ha (16.70 % of the total area) during 1990, 3123.67
ha (9.93 % of the total area) during 2000 and 1527.51 ha (4.85 % of total area) during 2012.
Dense forest shows a decrease of 40.56 % in area during 1990 to 2000 while this decreased
by 51.09%, between 2000-2012. It has been found out that most of the iron ore mining
activities are taking place in the vicinity of dense forests because most of the iron resources
are located with the hilly terrain covered with forest.

Therefore, decrease in the area of dense forests is attributed to the removal of trees to
initiate iron mining activities and development of mining infrastructure. Open forest exhibit
crown density in between 40% to 10%. It is easily identified on FCC image by its light red -
pinkish colour, smooth - medium texture, contiguous to non contiguous pattern with
irregular outline. Open forest covered an area of 3567.89 ha (11.34 % of total study area) in
1990, 5673.44 ha (18.03 %) in 2000 and 7430.88 Ha (23.62%) in 2012. Open forests exhibit
overall increasing pattern by 59.01 % during 1990 to 2000 and 30.97% during 2000 to 2012.
Similarly area under forest plantation category was found at 256.24 ha (.81% of total area)
during 1990, which was reduced to 202 ha (0.64%) in 2000 and 179.17 (0.56%) during 2012.
The land coming under land with shrub was 2707.24 Ha (8.60%) in 1990, 3808.63 (12.10%)
during 2000 and 5810.32 (18.47%) during 2012.

This shows that it is not only the forest area that is lost for mining but the quality of forests is
deteriorated when mining activity begins in an area with dense forests. It is estimated that
over ten thousand hectares of forests would have been affected so far by iron ore, chromite
and manganese mining in Keonjhar District alone.

The second example is from a study undertaken by Dr Mukesh from the Indian Instiute of
Remote Sensing in Chhattisgarh. His assessment includes how not only forest areas are
affected but adjoining agricultural lands are also severely affected. He found through his
analysis of the Manendragarh area around 18.54% of the forest has been converted to
barren lands followed by around 43.81% as degraded forest. The forest immediate near to
the mining has been totally converted to non forest. However, a trend of impact of mining
could be seen as gradient in the southern and northeastern side. The forest type is
predominantly sal and sal mixed which harbours most the medicinal and rich species in the
state. In the region very less area has been converted to agriculture, which could be help in
concluding that major of the changes are due to mining activity. Further he found around
85.75 % of agriculture area has been totally changed to barren where as very least affected
area is 13.30% of total agriculture.

While it is very difficult to assess the quantum of agricultural land involved in the total land
degradation a sample survey undertaken by Sribas Goswamiv and his colleague in the
Raniganj coalfield indicates that agricultural land has generally been 18-55 percent of land
degraded in a project. The quantum of agricultural land involved increases with mining
entering into a relatively new area, whereas when the project is on an area where mining
activities are already in full swing, the quantum of agricultural land involved may be smaller.
A reasonable estimate may be that 35-40 percent of the total land involved may be
agricultural land, which means around 10,000 ha of agricultural land involves in the Raniganj
coalfield during the process of mining upto 2012.

Dr Nitish Priyadarshi who has been studying the impacts of mining in Jharkhand over
decades points out that “Feeding minerals to meet the nation’s insatiable appetite has taken
its toll on the state- rampant mining for decades has turned large tracts of forests into
wastelands. During the 80’s, coal companies acquired thousands of hectares of forests in
Jharkhand for mining operation in Damodar valley. In Singhbhum district a similar
devastation of forest lands happened for extracting iron ore. According to the Forest Survey
of India’s State of Forest Report, during an assessment published in 1997, Jharkhand had 2.6
million ha of forest. In 1999, it had 2.2 million ha, a loss of 0.4 million ha of forest cover. The
forest cover in the Damodar valley coalfield, once 65 per cent, stands at only 0.05 per cent
today.

Saranda, once so dense that even the sun’s rays couldn’t penetrate it, has Asia’s largest Sal
(Shorea robusta) forests and is an important elephant habitat. Today, uncontrolled mining
for iron ore, both legal and illegal, is destroying not just the forest, but also the wildlife, apart
from the livelihoods of the local tribal communities. The impact on the forests has been
significant. According to the state of forest reports, between 1997 and 1999, about 3,200 ha
of forest were lost in the Singhbhum region. Between 2001 and 2003 some 7,900 ha of
dense forests were lost in the East and West Singhbhum districts. Saranda too has been
affected, and further degradation will have serious consequences for its considerable
biodiversityvi.”
 Impact on Water
Impacts of Mining on Water
Open cast mining/quarrying /excavation not intersecting ground water The impacts of mining on
table water occur from small scale
Affecting natural surface water regime quarrying to deep
Affecting ground water recharge regime underground mining and in
the new areas of Coal Bed
Open cast mining/excavation intersecting ground water table
Methane extraction and
Pumping of ground water
proposed Underground Coal
Declining of water table
Gasification. Mining and
Affecting natural surface water regime allied industries are major
Affecting ground water recharge regime guzzlers of water and biggest
Affecting natural springs destroyers of natural storage
Underground mining capacity and the most
Affecting ground water recharge regime important cause for
Shallow aquifers deterioration of water
Deep aquifers
quality. The future of water
resources is seriously at
Affecting ground water flow direction
stake.
Affecting ground water recharge
CBM/ Underground Coal Gasification
In an analysis of a cross-
Ground water resource/potentials-drying of upper aquifers section of 123 mining
projects which were granted environmental Water Forfeited to Mining from a part of Clearances
clearance by the Ministry of Environment Granted in 2007 (123 MINES)
136305970
and Forests in 2007, a startling 136 Million Total Water Required (L)
per day 136MLD
Litres Per Day has been forfeited for Mining
ML per yr 40800
that could serve the entire country for a MillionPersons@40lpcd 1020
day at the official rural norms for supply. If
we were to extrapolate to all the mines in the country, water forfeited to mining operations
each year would be atleast a week’s national actual consumption.

Considering that this is only consumption for mining operations, if we calculate the needs
for downstream beneficiation and industries and at the permanent loss of aquifer storages,
natural drainage systems and water rendered unusable by downstream pollution, the
damage is colossal.

It is clear that intersection of water table by the mining industries must be considered
seriously as in several places the major resources lies beneath the water table. The
breaching of the ground water table must be subject to stricter regulation as the very basis
of survival of the local communities is sacrificed at this stage. Merely to say that the mine
water is put to “gainful” use can lead to unsustainable management of the aquifer. While
this may include several uses such as water supply to adjacent area, utilization for dust
suppression by the industry, utilization by the mining industry for its different purposes,
supplying to local communities, to water supply agencies, utilization for artificial recharge
etc, it will be tantamount to mining water.

Water is used in coalmines for several functions including washing, spraying, in tailing -ponds
and for coal preparation. This can cause a conflict with other water users and environmental
requirement. Mines can dewater groundwater aquifers some distance from shafts or pits,
which reduce the water table in the area adversely affecting other activities including
agriculture. The major source of water pollution due to mining include pumped out mine
water, spent water from coal handling plants, dust extraction and dust suppression systems,
wash offs from overburden dumps, workshops and domestic effluents and effluents from
washery. Chronic leaks from waste dumps or direct disposal of waste in the water bodies
result in severe pollution of ground and surface water. Water pollution can affect the area
even after the closure of the mine if the pits are not filled properly. Water in contact with
the left over coal in the pits becomes toxic and unfit for any use. Also run off from
abandoned waste dumps and pits, becomes acidic resulting in soil erosion, and
contamination in the water bodies. Several examples of such pervasive impacts are seen in
coalfields of Jharkhand, Orissa, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh,
Maharashtra and Andhra Pradeshvii.

In East Parej Open Cast Coal Mines operated by Coal India’s Central Coalfields Limited, which
had the distinction of receiving World Bank Funds for Environmental and Social Mitigation,
the land which used to be an agriculture land providing income and livelihood to people is
now turned into a huge pile of dumps and pit holes. Such unkempt dumping without any
proper topsoil conservation plan and regeneration action plan, leads to greater devastation
of surrounding areas. Along with destroying the scenic beauty of the area, these huge piles
of dump are destroying the regeneration capacity of Parej. The Environmental Management
Plan has a provision of providing guarding sump around the over burden dump, so that any
accumulation in these guarding sump can check waste or soil erosion from these dumps. In
reality, CCL has not invested money or attention on these aspect. Mine waste collected
during overburden removal is simply strewn and allowed to seep into underground water
aquifers. Since mining started in the region, malaria incidence has increased. Water
resources in the region and wells provided to PAPs in Pindra and Premnagar blocks are found
to be highly contaminated and unhygienic for drinking, and scarcity has aggravated the
problem for them. People in Parej are left with no other option but to use these
contaminated and unhygienic water sources for drinking and water collected in mine pits for
bathing, resulting in higher rate of skin diseases in the region. Mining operations in the
region, apart from affecting the general surface structure of the region by means of huge
overburden dumps and pit holes like lunar craters, is also disturbing the underground as well
as stream flow in the region. This disturbance results into collection of water in mine sump
or pit holes created by abandoned open cast mines instead of flowing into natural ponds or
streams

Fortunately many of the coal deposits are not associated with pyrite and acid mine drainage
is not a severe problem. However, there are a few mines with acid mine drainage problems,
a significant example being the coal mines in Meghalaya. The Jaintia Hills District of
Meghalaya is a major coal producing area with an estimated coal reserve of about 40 million
tonnes. Sutnga, Lakadong, Musiang-Lamare, Khliehriat, Loksi, Ladrymbai, Rymbai, Byrwai,
Chyrmang, Bapung, Jarain, Shkentalang, Lumshnong, Sakynphor are the main coal bearing
areas of the District. The coal, in the area is found imbedded in sedimentary rocks,
sandstones and shale of the Eocene age. The three coal seams vary from 30 to 212 cm in
thickness. The main characteristics of the coal found in Jaintia Hills are its low ash content,
high volatile matter, high calorific value and comparatively high sulphur content. Large scale
denudation of forest cover, scarcity of water, pollution of air, water and soil and degradation
of agricultural lands are some of the conspicuous environmental implications of coal mining.
Besides, caving in of the ground and subsidence of land and haphazard dumping of coal and
overburden has deteriorated the aesthetic beauty of the landscape. The water in coal mining
areas has been found highly acidic. The pH of streams and rivers varies between 2.31 to
4.01. This indicates serious condition of the water bodies of the area that hardly can support
any aquatic life such as fish, amphibians and insects. Contamination of Acid Mine Drainage
(AMD) leads to acidity or low pH of the affected water bodies. Acidic water is a matter of
primary concern since it can directly be injurious to aquatic organisms. It also facilitates
leaching of toxic metals into the water that could be hazardous to aquatic life, directly or can
disturb the habitat after precipitation. Most of the water bodies in the coal mining area of
Jaintia Hills have been found containing high concentration of various metals. Many metals,
though common, can be toxic to fish and other aquatic organisms thus reducing the overall
fish population. Besides, water was also found turbid and coloured due to suspended
precipitates of iron hydroxides. Silt, fine sand, mud, coal dust and similar materials form a
covering over the bottom and disrupt the benthic habitat. In addition they reduce the
availability of oxygen and light for aquatic life. Dissolved oxygen is essential for sustaining
higher life forms in water. It is an important parameter to assess water quality. Dissolved
oxygen was found to be low in water bodies of coal mining areas, the lowest being 4.24
mg/L in river Rawaka and stream Metyngka of Rymbai.viii

Impact on Air Quality

Surface coal mining creates more air pollution problems with respect to dust than
underground mining. An investigation was conducted by Prof Ghose and Dr Majeeix to
evaluate the characteristics of the airborne dust created by surface coal mining in the Jharia
Coalfield. Work zone air quality monitoring was conducted at six locations, and ambient air
quality monitoring was conducted at five locations, for a period of 1 year. Total suspended
particulate matter (TSP) concentration was found to be as high as 3,723 microg/m(3),
respirable particulate matter (PM10) 780 microg/m(3), and benzene soluble matter was up
to 32% in TSP in work zone air. In ambient air, the average maximum level of TSP was 837
microg/m(3), PM10 170 microg/m(3) and benzene soluble matter was up to 30%. Particle
size analysis of TSP revealed that they were more respirable in nature and the median
diameter was around 20 micron. Work zone air was found to have higher levels of TSP, PM10
and benzene soluble materials than ambient air. They concluded that more stringent air
quality standards should be adopted for coal mining areas and due consideration should be
given on particle size distribution of the air-borne dust while designing control equipment.

The Comptroller and Auditor General while evaluating the environmental situation in the
iron ore mining area in Bellary found respiratory diseases have dramatically increased
because of poor air quality. The problem with air quality in small stone quarries and crushers
used for building materials has become a huge problem with a large number of workers
suffering from the deadly disease of silicosis.

Brief Conclusion

The mining activities in India are causing severe ecological degradation and affecting health
of workers and people around the mining areas. Unless stringent regulations are
implemented, the damage will be irreversible. The ecosystems have only certain levels of
resilience and when stretched beyond this, they cannot recover.

i
Mining Matters – Environics Trust, 2012
ii
http://mospi.nic.in/Mospi_New/upload/SYB2014/CH-15-MINING/Mining.pdf
iii
Looking Back to Look Ahead: Green India 2047 edited by R.K Pachauri & P.V.Sridharan
iv
Journal of Environmental Research And Development Vol. 9 No. 01, July-September 2014
v
International Research Journal of Geology and Mining (IRJGM) (2276-6618) Vol. 4(6) pp. 154-162, September,
2014
vi
http://nitishpriyadarshi.blogspot.in/2012/05/effects-of-mining-on-environment-in.html
vii Environics Trust, Water in Mining Areas, 2008
viii Sumarlin Swer & Singh O.P:Proceedings of the National Seminar on Environmental Engineering with special
emphasis on Mining Environment, NSEEME-2004, 19-20, March 2004; Eds. Indra N. Sinha, Mrinal K. Ghose &
Gurdeep Singh
ix
Journal of Scientific and Industrial Research, Volume 62, September, 2003
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Development and Ecology Part III: Coastal Ecology

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords CRZ, CZM, mangroves

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary This module will describe India’s coastal ecology, the factors posing a threat
to this ecology, and the history of policy and legislative efforts to define and
protect this zone.

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Aparna Sundar Azim Premji University

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Language Editor (LE) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

1
 Coastal Ecology
“Between the low water and the flotsam and jetsam of the high-tide mark, land and sea wage a never-
ending conflict for possession.”(Rachel Carson, in “Undersea” Atlantic Monthly September 1947, cited in
McKay 2008)
Introduction
Rachel Carson’s words suggest to us the fundamentally changeable and unstable nature of coastal
ecology. In recent decades, this instability has been further compounded by the effects of climate
change. Meanwhile, the conflict for possession is no longer just between land and sea, but has been
joined by a range of development actors hungry for space and resources. This module will describe
India’s coastal ecology, the factors posing a threat to this ecology, and the history of policy and
legislative efforts to define and protect this zone.
Landscapes, seascapes, and resources
India’s 7500 km long coastline contains a diversity of geomorphological features, ecosystems, and living
and non-living resources. There are also human communities which have adapted to these systems and
resources and depend upon them in various ways for their livelihoods, primary among these being the
fishing communities. This section (drawn largely from MoEF 2005) will describe these features and
resources as well as the activities putting pressure on them or damaging them.
Let us start with getting a sense of the various land and seascapes, i.e., the geomorphological features of
the coastline, keeping in mind their inherent changeability. These include beaches, sand dunes, earth
and rock cliffs, the rocky foreshore, estuaries, lagoons, lakes, mudbanks, mudflats, deltas, salt marshes,
barrier islands, and islands.
Beaches are the geomorphic form most popularly associated with the coastline. The shape and size of
beaches varies with deposits and accretion of sand. The 2004 tsunami changed the size and shape of
many of the beaches on the south-east coast. Beaches are used by fishing communities for activities
related to fishing such as storing craft and drying fish; they are also prime tourist attractions. Beach sand
is often taken illegally as construction aggregate; in some areas, it is mined for rare minerals, and in
others it is dredged for purposes of harbours etc. Alongside or close to beaches one may find another
distinct form, the sand dune. This may be vegetated or without vegetation, and has several benefits. It
can act as a protection for supply and recharge of fresh water aquifers in coastal areas, as a habitat for
plants and animals, and protect the coast from tidal surges and large waves, including tsunami waves.
Like beaches, sand dunes may be destroyed by mining or by leveling for purposes of construction,
including for roads, railways and tourism facilities. Not all parts of the coastline are sandy. Instead, there
may occur earth cliffs, or rocky cliffs, and rocky foreshores where the coastal region is mountainous, or
at least rugged. These are important as for aesthetic purposes as well as for protecting coastal
habitation and construction.
Mudflats, also called tidal flats, are formed by the sedimentation of organic and inorganic matter and
are found in sheltered parts of the coastline. They are the feeding grounds of migratory birds and also
help to control floods and stabilize the coast. As distinct from mudflats are the more transient
mudbanks, which are accumulations of sediment which form close to the shore yearly along the west
coast of southern India soon after the arrival of the southwest monsoon in late May / June. They help to
dampen waves and provide a calmer space within which to fish during the rough monsoon season. They
are also biologically fertile and have an abundance of organic matter which makes them attractive to
fish which feed on them, but they can erode the coast as they form and disappear.

2
In addition to various formations created by sand, mud, or rock, one may see various types of water
bodies, as well as land forms shaped or drained by water. An estuary is a semi-enclosed body of water
or a channel which connects the ocean and the river, thus containing sea water diluted with fresh water.
There are some 100 estuaries along India’s coast, most of them, and the larger ones, being on the east
coast (Sagar). The extent of flow in the estuaries is determined by the tidal cycle and range, so that the
water in them may be variably more saline or fresh. These waters are highly productive because the
habitat is sheltered but receives a constant supply of nutrients. They nurture mangroves and sea
grasses, as well as clams and mussels and other molluscs. They help to flush away pollutants, control the
salinity of groundwater, and absorb floods and wave energy. But estuaries are increasingly being
damaged due to reclamation, urban and industrial effluent, reduction in fresh water discharge due to
dams, and dredging for water ways. Lagoons are another type of coastal water body. They are shallow
bodies of brackish water or sea water partially separate from the adjacent sea by barriers of sand or
shingle. Coastal lagoons are usually found on low-lying coasts. Many of their uses, as well as the factors
affecting them, are similar to estuaries. The series of connected lagoons along the coast of Kerala are
densely populated on their islands, and are also a highly scenic tourist route.
Deltas are formed where riverine and marine systems meet. Among the best known are the Hooghly
delta at the mouth of the Ganges, and the Cauvery delta near Thanjavur in Tamil Nadu. Deltas have
highly fertile soil and are densely settled for purposes of agriculture, but they are vulnerable to
reclamation and flooding. Tidal inlets form where flows from terrestrial water bodies meet with the sea,
thus facilitating the mixing of water, sediments, nutrients and organisms between terrestrial and marine
environments. They also serve as routes between inland harbours and the open sea. Coastal lakes are
large water bodies that are influenced by the ocean tides. Best known among these are Chilika lake in
Odisha and Lake Pulicat on the border of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. They are breeding and
spawning areas for a variety of fish and shellfish, and thus make for rich fishing grounds. Salt marshes
are grasslands or dwarf brushwoods on alluvial soil sediments bordering saline water bodies whose
water level fluctuates due to tides or other water movements (MoEF 57). These form the habitat for a
variety of flora and fauna, act as buffer zones during floods and storms, and help recharge fresh
groundwater. They are vulnerable to reclamation and removal of marsh vegetation for agriculture, and
construction of embankments.
Islands are also important coastal geomorphological forms. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the Bay
of Bengal consist of 325 islands of which 38 are inhabited. The Lakshwadeep Islands, some 400 km off
the south-west coast of India, are an archipelago of 36 tiny islands of which 10 are inhabited. The
Andaman and Nicobar islands have forest and hilly terrains, and are marked by bays, lagoons, creeks and
reefs. The Lakshwadeep Islands are coral atoll formations (MoEF 2005: 58). Both sets of islands have
enormous tourism potential, and are also fishing sites (Karkarey and Yadav). The Andaman and Nicobar
islands are also home to indigenous communities whose livelihoods and ways of life are threatened by
the increased use of these islands for a variety of developmental purposes – tourism, fishing, military
base.
These geomorphological landscapes and seascapes contain a variety of ecosystems. Mangroves consist
of a number of species of trees and shrubs that grow on land but are adapted to survive in sheltered
shores in the inter-tidal zone, such as on tidal flats, deltas, estuaries, bays, creeks and islands. The trees
range from the dwarf varieties found in the Gulf of Kachchh to the tall trees of the Sunderbans. There
are still significant mangroves in the Sunderbans (West Bengal), the Mahanadi delta in Bhitarkanika
(Odisha), the Krishna and Godavari delta in Andhra Pradesh, the coast of Andaman and Nicobar Islands,
the coral reefs and coast of the Gulf Of Kachchh in Gujarat, the deltaic regions of the Kori creek in
Gujarat, and the Pichavaram-Vedaranyam are of Tamil Nadu. The mangroves harbour a rich community

3
of life at all stages of the food chain, from plankton and other micro-organisims, attached animals like
barnacles, bivalves and worms, molluscs, crustaceans and fish, to insects, lizards, snakes and birds.
Many of the fish and shellfish species found here are commercially important, such as prawns, mackarel,
mullet, and bream. The Sunderbans, the largest single block of tidal holophytic mangroves in the world
are also home to the Royal Bengal Tiger as well as crocodiles. In addition to nurturing a host of life,
mangroves are important for stabilizing the shoreline, and acting as a buffer against storms, cyclones,
and tsunamis.
As recently as the late eighties, mangroves covered some 6740 sq km of India’s coastline; by the early
2000s, this figure had shrunk to 4120 sq km, as mangroves have been cleared to make way for industry,
agriculture, and aquaculture (MoEF 2005). Mangroves have been further destroyed by the chemical
fertilisers and pesticides used in shrimp aquaculture. The reduction in fresh water flow due to damming
or dredging, or in tidal flow due to seawalls, bunds and other coastal structures, have both had the
effect of destroying the delicate saline-freshwater balance in which the mangroves thrive. While the fuel
and fodder needs of communities who have traditionally dwelt in or close to the mangroves are often
blamed for the destruction of the mangroves, the greatest threat to this ecosystem has come from
these external processes related to economic “development”.
Coral reefs are another productive and complex coastal ecosystem. They occur in shallow tropical
waters where the sea water is clean, clear and warm, formed by coral animals and microscopic algae.
Although the waters in which they form are not nutrient rich, the corals have a high capacity to recycle
scarce nutrients. The coral reefs are aesthetic marvels, with limestone in striking colours, and are the
habitat for a rich variety of fish, other sea animals, and plants, including in many cases mangroves. Reefs
can serve as places where fish aggregate to spawn and feed (Karkarey and Yadav). They are also natural
barriers again erosion and storm surges. In India, coral reefs are found mainly in the Andaman and
Nicobar and Lakshwadeep islands, as well as in the Palk Bay, Gulf of Mannar, Gulf of Kachchh and
Malwan coast. Coral reefs are constantly being degraded by natural factors such as storms, but the
bigger source of destruction is anthropogenic: chemical pollution from agricultural run-off, aquaculture,
industrial effluents or discharge from ships; sewerage from settlements; thermal plants; destructive
fishing practices like trawling; dredging and mining; tourism; and coral collection.
Seagrasses and seaweeds are also important ecosystems, with seagrasses providing habitats for fish and
shellfish life and stabilizing effects on the shoreline, while seaweeds are important resources as well as
habitats. Coastal forests found along the western ghats, and to a lesser extent on the east coast in
Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, constitute yet another ecosystem, sheltering wildlife and protecting
shorelines from erosion, cyclones and flooding.
Certain parts of the coastline are important as nesting grounds for crabs and for turtles, with three
major mass nesting sites of the olive ridley turtle to be found in Odhisha. The one at Gahirmata (part of
the Bhitarkanika sanctuary) is the largest sea turtle rookery in the world with 100,000 to 500,000 turtles
nesting there each year; the other two - at the mouth of the Devi River north of Puri, and in Rushikulya
in Ganjam district – are smaller. Four other species of sea turtle also nest on the India coast, and the
coastal waters contain some forty species of marine mammals, including sea cows, dolphins, humpback
whales.
The coastal waters contain a wealth of fish and seafood, which has traditionally been harvested by close
to 4000 fishing communities dotted across the coastline who depend on fishing and related activities for
their livelihood. For the majority of them, fish is also a major source of protein, and thus vital to their
food security. Fishing was traditionally carried out using a large variety of craft and gear; the increased
use of more intensive fishing technologies in recent decades, such as trawlers, craft powered by high-

4
speed engines, and echo-sounders, has increased the pressure on the fish resources. A number of fish
species are now exploited at near optimal or beyond optimal level (Bhatal and Pauly) The fish resources
are also being affected by pollution, and habitat destruction and degradation. In addition to the
depletion of the main source of their livelihoods, fishing communities, who require coastal land for a
variety of uses, from docking and launching their craft and storing their gear, to landing their catch, boat
construction and repair, auction of fish, net repair, nurseries and grow out ponds, etc., face
displacement on land as it becomes increasingly desired for tourism, urban development, industry, and
ports and harbours.
Finally, it is important to note that the coastal area also contains certain non-living resources. Salt pans
may be found in parts of Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh; in Gujarat, chemical industries which use
salt for their raw material have come up close to the pans and increased the demand for salt. Too many
saltpans can cause saline ingress into groundwater, destruction of mangroves and mudflats, and
occupational hazard to workers in constant contact with highly concentrated brine solution. Placers and
other minerals, such as ilmenite, monozide, zircon, magnetite, and heavy minerals are reported to be
available in several states but are being mined in Kerala and southern most Tamil Nadu by Indian Rare
Earths. Hydrocarbons (oil and natural gas) found mostly in inland and shallow offshore areas – Bombay
High, Gulf Of Kachchh, Godavari Basin off Andhra Pradesh. While these are of obvious economic value,
drilling for them can have harmful environmental effects, including from oil leaks.
One may draw certain overall conclusions from this section. First, several of the geomorphological
feature and ecosystems perform important ecosystem services, i.e., they contribute in different ways to
the stability and health of the coastal areas, including in terms of protecting human life and habitations
from storms and other perturbations. Second, they are crucial habitats for a wealth of plant and animal
life, much of which in turn contribute to ecological sustainability and the stability of the food chain.
Third, these natural forms and living and non-living elements of this zone constitute important
resources for human food security, livelihoods, recreation, and economic development. Fourth, the
increased demand for these resources in recent decades, for such purposes as resource intensive
aquaculture, industries, thermal and nuclear plants, highways, ports, special economic zones (SEZs),
tourism, and urban development, is leading to a rapid loss of these resources and threatening their long-
term sustainability. Finally, because these resources often have different, often competing, value and
uses for different groups of people, the coastal ecology is increasingly subject to a high degree of
contestation between multiple stakeholders. These conclusions lead us to the next section – how do we
ensure the health, stability and sustainability of the coastal ecology given these diverse pressures on it?

Delimiting coastal ecologies: issues and challenges

Protecting any ecology as extensive, fluid and complex as that of the coast raises a number of difficult
questions: How should we delineate that which is to be protected – what are its boundaries and how far
do they stretch? Who is responsible for this protection, i.e., who has jurisdiction and who has rights? For
what purposes is it being protected? What techniques should we use to measure and map the different
features and vulnerabilities to be protected? And finally, what approaches and methods should we use
to protect them? This section will discuss the conceptual, perspectival and institutional issues at the
heart of these questions, drawing extensively on the anthropologist Bonnie McKay’s brilliant
observations in a keynote speech she made some years ago.
McKay writes: “The coast has fluid and often difficult to define boundaries; it is dynamic and subject to
intense natural and socio-economic pressures; and therefore coasts have features that pose challenges

5
to societies seeking to control and benefit from the coasts through institutions such as property and
resource management.” (McKay 2008: 8). The landward boundary of the coast, the shore, changes
diurnally and seasonally with the tides, more dramatically with floods, tsunamis, or rise of sea level, and
human structures that affect various geomorphological forms along the shore. The effective definition
of the coastal zone may change according to these shifts – in the USA, for instance, because of increased
extreme weather events like storms and hurricanes, insurance companies now describe the coastal zone
as one of “uninsurable risk and danger” and in the last decade have attempted to increase this
uninsurable zone from 1000 feet to 1 mile, thus shifting the burden for emergency assistance to the
government and increasing the cost for fishing families of living on the shore.
Likewise, on the seaward side, should the boundary be set at 12 miles from the shore we currently
define the territorial sea, or the 200 mile Exclusive Economic Zone demarcated for each coastal state
under the 1982 Law of the Sea conference? Or should the boundaries instead be based on “large marine
ecosystems (LMEs)” defined by ecological and oceanographic phenomena, such as continental shelves
and offshore banks? The latter may be the definition favoured by the ecosystem approach increasingly
advocated since the UNCED conference of 1992 which calls for measures to be aimed at protection of
the entire ecosystem rather than particular species (of. The boundaries of the EEZs and these LMEs do
not coincide; and they are further complicated by marine protected areas, spawning and breeding
grounds of particular species, and the movements of currents, fish, boats, nutrients, and carbon (McKay
2008: 11). This can be seen in the challenge of managing deep-sea species that straddle EEZs or are
highly migratory, such as the world’s highest-value fish, the bluefin tuna: the Atlantic bluefin tuna ranges
from the equator to Newfoundland, from Turkey to the Gulf of Mexico (Bestor 2000); a single Pacific
tuna was tracked crossing the Pacific Ocean three times, covering a distance of 25,000 miles (Grescoe
2008).
The travelling tuna point to the difficulty of identifying and limiting the effects of geographically distant
phenomenon on any given ecosystem. The rising sea levels leading to the submergence of small islands
and atolls have their origin in the greenhouse gases emitted in countries very distant from the tropical
waters in which this submergence is taking place. When the adivasis protesting displacement from the
Narmada valley by the Sardar Sarovar Dam, and the fishworkers protesting declining fish resources
caused at least in part by destruction of habitat due to processes of silting and nutrient loss created by
dams upstream, came together to found the National Alliance of People’s Movements in 1989, they
realised that life of the fish in the sea depends on the health of the rivers and the forests deep inland.
More often, boundaries are set as much by law or administrative decision as by any inherent ecological
features. Complicating the fluidity of ecological boundaries is the overlap and lack of clarity of political
and administrative jurisdictions. The Indian coast is governed variously and multiply by the national
government, the governments of the nine coastal states, numerous urban municipalities and over 4000
rural panchayats, as well as several smaller fishing hamlets with local bodies set up to regulate access to
the fishery, as well as local authorities such as those managing a particular port, harbor or thermal plant.
Property, as a legal or customary institution, is yet another way of apportioning use rights and
responsibilities for protection. But property rights in the coast are notoriously hard to establish. While
privately held land, such as that acquired by tourism companies or industrial units, may be easiest to
defend in law, it is often the case that it is within a system of private property that it is easiest to
“externalize” the costs (for instance, chemical pollution or the soil, or salination of fresh groundwater by
salt pans or aquaculture affects the entire local population and ecosystem of the region). Rather than
seeking rights through legal title, the fishing and other coastal communities base their claims on a
history of use and stewardship. They put forward the idea of “the coastal commons” – the coast and the

6
inshore seas as the common property resources to be managed and used sustainably by those who have
evolved local institutions over generations to do so.
There is no internationally agreed upon definition of what constitutes the coastal zone as an area to be
protected, or on what basis this area is to be identified and demarcated. For instance, of a range of
developed and developing countries surveyed for best practices in the Swaminathan Committee Report,
only the United States has a Coastal Zone Management Act (dating to 1972) whereas others deal with
issues of fisheries, land conservation and development, fauna and flora, etc. under a range of different
laws and authorities. What exactly constitutes the coastal zone varies – in the USA, for instance, it
includes the coastal waters up to three miles from the shore and a flexible land boundary as required to
protect the sea from the effect of land-based activities and to deal with sea level rise. The scientific
methods used to demarcate the area to be protected also vary, with states using, exclusively or in
combination with each other, methods such as zoning (setting aside different zones as appropriate to
different activities, such as flood control, fishing, habitat protection, recreation, sand mining, and
industrial use); vulnerability maps (based on the rate of erosion and flooding, or vulnerability to natural
disasters); and setback zones (which identify a distance from the shore, based on the extent of risk faced
by an area, beyond which activities of different kinds, such as housing, tourism, and polluting industries,
must be located). International agencies (the World Bank, United Nations Environment Programme,
OECD) all increasingly emphasise Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) (Post and Lundin 1996) -
the integration of development, livelihood, habitation and conservation policies - which was first
elaborated in Chapter 17 of the 1992 Agenda 21, and several states have adopted this in principle. As
seen below, the Indian approach to the coastal zone combines several of these aspects.

Coastal zone protection in India: policy and practice

In 1981, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi wrote to the Chief Ministers of the nine coastal states asking them
to keep free from development a 500 metre zone from the shoreline in the interests of coastal
protection. Following this, in 1983, the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) of the Government
of India issued ‘Environmental guidelines for Development of Beaches’ asking each coastal state to
prepare master plans for the development of its coastal stretches. Finally, in 1991, in the context of
growing fisher militancy around the protection of coastal resources, the MoEF issued a Coastal
Regulation Zone Notification (under the Environment (Protection) Act 1986 and the Environment
Protection Rules 1986) declaring coastal stretches as Coastal Regulation Zones (CRZ), regulating all
activities within this area and empowering coastal states to enact the provisions of the CRZ Notification.
The main objective of the Notification was stated as being the conservation and better management of
the country’s rich and diverse coastal resources (MoEF 2005).

Under the Notification, the coastal zone was defined as encompassing all that land with which the sea
has direct contact and also those portions of the land on which the sea has an influence indirectly
through tidal action. The CRZ consisted of the landward part of the coastal stretches of open sea, bays,
estuaries and any tidal water bodies up to 500 m from the high tide line (HTL), as well as the land
between the HTL and low tide line (LTL). The Notification created four coastal regulation zones. CRZ I
consisted of ecologically sensitive areas. These were by and large to be no development zones (NDZs).
(As an aside, it is worth noting that projects of the Department of Nuclear Energy were permitted in this
zone). CRZ II consisted of areas that were substantially built up (greater than 50% as of 1991) or that had
municipalities or town corporations. Here development was permitted on the landward side of the road
closest to the shore. The seaward side of the road was largely a NDZ. CRZ III consisted of areas other
than CRZ I and II. Here a NDZ was declared up to 200 m from the HTL, and then only tourism

7
development was permitted beyond the 200 m. CRZ IV covered coastal stretches in the Andaman and
Nicobar, Lakshadweep, and other small islands. The regulation prohibited outright a range of activities in
the no development zones, and permitted only certain activities deemed essential within these zones
(MoEF 2005).

Right from the start, industry groups began filing for amendments to the regulation in order to enable
construction within demarcated zones, including the no development zone. There were also violations
of the regulation without formal seeking of amendments. In 1994, the Indian Society for Enviro-legal
Action filed a public interest litigation in the Supreme Court, seeking the Court’s intervention in directing
the States to comply with its provisions. The writ petition also challenged the validity of the
amendments to the main notification of 1991, especially those which sought to provide the Central
government with discretionary powers to permit any construction within the 200 meters NDZ along any
part of the coastline. These amendments were sought partly to accommodate the interests of the hotel
and tourism industry. The Supreme Court responded in 1996 by giving coastal state governments six
months in which to prepare management plans for their coastal areas based on the CRZ Notification and
take necessary steps to implement this. Consequently, all nine coastal states prepared plans, but with
several variations, which were approved by the MoEF (Nandakumar and Muralikrishna 1998: 5). While
the Notification was seen as too restrictive of development by corporate interests (MoEF 2005), the long
list of amendments (some 25 by the start of the new century) and violations led to a growing sense of its
failure on the part of the fishing communities and environmentalists.

In the early 2000s, coastal zone governance became part of a larger review of national environmental
policy which resulted, in 2006, in a National Environment Policy (NEP) (see Kothari 2004). The review’s
‘sustainable development’ framework drew on the 1992 UNCED (Upadhyay 2004), and on the
foundations of a World Bank-funded National Environment Action Plan of 1993 (Menon and Kohli 2008).
These were aimed at strengthening environmental policy planning and administration, making
decentralisation of environmental planning more effective, firming up implementation of environmental
law and toughening monitoring and compliance in specific high priority and environmental problem
areas such as mining and coastal zone management. Meanwhile, the EIA process was streamlined to
reduce delays and levels of decision-making, in line with the recommendations of the 2002
Govindarajan Committee on Reforming Investment Approval and Implementation Procedure which had
identified delays in environmental clearances as the greatest cause of delays to projects (The Hindu
2002; MoEF 2006: 18). Under the new process, EIAs were to be carried out only at the last stage of
project clearance, or even after a project had gained clearance, in order to outline mitigation measures
while minimising the need for a full and multi-dimensional public consultation. In the year and a half
following the issuance of the final revised EIA notification of 2006, 1736 projects were cleared, whereas
in the twenty years preceding this, only 4016 projects had been given clearance by the MoEF (Menon
and Kohli 2008: 15).

In July 2004, as part of the review process leading to the NEP, and based on the recommendations of the
EMCB on the need for integrated coastal zone management, an ‘Expert Committee’ chaired by Dr M.S.
Swaminathan was appointed with the mandate to review the 1991 CRZ notification. The Swaminathan
Committee Report was released in early 2005, just months after the devastation caused by the Indian
Ocean tsunami highlighted the need for effective coastal zone management. The Report draws on the
recommendations of past committees on coastal zone regulation, international best practices,
recommendations from a range of international agencies including UNCED, UNEP, OECD, the World
Bank and the IUCN, ‘scientific principles in coastal management,’ a listing of coastal resources and
hazards, as well as a review of the CRZ Notification and its implementation, to make its

8
recommendations. In its review of the problems with the CRZ Notification, it lists the lack of clarity
around why certain industrial activities are banned, and concerns from industries that require particular
access to the coast, such as tourism, ports and harbours, noting that in a developing country like India,
the coast had many important economic uses, such as for SEZs (MoEF 2005: 77-78). Given this, it talks of
the need for a more clearly outlined approval procedure for projects, and for monitoring. It notes the
dependence of coastal communities for their livelihoods on the coastal zone, and talks of how water
resources, for instance, have been ’plundered’ by commercial interests in the name of ‘permissible
human activities.’ (MoEF 2005: 59). The final chapter of the Report consists of an Action Plan which
recommends the re-classification of the coastal zone, with different activities permitted and prohibited
in each, the determination of these activities through state level Integrated Coastal Zone Management
(ICZM) Plans, and the establishment of a new National Board for Sustainable Coastal Zone Management
that would coordinate research and enforcement activities of the state-level CZM authorities.

In May 2007, a draft of a new Coastal Zone Management Notification prepared by the MoEF became
public by virtue of a ‘leak.’ The Notification stated that it was based on the recommendations of the
Swaminathan Committee Report, although there is some debate about this (Jose 2010; Sridhar n.d.).
Unlike the Report, the proposed Notification intended to replace entirely the CRZ Notification in favour
of a new management approach. The coastal zone was expanded to include the territorial waters (12
nautical miles from the shore) instead of just the land. The zone was to be demarcated based on a
setback line, established by mapping the vulnerability to hazards of each part of the coast using
parameters such as elevation, geomorphology, sea level trends, horizontal shoreline displacement, tidal
ranges, and wave heights. The earlier CRZ categories were now re-classified into coastal management
zones, with CMZ II now including areas that were less built up than under the previous CRZ II. This being
the zone with the fewest restrictions on development, it meant that areas that had previously been
classified as CRZ III and protected from development were now open for development. The category of a
‘no development zone’ (NDZ) was removed altogether, and few activities were prohibited outright.
Instead, the activities permitted in each zone were to be determined by a state-level Integrated Coastal
Zone Management Plan, to be drawn up by the state administration and approved by the MoEF. Such a
plan was to keep in mind ‘technical feasibility and costs,’ and be ‘otherwise consistent with the provision
of the National Environment Policy, 2006.’ All regulation under these plans was to be carried out by
State/UT Environmental Appraisal Authorities set up under the provisions of the 2006 EIA, which were
now also to serve as the State/UT Coastal Zone Management Authorities. These Authorities were to
‘invariably obtain the scientific advice’ of the State/UT Environmental Expert Committees, also set up
under the provisions of the 2006 EIA Notification.

The leaked draft CZM Notification drew a strong public response which resulted, in July 2007, in the
formation of a National Coastal Protection Campaign (NCPC) consisting of a range of community-based
and civil society organisations including: National Fishworkers Forum (Kolkata), Tamil Nadu-Pondicherry
Fisher Peoples Federation (Chennai), Coastal Action Network (Chennai), Conservation Action Trust
(Mumbai), South Indian Federation of Fishermen Societies (Trivandrum), World Wide Fund for Nature
(Delhi), Greenpeace India (Bangalore),International Collective in Support of Fishworkers (Chennai),
Kalpavriksh Environment Action Group (Delhi), Dakshin Trust (Bangalore), Pondy Citizen’s Action
Network (Pondicherry), Centre for Education and Communication (Delhi), and The Research and
Information Network for the Coast (TRINet) (Chennai).

Opponents of the CZM Notification charged that it had been developed with no public consultation, and
made coastal protection subservient to commercial interests. They argued that a ‘management’
framework with its more flexible arrangements opened up greater space for violation and exploitation

9
than the clearer prohibitions contained under the earlier ‘regulation’ framework. The re-zoning of more
areas as CMZ II from the more restricted CRZ III, and the removal of the no development zones in CMZ I
and III, making development in these zones subject to an ICZMP, meant that large tracts of the coastline
were now freed up for investment. The ICZMPs were to be developed through partnerships with all
stakeholders, including the very corporate actors responsible for violations of the previous CRZ
Notification. Projects were to be approved based on EIAs, the process for which, as noted earlier, had
been ‘streamlined’ considerably; implementation was to be carried out by Environmental Appraisal
Authorities assisted by Environmental Expert Committees, both also constituted under the terms of this
streamlined EIA Notification of 2006. These replaced the three -tier Coastal Zone Management
Authorities at the national, state and district level, leaving no credible monitoring mechanism (Menon et
al. 2007).

The Notification was also seen as removing the protections for residence and livelihood rights for the
coastal fishing communities provided in the CRZ Notification, making them, too, secondary to
commercial development. In CMZ II, where re-development of residences had been permitted, there
was a concern that real estate developers might use the opportunity to buy out and displace fishing
families; on the other hand, in CMZ III, there was a concern that an EIA might deem residential and
fishing-related activities detrimental, while giving permission to purportedly low-impact eco-tourism, for
instance. Further, the Notification did not take into account questions of boundaries and jurisdiction,
whereby the coastal zone competes with other kinds of zones, such as municipal and district limits, and
conflicts arise over the jurisdiction of coastal zone management agencies versus town and country
planning authorities, or Panchayats (village governments) (see Ramachandran et al. 2005). The
Panchayats and village authorities of the over 3000 fishing villages across the coast are especially
important here, with the fishing communities insisting that they should have jurisdiction over the areas
in which they live, fish, and carry out post-harvest activities.

A third, and related, set of concerns had to do with the knowledge claims on which the Notification was
based. Here, two types of critiques were made. The first was that its prioritization of ‘scientific
knowledge’ and new environmental technologies, and its reliance on ‘experts’ defined strictly in terms
of academic qualifications, devalued the ‘traditional’ ecological knowledge of coastal communities
(Mathew 2008; NFF 2010). The second had to do with the validity and correctness of the scientific claims
on their own terms. The brief definitions of terms like ‘Integrated Coastal Zone Management,’ and
‘ecologically sensitive area’ were deemed vague and inadequate, and other terms with which the
Notification is peppered, such as ‘sustainable development,’ ‘sound scientific principles,’ ‘foreshore
requiring facility’ and ‘basic infrastructure’ were seen as so unspecific as to permit all manner of projects
(CEE 2008: 15). The criteria (topography, habitats, population density, etc) by which the different CMZs
were demarcated were challenged. The reliance on hard structures such as seawalls to manage risks was
seen as likely to destroy beaches and habitats. Most significantly, the ATREE report pointed out that the
vulnerability line as the basis on which the setback line was to be identified was erroneous. The line to
be mapped was a hazard line, with a vulnerability map requiring more complicated calculations than
those described in the Notification. Further, the six parameters listed as the components of this hazard
(‘vulnerability’) line were also incomplete. (Menon et al 2007: 10).

Militant marches, blockades and hunger fasts across the coastal states brought many state governments
and MPs on-line.. A Parliamentary Standing Committee appointed to look into the matter recommended
that the CZM Notification be allowed to lapse (Jose 2010). In June 2009, Mr. Jairam Ramesh, the
Minister of Environment and Forests, re-appointed Dr M.S. Swaminathan to head a four person expert
committee to re-examine the CZM. Their report, Final Frontier, was released in July 2009 (MoEF 2009). It

10
spoke strongly of the centrality of the fishing communities to coastal governance, and recommended
that the CZM Notification be allowed to lapse and a new notification based on the 1991 CRZ be issued.
Following a further series of public consultations held by the Minister between August 2009 and March
2010 in key coastal states, in April 2010 a pre-draft CRZ Notification 2010 was put up on the MoEF
website in English and the nine coastal languages, along with a concept paper for discussion, with thirty
days for comments. Next, a draft CRZ Notification 2010 was put up in September 2010 with sixty days
for comments. Finally, a new CRZ Notification was issued in January 2011 (MoEF 2011).

The 2011 CRZ Notification largely retains the 1991 CRZ with some new additions from the CZM
Notification 2007. It keeps NDZs, and the high tide line (HTL) as the baseline. It further calls for the
mapping of the hazard line with the provision that if it is further than 500 m of the HTL in CRZ I areas,
that further area would be declared a NDZ. It retains the classifications of CRZ, except for introducing an
additional zone (IV) for the territorial seas (with the islands now reclassified as CRZ V). It contains special
provisions for ‘fisherfolk communities.’ It outlines a clearer process for granting clearances and
enforcing violations, noting that violations shall be identified by using the latest appropriate maps,
satellite imagery and information technology. It also contains measures to ensure transparency in the
working of the state level Coastal Zone Management Authorities (CZMAs) which seem to consist chiefly
of creating a website containing the agendas, minutes, decisions taken, clearance letters, violations,
action taken, court cases, and Coastal Zone Management Plans of each state.

Despite the welcome reversal to the earlier regulation regime, several of the new features of the 2011
CRZ Notification remain points of concern for fishworkers, coastal communities and environmentalists,
leaving undefined as they do the precise nature and degree of community control and the concessions
made to industry. While mention is made of the need to protect the livelihoods of fisherfolk
communities, there is no attempt to institutionalise community rights along the lines demanded by the
NCPC and expressed in the public hearings. The amendments and violations to the earlier CRZ have not
been reversed, and the monitoring and regulation mechanisms to prevent further violations remain
weak (NCPC 2010; Sharma, C. 2011; Sharma K. 2011). The institutionalisation of fishworker and
community rights and knowledges fought for over decades of campaigns around marine and coastal
regulation thus remains elusive.

11
References
Bhathal, Brajgeet, and Daniel Pauly. (2008). “‘Fishing down Marine Food Webs’ and Spatial Expansion of
Coastal Fisheries in India, 1950-2000.” Fisheries Research 91: 26-34.

Goenka, Debi. 2000. The Fragile Coastline. Seminar, No 492, August 2000.
International Collective in Support of Fishworkers. Coastal Zone and Communities. A website of
resources. http://indianfisheries.icsf.net/en/page/616-Coastal%20zone%20and%20communities.html
Karkarey, Rucha and Shreya Yadav. 2015. On the Line. The Caravan September 2015: 54-63.

Korakandy, Ramakrishnan. 2005. Coastal Zone Management: A Study of the Political Economy of
Sustainable Development. Delhi: Kalpaz Publications.

Kurien, John. 2005. Kerala’s Marine Fishery: Evolving towards Unsustainability – A personal statement
spanning three decades. FAO Discussion Paper 15. Also published in International Journal of Rural
Management.
Kurien, John. 2015. Are Our Seas Up for Grabs? Economic and Political Weekly June 15, 2015 L(24): 15-18.
Mathew, S. 2008. Coastal Zone Regulation: Implications for Fishing Communities. Economic and Political
Weekly June 21, 2008.

McKay, Bonnie. 2008. The Littoral and the Liminal: Challenges to the Management of the Coastal and
Marine Commons. Mast. http://www.marecentre.nl/mast/documents/Mast_7_1_McCay.pdf. Accessed
21 September 2015.

Menon, M., S. Rodriguez and A. Sridhar. 2007. Coastal Zone Management Notification ‘07: Better or
Bitter Fare? Produced for the Post-Tsunami Environment Initiative Project, ATREE, Bangalore. Pp 31.

Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), Government of India. 2005. Report of the Committee
Chaired by Prof. M.S. Swaminathan to review the Coastal Regulation Zone Notification 1991. New Delhi:
MoEF.

Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), Government of India. 2009. Final Frontier: Agenda to
Protect the Ecosystem and Habitat of India’s Coast for Conservation and Livelihood Security. New Delhi:
MoEF.

Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), Government of India. 2011. Coastal Regulation Zone
Notification. January 2011.
http://moef.nic.in/downloads/public-information/CRZ-Notification-2011.pdf. Accessed on June 11,
2012.

Nandakumar, D. and M. Muralikrishna. 1998. Mapping the Extent of Coastal Regulation Zone Violations
of the Indian Coast. Report prepared for the National Fishworkers’ Forum.
http://www.ceeindia.org/cee/pdf_files/cmz_violation_studyby_thomas_kocherry.pdf

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Nayak, Nalini, D. Nandakumar and A.J. Vijayan. 2006. Coastal Population Dynamics and Ecosystem
Changes: How markets, technology and institutions affect this process along the west coast of India.
Thiruvananthapuram: Protsahan.

NDTV Report. 2009. Gujarat’s Mangroves under Threat.

https://saveourbeach.wordpress.com/2009/06/08/gujarats-mangroves-under-threat-ndtv-report/

Post, J.C. and C.G. Lundin eds. 1996. Guidelines for Integrated Coastal Zone Management. Washington
D.C.: The World Bank, Environmentally Sustainable Development Studies and Monographs Series No. 9.

Sridhar, A., R. Arthur, D. Goenka, B. Jairaj, T. Mohan, S. Rodriguez and K. Shanker. 2006. Review of the
Swaminathan Committee Report on the CRZ Notification. New Delhi: UNDP.

Sundar, Aparna. 2014. From Regulation to Management and Back Again: Exploring governance shifts in
India’s coastal zone. Conservation and Society 12 (4): 364-375.

13
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Ecological thinkers: M. K. Gandhi

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Human Ecology, Swaraj, Rural Reconstruction, Appropriate Technology,

Sarvodaya

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was a nationalist leader who through his
writings and actions produced an indictment of colonial rulers. In this
module, we would evaluate the term ‘swaraj’ used by Gandhiji and explore
the promise it might offer as a panacea for the present ecological crisis.
Gandhi’s classic treatise, Hind Swaraj has been interpreted by several post-
colonial scholars as a text that holds much promise.

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Aseem Shrivastava

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR)
Language Editor (LE)
 The imperative of Harit Swaraaj

"India's problem is the world's problem in miniature."

- Rabindranath Tagore

“Do not consider this Swaraaj to be like a dream.”

- Mahatma Gandhi

Claude Markovits in his book, The Un-Gandhian Gandhi: The Life and Afterlife of Mahatma
argues that alongside the economic crisis of the early 1970s, there arose a renewed interest in
Gandhi’s writings and trying to trace “an economic programme which was an alternative to
liberal capitalism”. Markovits refers to similarities between Ernst Schumacher’s discussions of
the idea of ‘appropriate technology’ and Gandhi’s programme for the development of village
industries.

Ramchandra Guha reads environmental movements of India that came to the centre-stage in the
decade of 80s, as being inspired by Gandhi more in their modalities of protests. As far as the
principles of sustainability and ecological thinking goes, Guha assigns the inspiring influence to
the classic book Economy of Permanence by Gandhi’s follower: J. C. Kumarappa. Guha also
argues that two prominent environmental activists of 1990s – Anil Agarwal and Vandana Shiva –
in different ways had shown intellectual indebtedness to Gandhi’s writings.

In 1995, T. N. Khoshoo (1927-2002), penned an interpretation of Gandhi’s writing and called

him, ‘An Apostle of Applied Human Ecology’. On 5th October 1996, Khoshoo read out the lead
paper for the symposium ‘Gandhi and Environment’ organised by the World Wide Fund for
Nature – India. (read it here:
http://www.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/files/file/Gandhiji%20and%20environment.pdf)

More than ever before it has become urgent to think of swaraaj as a possible basis for human
society to live in a condition of material sufficiency, peace and justice, in creative harmony with
the natural world around it. Because organic life on earth is itself imperilled now, it is necessary
to think in terms of ‘harit swaraaj’, harit (literally, ‘green’) being an ecological adjective which
qualifies the noun.

Swaraaj: A tentative historical sketch

Let us contemplate the word ‘swaraaj'. As a concept, swaraaj was first thought of in a classical
Indian language, or perhaps in an Indian vernacular. In this sense, it is (unlike democracy)
indigenous to Indian political culture and thought, just like the notions of panchayat, sabha,
parishad and samiti (different notions of assembly/council/congregation, depending on the
specific context and the powers they had, which often involved keeping a check on the power of
the King). At the village level it was the panchayat which oversaw public affairs specific to the
area.

There is evidence of political assemblies - including at the village level - in Ancient India.
Sources reveal traditions of government by discussion and consultation and sometimes of
decisions taken by dialogue and consensus (‘sarvasammati’).

During the period of the Buddha, for instance, canonical Pali texts confirm that there were
councils called ‘sanghas’ (or ‘ganas’), as in Vaishali, where affairs of the state were deliberated
upon, even if the king was the official head of the government. There were carefully laid out
procedures for dialogue, voting and democratic decision-making. The Buddha himself was
committed to republican virtues, even though he lived in a time when the Monarch was
sovereign.

From some sources it appears that in ancient India there was a constant tussle between monarchy
and one or another vision of self-rule by members of a guild, a village, a clan, or indeed any
group with common interests. Some observers have claimed that such self-government often
sustained republican values and even the sort of democracy one associates with the polis of
Classical Greece.

For medieval India, there are surviving inscriptions on temple walls from the 8th century, in
modern-day Kanchipuram district, which give evidence of sophisticated forms of local
democratic practices in village assemblies. The inscriptions outline the functions of the
assemblies, qualifications and duties expected of its members, regulations and acts passed by the
assembly towards the provision of public services, such as the maintenance of the village tanks,
and so on.

The important thing to remember is that these notions (in Sanskrit or Pali) - from which some of
the vocabulary (though not much of the substance) of modern Indian democracy is drawn -
predate the colonial era by centuries, often by millennia, and are, by no means, translations of
concepts imported into India from the Western world. It means that these were notions in use at
one period of Indian history or another and became substantially dormant, often with the coming
of colonial rule in the modern period.

For predominantly oral cultures like India, especially for times before the generalisation of the
printing press, it is never easy to pin down the origin and lineage of any idea or its practice. The
typically untraceable, and often unrecorded, history of many Indian concepts should not prevent
us from making the safe assumption that there were long-held democratic notions in this part of
the world in both theory and political practice. So if one speaks of swaraaj in India in the 21st
century, one should feel assured that one is aiming to recover and revive, renew and revitalize a
notion which certainly belongs to an all too indigenous stream of philosophical thought, culture
and political practice.
The plausibility of some of the observations made by administrators in 19th century Briitsh
India, while open to doubt and emendation could likely grow as more scholarship accumulates.
Some of the testimonies from British India are worth recalling.

Sir Charles Trevelyan, for instance, remarks:

“one foreign conqueror after another has swept over India, but the village municipalities have
stuck to the soil like their own kusha grass.”

In his famous minute of 1830, Sir Charles Metcalfe, the then acting governor-general of India
records:

“The village communities are little republics, having nearly everything they can want within
themselves, and almost independent of any foreign relations. They seem to last where nothing
else lasts. Dynasty after dynasty tumbles down; revolution succeeds revolution….but the village
community remains the same. . . This union of the village communities, each one forming a
separate little state in itself, has, I conceive, contributed more than any other cause to the
preservation of the peoples of India, through all the revolutions and changes which they have
suffered. It is in a high degree conducive to their happiness, and to the enjoyment of a great
portion of freedom and independence. I wish, therefore, that the village constitutions may never
be disturbed and I dread everything that has a tendency to break them up.”

Gandhi did not dream up the idea of “village republics”, of graam swaraaj, out of thin air, as the
epigraph at the start of this essay indicates.

The above observations of early British administrators notwithstanding, during the colonial era
rulers introduced bureaucratic processes and institutions which led to the more or less rapid
erosion of practices and institutions for local governance and self-rule by village republics. Some
of this history of atrophy of grassroots democracy is well-documented by recent research, for
instance in the realm of water and forest management. Dr. Annie Besant was led to a conclusion
which rings true to anyone - especially to underprivileged elders - with a degree of experience of
dealing with contemporary Indian bureaucracy: “The officials keep the old names, but the old
panchayat was elected by the householders of the village and was responsible to them. Now the
officers are responsible to government officials and their interest lies in pleasing them, not in
satisfying the electors, as of old.” If there is truth in this observation, the centralising tendencies
of the larger state structures appear to have shortchanged democratic practices at the grassroots.

In 1909, Mahatma Gandhi wrote and published (in Gujarati) his most important work Hind
Swaraaj. Long before Gandhi however, it appears that the word was in use during the rule of the
Peshwas in the 18th century. In the 1870s, the Gujarati poet, Narmad used the word swaraaj in
his historical work Rajya Rang. The meaning and associations of the word swaraaj change quite
dramatically when deployed by Bal Gangadhar Tilak during the early phase of the Indian
freedom struggle in the 1890s. It seems to become virtually equivalent, in this usage, to the
modern Western notion of liberty and independence. When Dadabhai Naoroji, as President of the
Indian National Congress declares swaraaj, in 1906, to be the goal of the national movement he
has this meaning in mind.
Gandhi’s rendition of swaraaj

Although Gandhi wrote Hind Swaraj in 1909, while relying on its core ideas to form intellectual
opinions and make political judgements and decisions throughout the rest of his life, Gandhi
never brought up the book in public discussions. “A portion of the whole theory of life described
in Hind Swaraaj is undoubtedly being carried into practice. There is no danger attendant upon
the whole of it being practised”, Gandhi wrote with a humble sarcasm in Young India in 1921.
He was a practical idealist who was willing to live with the political compromise of first rooting
out colonial rule from India and getting her the long-awaited independence. This was certainly a
preliminary step to the realisation of swaraaj. But he knew that the Congress, which he led for
three decades of the national movement, was in no position to adopt Hind Swaraaj as its Bible.
Its political culture was too alienated from the great Indian past and too indoctrinated in the ways
of modernity for it to regard Hind Swaraaj as anything but a romantic fable. Moreover, contrary
to popular perception, and unlike what Nehru himself had come to believe by the mid-1940s,
Gandhi never changed his views on swaraaj fundamentally, as is evidenced through their
correspondence in 1945. Nor, if we keep in view one of the epigraphs for this essay, did the
practical possibility of the realisation of swaraaj in the future seem at all unrealistic to Gandhi.
To him it offered the soul and substance of practical wisdom, rooted in the best that had been
thought and, more importantly, lived within Indian traditions. He knew that India and the world
could return to the idea of swaraaj, and realise it one day.

It is impossible to grasp Gandhi’s thought without understanding the virtually infinite

connotations that the notion of swaraaj have for him. Along with ahimsa and satyagraha, it
constitutes a cornerstone of his thought and practice. It gave him the philosophical and ethical
compass not only to discipline his political imagination for the immediate needs of the struggle
for India’s independence but to awaken the reader’s deeper intelligence and wisdom to grasp the
self-destructive nature of modern civilisation and look beyond it to the creative possibilities for
its transcendence. As a deep critique of modernity itself, it diagnoses the contemporary problems
by going to their roots and indicates the way out of its myriad cul-de-sacs.

Deceptively simple to read, Hind Swaraaj is best read as a manifesto of civilisational recovery -
but within a well-acknowledged Indian philosophical frame. In Gandhi’s view, it is not just India
that needs to recover its civilisation from the havoc brought upon it by colonial modernity, the
world itself must abandon the domineering ways of industrial civilization if it is to survive and,
ultimately, thrive. In this journey, Gandhi believed that the civilisation of Ancient India has
something unique to offer.

What is swaraaj? As said at the very beginning, swaraaj literally means self-rule. However, the
catch is that authentic self-rule is possible if and only if the self is capable of being its own
sovereign! In other words, without being able to find the responsibility and develop the
discipline to command its own passions, the self is incapable of locating itself in the sphere of
spiritual freedom. Swaraaj is the everyday basis of a civilisation liberated from illusions and
false, but enormously potent and destructive, passions. It was clear to Gandhi that industrial
modernity had not only taken full advantage of these passions but, by directing the drive for
power so commonly found, had structured them into a technologically advanced system of ever-
expanding, gargantuan appetites - what we in our time have come to identify as “development”
and “progress”.

Gandhi is religious enough to believe that without a transcendence into the realm of the divine, it
is impossible for the self to become sovereign over its life. Ultimately, for Gandhi, swaraaj is a
divine imperative, with fruitful consequences for human affairs. Spiritual mastery and self-
possession can also yield the marvels of political sovereignty, as a by-product, but not the other
way around. The experience of nominally independent India since 1947 proves the point rather
dramatically. Its re-entry into a globally exploitative imperial economic system since 1991- with
the resulting loss of effective economic sovereignty - underscores the point.

Politically, self-rule, as Gandhi understands it, is anything but modern parliamentary democracy.
He in fact mocks modern parliaments as “emblems of slavery”, as much as he also ridicules what
so many Indians of privilege wanted before independence “English rule without the
Englishman…the tiger’s nature, but not the tiger.” Gandhi’s all too palpable fear - that modern
conditions are likely to spread like a cancer through the length and breadth of the world - is now
being fully realised in the corporate age of the global consumer. Gandhi might have said,
mocking the economists who see ‘freedom’ in today’s acquisitive, technology-driven, market-
run societies, that it is the investor who is ‘sovereign’ now, not the consumer. The latter is
merely an irresponsible, poorly disciplined victim of his own desires, which he confuses for
‘rights’. Being a victim of invasive advertising, he rarely has even a vague sense of where his
desires come from or of his true responsibilities to himself, to those around him and to the
natural world which bears the weight of his appetites.

If he could visit our India today Gandhi might also have pointed out that the view he put forth
in Hind Swaraaj, that “it would be folly to assume that an Indian Rockefeller would be better
than the American Rockefeller”, has now been exonerated. He would also have noticed that in
today’s world the wealthy are as enslaved to desires and their objects, as the indigent. The
affluent certainly have more power today than the poor but Gandhi could not possibly have seen
them as free. In fact, he writes strikingly in Hind Swaraaj that “impoverished India can become
free, but it will be hard for any India made rich through immorality to regain its freedom.”
Prosperity was not a goal in favour with Gandhi. He lived and fought for human freedom and
was only too aware of the perils of material excess. Frugality - which should appeal to us in an
ecologically endangered time - was infinitely nearer to Gandhi’s quest for freedom than
affluence.

Swaraaj and modern democracy

It is unfortunate that swaraaj is frequently translated as ‘democracy’. Unlike swaraaj, democracy

– derived originally from the ancient Greek notion of rule by the demos (people) – is a notion
that has taken root in the modern West. Thanks at least in some measure to the heavy
proselytisation and economic blackmail of the West, it has conquered the imagination of the
modern world, especially since the post-1945 ascendancy of American global power. Because of
the force of money in our world, the institutions of democracy often functions in ways quite
antithetical to freedom. Yet, thanks to relentless propaganda over generations, in the popular
imagination, democracy is virtually synonymous with freedom itself, even the intermediate step
of liberty often being dispensed with.

Here our object is to distinguish rather sharply between modern democracy and an understanding
of swaraaj derived from what has been said about Gandhi earlier. Their cognitive premises could
not be more different.

The first point worth making in this regard is that any notion of swaraaj is, truly speaking,
inconsistent with mass politics of the sort that is an everyday fact of democracies today, only
partly on account of the size of population. Where finite, face-to-face neighbourhood assemblies
are not viable, swaraaj cannot function. Crowds can serve as the grease for political parties in
democracies, not for swaraaj. The populist totalitarianism hidden in modern democracies - for
instance, in the form of a fascist majoritarianism - might come to prevail. Numbers and their
comparisons are as crucial to modern democracies as they are irrelevant to swaraaj. Gandhi was
famous for saying that the “law of majority” fails when it comes to matters of conscience. And
politics without ethics and conscience did not interest Gandhi very much.

If self-rule is both the means and the political object, there have to be reasonable institutions to
facilitate the exercise of individual sovereignty. The anomie of heavily urbanized, mass societies
militates against this - unless neighbourhoods can be small and socially stable enough to allow
the sustained exercise of freedom in the public domain. It is easier to imagine villages being able
to do this, especially in a context like India’s, where panchayats and gram sabhas can serve the
purpose of neighbourhood assemblies.

This chimes well with an all-important insight of Gandhi’s: the scale and speed of organised
social life in modern times militate against authentic freedom and swaraaj. Such societies can
only promise “civil liberties” or “democratic rights”, without ever being able to bring about the
sort of freedom that was dear to Gandhi. His critique of machinery and modern technology
in Hind Swaraaj stems from the realisation that they make possible a speed and scale of
economic life that increasingly subtracts from the actual life, livelihood and sovereignty of the
individual, not to mention their impact on communities and their shared political life.

Secondly, modern democracy is focused on the individual’s direct, unmediated relationship to a

state that guarantees her rights of citizenship by law. The setting assumed for this relationship is
one of an atomised, even particulated, society in which human alienation is normalized. In such a
society a British Prime Minister can ironically claim that “there is no such thing as society”, and
win one election after another. There is no sense of a community in which the individual is born
and where, first and foremost, she creates her life and livelihood. During the last hundred years
or so, especially in the Western world, corporations, organisations and institutions have
increasingly come to take the place of communities in the life of the individual. And the larger
they become, the more bureaucratic they get, ending up resembling their outer metropolitan
settings whose alienation steals an individual’s freedom.

What swaraaj needs for its nourishment and nurture, by contrast, is a community in which the
individual can come into her own through filial, cultural, social, political, economic and
ecological relationships with those (including sentient beings other than the humans) around her.
The notion of swaraaj has, implicit in it, a deep ontological recognition of social interdependence
in organic human communities and their ecological symbiosis with the natural world.

Thirdly, in a modern democracy, an individual is, almost indifferently, and in the name of
‘freedom’, left to his tastes and desires, the community playing no part in making him scrutinise
them. The individual is not problematised as is the case with swaraaj. There is no obligation for
the individual to consider his desires in a critical light, unless and until their realisation interferes
with the fulfilment of another’s desires. In fact, such is virtually the very definition of ‘freedom’
in modern liberal democracies, often understood in terms of the notion of ‘negative liberty’.

Gandhi’s idea of swaraaj could not be more different. It has to do with an individual’s or a
community’s autonomy to create their choices, rather than passively accepting the menu from
which they must choose. Applied to our market-driven, media-prompted world, it would first
require us to take ecological and cultural responsibility for our desires and explore their origins
in the sorts of peer-group pressure that advertising deploys to seduce us to buy specific products,
using emotional manipulations like greed, fear, envy, guilt, pride, or even conceit and arrogance.
It is evident that such a manipulation of desire, in which virtually everything about the individual
(and the community) is at stake, is antithetical to freedom as any advocate of swaraaj would
understand it. Desire, which is at the philosophical heart of the notion of freedom in modern
consumer democracies, is the inevitable object of critical scrutiny for any serious advocate or
student of swaraaj. The two concepts could, therefore, not be more different, regardless of the
ease with which the one is translated as the other by many writers today.

From swaraaj to democracy to swaraaj: some discomforting thoughts

From what has been said before it appears that, as a culture, as a civilisation, India has travelled
historically from a degree of local swaraaj (to be sure, under raajyavaad or saamraajyavaad,
monarchy or imperialism) to a modern electoral democracy, now verging on a corpocracy in
which decisions taken regionally, nationally or globally routinely impact the grassroots in
tangibly adverse ways. This is over and above the political inequalities of a gender, class and
caste-riven society at the local level.

Many observers and experts today rule out the possibility of swaraaj in India as well as anywhere
else. It is believed that it is an anachronism in a technologically advanced and globalised world.
The argument rests on the remorselessness of modern technology, over whose trajectory of
progress nobody appears to have much influence. The fact that the world is therefore globalised
is a corollary of the fact of vastly speedier forms of travel, transport and communication than
existed even half a generation back.

Is this state of affairs an inevitability? Two thoughts suggest themselves. First, technology is on a
certain trajectory because of clear government and corporate choices that have been made over
so many decades. So much of modern technology has been created under the impulse of the
profit motive, or of the goal of control. What if people began to notice more widely that there is
no way to have human freedom with technologies of domination hovering over us from day to
day? Examples - and not only from the world of military hardware and surveillance software -
come readily to mind. If widespread public discussion could lead to different public choices,
perhaps the trajectory of technological development could be moulded in the direction of greater
possibilities of human freedom, whether this takes the form of local, decentralised energy grids,
efficient public transport and bicycles, or open-source software.

Secondly, it is becoming increasingly clear that most modern industrial technology is highly
resource-intensive and polluting. There is no way to get out of the suicidal matrix of fossil fuels.
Sooner, rather than later, it will become widely clear that a certain technological path is no
longer even ecologically feasible, even if it is desirable to some. Gandhi had much to say on the
question of technology, going as far as to claim that machinery represented “a great sin”, which
had “impoverished India” and had “begun to desolate Europe.”

If there is merit in these arguments, swaraaj should be back in political contention. There are
many reasons - to do with addressing local impacts of climate change, required bioregionalism,
necessary localization and regionalisation of economies, land, water, food, energy and livelihood
security, renegotiated relations between cities and the countryside, the continuing salience of
agriculture, indigenous knowledge and the revival of crafts, not to forget questions of grassroots
democracy in governance - that should prompt serious reflection on the possibility of nurturing
the idea and practice of swaraaj, both in India and in the rest of the world.

In what follows, we may dwell briefly on each of these areas of concern. Limitations of space do
not allow us to address here the all-important question of the transition to Harit Swaraaj, though
we will conclude with some reflections on the theme.

India’s predicament and responsibility

Today, India is in a rush to industrialize and urbanize, even at the enormous cost of consciously
killing some of the best aspects of its traditions. The example of handlooms is before us. The
present government claims to be working to revive Indian traditions. But ironically enough, it is
yielding to the pressures of the powerloom lobby and has been trying to repeal the Handlooms
Reservation Act, 1985. Something so germane to the integrity of Indian textile traditions, which
has been and can become ever more in the future, a reason for global cultural pride, is sought to
be removed from the scene, taking with it over 4 million livelihoods. Handlooms have long
provided the single biggest source of livelihood outside agriculture. The predictable impact also
includes making textile production more energy and resource-intensive in a time of shrinking
resources and climate space.

India is key to the future of the world. But this may be true in a manner very different to what
Indian elites expect. The latter have embraced the ambition of turning India into a "superpower"
in a generation or less. However, India's significance for the world may lie more in pioneering an
ecological way of life that could set an example to the world in a post-industrial age. By drawing
upon and building further on its own best traditions, it could evolve an ecologically appropriate
mode of life that could address the challenge of species survival in the 21st century, rather than
mimicking a way of life which is proving so suicidally destructive even in the Western world
itself. Tagore had warned that "it does India no good to compete with Western civilisation in its
own field."
This can only be achieved if India can move away from its present, self-destructive path of
'corporate nationalism', subordinated fully to today's global corporate totalitarianism, launched
by Washington and Wall street after the end of the Cold war in 1989. India has the opportunity
(and responsibility) to give birth and bring to maturity a form of ecological swaraaj which could
serve as a guidepost for the whole world.

Concluding reflections

One thing should be obvious from the discussion in this paper. Many, if not most, of the ideas
entailed by Harit Swaraaj are quite simply inoperable under present-day dispensations of what
we have called ‘corpocracy’. However, our assumption is that the idea of swaraaj will become
increasingly relevant in a future in which much of the power-structure of corpocracy will
collapse under the rapidly growing weight of its own contradictions in the coming decades.

Here one may give an indicative example of the kinds of change we can anticipate from the
vantage-point of 2015. Given trends towards the depletion of non-renewable fossil fuels as well
as of accelerating climate change, international air travel and ocean freight are set to become
much more expensive, drawing our attention back to radical changes we must bring about in the
way we have come to live in, and relate to, our most immediate physical surroundings. Such a
change in present-day conditions, where everyone has become so subtly used to speed,
movement, and relocation, would be tantamount to no less than an upheaval. Yet, it is on the
cards. Necessity could be a virtue if duly anticipated in the public imagination, drawing upon
collective memory where possible and necessary.

While there may be few signs as yet of such a radical change of course on the part of our
imitative ruling elites who seem to live in a constant "catch-up" mode, and it would appear that
the cultural confidence and imagination required to set India forth on an independent and
ecologically sustainable path is missing among the current generation of rulers, events have a
logic and impact of their own, and will force changes in mainstream politics and business.
Positive change can come, however, only if grassroots initiatives are ready to propose ideas and
institutional changes when moments are ripe for them.

Under the conditions that prevail today, if Harit Swaraaj is to approach closer to us from what is
otherwise a receding horizon, there are at least two possible ways that this could come about.

One line of thought would indicate that Harit Swaraaj could emerge gradually through a national
consensus in the wake of the urgency of the ecological challenge. If a critical mass of powerful
decision-makers wake up to the ecological crises of today, a consensual ecological democracy
(CED) could be envisioned. Other than a remarkable setting aside of the ambitious goals of
business-as-usual economic growth, this would involve a rigorous decolonisation of
consciousness. Without this, it is difficult to imagine how policy-space could be liberated from
the crippling tyranny of credit ratings in an era of 'investor sovereignty'.

An alternative line of thought would suggest that a radical rupture with the development
paradigm that has been in place since 1947 (and earlier) takes place, bringing to power a policy-
making regime which brings about fundamental changes in the way the economy is conceived
and rendered ecologically viable. This, more radical form of ecological democracy (RED),
would obviously involve a less non-violent transition than the previous path.

Most importantly, given the radical changes that have taken place in the realm of technology,
especially involving transport and communications - facilitating far greater and speedier
movement of ideas and people, goods and services - it is clear that realisable notions of swaraaj,
while drawing heavily upon legacies of the past, will have to be re-imagined afresh to address
and incorporate widely diverse communities, experiences and landscapes.

A new humanity, a new world

From the above it should be amply clear that one is speaking of a radical change in the way
humanity lives in the 21st century. We are actually talking of a whole new conception of what it
means to live well. We are speaking of a radically new humanity, rooted in a renewed culture of
the spirit which ushers in a new world-view, eclipsing the destructive, unsustainable materialism
of our day.

--------

Further Readings:

Moolakkattu, John S. (2013) ‘Gandhi as a Human Ecologist,’ Down To Earth, Centre for Science
and Environment, New Delhi. http://www.downtoearth.org.in/content/gandhi-human-ecologist

also see slightly longer academic paper Moolakkattu, John S. (2009) ‘Gandhi as a Human
Ecologist,’ Journal of Human Ecology, Vol 29, No 3, pp. 151-158.
http://www.krepublishers.com/02-Journals/JHE/JHE-29-0-000-10-Web/JHE-29-3-000-10-Abst-
PDF/JHE-29-3-151-10-2065-Moolakkattu-J-S/JHE-29-3-151-10-2065-Moolakkattu-J-S-Tt.pdf

Jha, Sreekrishna (undated) ‘Mahatma Gandhi – An Environmentalist with a Difference,’

http://www.mkgandhi.org/environment/jha.htm

Mathai, M. P. (2010) ‘Ecology and Lifestyle: A Gandhian Perspective,’ an adapted version of

longer essay that was first published in Gandhi Marg, Vol 32, No 2, (July-September 2010),
http://www.mkgandhi.org/articles/ecology.html

Nigam, Aditya (2009) ‘Gandhi – ‘The Angel of History’: Reading Hind Swaraj Today,’
Economic and Political Weekly, Vol XLIV, No 11, (March 14, 2009)

Guha, Ramchandra (2001) ‘Gandhi and the Environmental Movement,’ An Anthropologist

Among the Marxists and Other Essays, Permanent Black, Delhi.

Guha, Ramchandra (1988) ‘Ideological Trends in Indian Environmentalism,’ Economic and

Political Weekly, Vol XXIII, No 49 (3rd December), pp. 2578-81.
Khoshoo, T. N. (1995) Mahatma Gandhi: An Apostle of Applied Human Ecology, The Energy
Research Institute, New Delhi.

Weber, Thomas (1999) ‘Gandhi and Deep Ecology,’ Journal of Peace Research, Vol 36, No 3,
(May 1999) http://www.mkgandhi.org/environment/envt.htm

Lal, Vinay (undated) ‘Gandhi and the Ecological Vision of Life,’

http://www.vinaylal.com/ESSAYS(Gandhi)/eco2.pdf

Verma, Manish K. (2014) ‘The Relevance of Gandhian Modernity in the Contemporary Era,’
Research Process, Vol II, No 1, (January-June), pp. 12-22. Accessible online at:
http://srfaurangabad.org/journals/3rdissue/2.pdf
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Rabindranath Tagore and Ecology

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Nature, Spiritual Humanism, Holism, Town and Countryside

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary This module looks at Rabindranath Tagore and trace ecological thinking and
intimacy with nature as recurrent motive in his writings

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Aseem Srivastava, Atreyee

(CW) Majumder
Content Reviewer (CR)
Language Editor (LE)

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Biography

Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941) is a renowned poet, novelist and intellectual of modern India. He
was also a painter of repute. He was born into the illustrious and wealthy family of Tagores or Thakurs
who hail from Jessore, Bengal. His father Debendranath Tagore was a key figure of Hindu reform
initiative – Brahmo Samaj. Brought up in a family where the arts and letters were widely practiced,
Tagore was homeschooled since early adolescence. He sailed for England to study law but came back
soon. At the age of sixteen years, he published his first collection of poems under the pseudonym
Bhanusimha (Sun Lion). His vast oeuvre of poetry, prose, drama, songs and essays formed an effective
articulation of humanism that he was deeply attached to, a quest for divinity, a political sensibility of
criticism of imperial rule and an Indian articulation of what it meant to be modern.

In 1890, Tagore began managing his father’s estate in Shelaidaha. His stay here drew him closer to the
village as a space and prodded his thoughts on the relationship between city and village. In 1901, he
moved to Santiniketan where his family owned land and began building a school and university which
would administer education outside of the oppressive discipline which had made him dislike school
in his childhood. The Visva Bharati University struck roots here. He also started Sriniketan – the
cottage industries initiative to engage with the activities of the village communities around
Shantiniketan.

During the Partition of Bengal in 1905, Tagore raised a strong voice in opposition. He received
knighthood in 1915 and returned the honour in response to the massacre in Jallianwala Bagh, Amritsar
in 1919. He was the first non-European to receive the Nobel Prize for literature (in 1913) for his
collection of poems Gitanjali. He became a critic of nationalism (a strong, centralising ethic that
crushes people’s intimate localising ties and sensibilities); he gave expression to this sentiment in the
famous Japan lectures in 1924. He interacted with and enjoyed the respect of many artists and
intellectuals in the West including W. B. Yeats (who wrote the preface to the English translation of
Gitanjali), Ezra Pound, Thomas Mann, Albert Einstein. His criticism of the egotism that carried much
anti-colonial energy and the need to rethink nationalism through local lenses find expression in the
novel Ghare Baire (Home and the World).

Nature-idealisation, spiritual humanism and quest for wholeness in Tagore’s work

Tagore contemplates man in the finite mode and in the realm of the infinitesimal. The man who is
bound in the realm of material and worldly demands is constantly seeking to unite with the man, who
is on a journey to seek his maker. This journey is not an easy one, according to Tagore. He needs to
fully liberate himself from his ego in order to proceed on this journey. His embrace of the physical
universe around (in a non-acquisitive manner) is a crucial step in his journey towards the Supreme
Being. In the corpus of Tagore’s songs in the Prem and Prakriti Parjaye (in the mood of love and
nature), we find this close linkage between nature-idealisation and the craving for a connection with
God. We might disaggregate Tagore’s ecological thinking into two modes – the mode of spiritual
contemplation in appreciation of nature, and the contemplation of the threats of industrial modernity
and urbanism on the preserve of nature (which is also the realm of organicity for him). The former
makes nature an important ally for man to accomplish transcendence and step out of the confines of
societal life. His humanism is contained in his philosophy of religion of man wherein man achieves
union with the Supreme Being by joining with all around him; in immersing himself in the world. Such
immersion, for Tagore, is personal and individuated – not a union in losing the self in a community.

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Group modes of being don’t find much significance as Tagore sees such a quest as each man’s own,
personal one.

He writes in The Messsage of the Forest (1919):

“When we are threatened with loss of self-respect; when our mind is overwhelmed with the idea that there can
be only one type of civilisation worth the name, and that a foreign one; when our one conscious desire is to
strive with all our might, by begging, borrowing or stealing, towards some ideal of perfection which can only be
related to us, as a mask to a face, or a wig to a head, - then our only hope lies in discovering some profound
creative desire persistent in the heart of our race, in the subconscious mind of our people. For, in the long run,
it is our sub-conscious nature which wins, and it is the deeper unseen current of the mind which secretly cuts
its own path and reaches its own goal, - not the conscious waves on the surface, which clamorously make
themselves obvious and vigorously storm at the present time…the environment, in which we see the past of
India, is the forest, the memory of which permeates our classical literature and still haunts our minds…the
memory of these sacred forests is the one great inheritance which India ever cherishes through all her political
vicissitudes and economic disturbances.”

As a thinker and a human being Rabindranath seeks wholeness. The longing for wholeness is so
critical that it recurs throughout his writings over a long lifetime. In The Message of the Forest (1919),
for instance, he writes:

By concentrating our pride or desire upon a limited field, the field of the animal life, we seek to exaggerate a
portion at the expense of the whole, the wholeness which is in man’s life of the spirit. From this results evil.
That is why renunciation becomes necessary, - not to lead to destitution, but to restoration, to win back the
All.

He is convinced that humanity’s redemption lies in rediscovering the happiness that wholeness alone
can yield.

His vision of life and the universe belong to an integrated cosmology. Not only this, his understanding
of the place of humanity on earth can never see it as divorced from the natural world within and
around it.

The other enduring, complementary idea in the work of Rabindranath is the unity of creation. We
find him drawing this wisdom from an ancient Sanskrit verse:

“Forms are many, forms are different, each of them having its limits. But if this were absolute, if all forms
remained obstinately separate, then there would be a fearful loneliness of multitude. But the varied forms, in
their very separateness, must carry something which indicates the paradox of their ultimate unity, otherwise
there would be no creation.”

The thread tying all creation together may not always be visible to human senses. But that does not
imply that no such thing exists. Unity, harmony and proportion alone lend meaning to existence.
The same loss of unity and harmony occurs when, in our daily lives, we get lost in the limited realm
of our self-interest:

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 “In everyday life our personality moves in a narrow circle of immediate self-interest. And therefore our feelings
and events, within that short range, become prominent subjects for ourselves. In their vehement self-assertion
they ignore their unity with the All.”

For Rabindranath, freedom is only attainable in the context of a human community living in the midst
of a liberated natural world. If he could see what is happening to our world today, he would be
horrified to see the teeming feed-lots, animal factories and monocultural ranches. That would be a
recipe for certain slavery: obvious slavery for the animals and plants at the mercy of machines; and a
thinly disguised slavery for the humans engaged in the everyday management of the system, their
moral stature truncated by the regimented industrialisation of their lives.

What is Rabindranath’s vision of liberated nature, mukta-dhaaraa? We get an early clue from a passage
in his autobiography :

“We [the children] were not allowed to go beyond the boundaries of our home. We were not free to circulate even
in some parts of the household itself. Which is why I used to look out at the world of nature from behind
shutters. There was something there called the outside. It was an infinite extension beyond my reach. And yet
its sights, sounds and smells would slip in here and there through chinks in the doors and windows and suddenly
touch me. It was as if it were sending out so many signals through the gaps between the bars to engage me in a
game. It was the one that was free, while I myself was fettered. There was nothing that could bring us together,
which is all the more why the attraction was so strongly felt.”

An even more striking illustration of Tagore’s vision of liberated nature is the 1922 play Mukta-
Dhaaraa (loosely translatable as “Liberated Stream”). Its central character is a prince who wishes to
liberate a (mountain)-stream from a dam his father and his technical experts (led by the proud royal
engineer Bibhuti) are building across it (denying in the process, water to communities living
downstream, in the Shivtarai). It is an uncannily premonitory metaphor for the times we live in, when
struggles and movements against river dam projects across India have become so legion that they are
often not even reported by the metropolitan media, even as they cause endless mayhem in the lives of
rural communities.

Abhijit, the Crown Prince and tragic hero in Rabindranath’s play, is deeply upset to find that the
waters of Mukta-Dharaaa (a fictional stream inspired by Pagla-Jhora - ‘Mad Steam’ - in Darjeeling that
Rabindranath had actually seen and loved) are being impounded for the purpose of building a dam.
He tries to explain to his brother Sanjay why he must leave the palace:

“Every man has the mystery of his inner life somewhere written in the outer world. The secret of my own life
has its symbol in that waterfall of Mukta-Dhaaraa. When I saw its movements shackled I received a shock
at the very root of my being; I discovered that this throne of Uttarakut is an embankment built across my own
life’s current. And I have come out into the road to set free its course.”

Sanjay wants to accompany his brother on his journey to defend the stream. But, true to
Rabindranath’s character, which entailed an unflinching commitment to human freedom, he makes
Abhijit say to Sanjay that “if you follow me, I shall only obscure…your own true path.” Though
Sanjay is hurt, he respectfully accepts Abhijit’s decision to go on a path he alone must walk. When
Abhijit points out that “the pursuit of the hard is for paying the price of the sweet”, Sanjay reminds
him that “the other day, you were surprised to find a white lotus before your seat, where you have
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your prayer.” “Can you ignore”, he asks “the divine gift which lies hidden in the heart of that little
incident?” Abhijit responds that it is

“for the sake of that very love, which is in this world, I cannot tolerate this hideousness. It kills the music of
the earth, and laughs its sinister laughter, displaying its rows of steel teeth in the sky. Because I love the
paradise of the gods, I am ready to fight the Titans who menace it.”

What Rabindranath thinks of powerful systems of technical knowledge and the personnel that are
deployed in the domination of nature and the human communities who live in intimacy with it is
revealed at a point in the drama when the citizens of Shivtarai are having a conversation with each
other. The first one has this to say about the “men of Uttarakut”, led by the King’s engineer Bibhuti:
“They are born to drudgery. They spend their lives in going from market to market, and from one
landing-place to another.” The second one chimes in: “They have no culture worth speaking of. The
books that they have are worth nothing.” The first one agrees: “Nothing at all. Haven’t you noticed
the letters in them like white ants creeping across the page. The second citizen is confirmed in his
views: “Well-said! White ants indeed! Their culture gnaws everything to pieces.” Finally, a third citizen
delivers the people’s verdict on the way of life of the men of Uttarakut who “heap up earth mounds.
They kill life with their arms and destroy mind with their books.”

Rabindranath’s sentient pantheism and its philosophical consequences

Whether one looks at his poems and plays, or his stories and essays, Rabindranath’s writing is all too
sensitive to the divine liveliness of nature. Humanity is incomplete without the living participation of
nature. Natural forces have a continuous presence in the human drama, inextricably bound up with
it. There is no separation between humanity and nature. He himself writes of this as a feature of
Indian cultures:

“In the drama of other countries, where the human characters drown our attention in the vortex of their
passions, Nature occasionally peeps in, but she is almost always a trespasser…But in all our
dramas…Nature stands in her own right, proving that she has her great function, to impart the peace of the
eternal to the human passions and to mitigate their violent agitations which often come from the instability of
spiritual lameness.”

For Rabindranath there could be no lasting peace in the human realm unless and until we could
draw upon the reserves of eternity hidden in the bosom of nature. He draws extensive lessons
from Tapovan, the ancient Indian idea of the forest hermitage:

“…the ideal hermitage of ancient India was…to establish a harmony between all our energies and the eternal
reality. That is why the relations of Indian humanity with beast and bird and tree had attained an intimacy
which may seem strange to people of other lands…the emotional quality peculiar to the forest-retreat is peace,
the peace which is the emotional counterpart of perfection…the peace which pervaded India’s forests, where
man was not separate from, and had no quarrel with the rest of his surroundings.”

Rabindranath was brought up non-vegetarian, something he had severe pangs about and struggled
to change in older years. What he writes from a Bengal village in 1894 could serve as a pointer to the

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greatness of the ancient idea ofVasudhaiva Kutambakam (all creation is one family) and merits a long
hearing:

“Yesterday I was sitting at the window of the boat when something caught my attention. An unfamiliar bird
was struggling across the river to the opposite bank, pursued by a great commotion. Eventually I saw it was a
hen; it must have escaped imminent death in the galley-boat, jumped overboard and tried to swim across. It had
almost made the bank when a grim reaper grabbed it by the neck and brought it back to the boat. I called
Phatik and told him I would take no meat that night.

“…I really must break the meat-eating habit. Only because we do not think about its injustice and cruelty
can we continue to swallow flesh. There are many misfortunes in the world of which man is the author that
are not clear-cut cases of right or wrong, deriving as they do from custom, culture and tradition - but cruelty is
not one of them. It is a fundamental sin, and admits of no argument or nice distinctions, and if our feelings
were not numb, our eyes and hearts not deliberately closed, we would hear the call for a ban on cruelty plainly.
Instead, we gaily, even joyfully, commit cruelty; in fact, those who do not are dubbed cranks.

“How peculiar and artificial is our apprehension of sin and virtue. I feel that the highest commandment of all
is that of sympathy for all sentient beings. Love is the foundation of all religion. The other day I read in one
of the English papers that 50,000 pounds of animal carcasses had been sent to some army station in Africa,
but as the meat had gone bad on the way, the consignment was returned and finally was auctioned off for a
few pounds at Portsmouth. What a shocking waste! What callous disregard for life! And when we invite
guests to dine how many lives are sacrificed in our dishes, and yet how few of these dishes are fully consumed!

The theme of human cruelty to animals nags Tagore’s conscience to such a degree that the thought
reappears in his reflections some months later and he writes:

“I caught sight of a small dead bird floating in the current yesterday. It is not heard to guess the history of its
death. Its nest must have been in a mango tree at the edge of the village. In the evening it returned there, snuggled
up to its companions, soft and warm, and topped wearily off to sleep. During the night, all of a sudden the
mighty Padma turned slightly in her bed and knocked the earth away beneath the roots of the mango tree.
Nestless, the bird awoke for a moment, and then fell asleep again forever.

“Here in the mofussil the presence of vast, inexplicable, all-devouring natural forces persuades me that man
and Nature are barely distinguishable. Only in the towns are human beings so totally dominant that the
happiness and misery of all other creatures is callously discounted.

“In Europe, too, man’s complicated regime reduces animals to beasts. Indians at least are familiar with the
idea of rebirth of a man as an animal and vice versa, and so our shastras have not banished pity for all
sentient creatures as being a sentimental exaggeration.

“My almost palpable intimacy with Nature in the mofussil awakens the Indian in me. The sight of that
bird, with its down-covered breast so recently throbbing with life and joy, cannot leave me coldly indifferent.”

Rabindranath’s unique genius for a virtually sacred sympathy for all that lives is in evidence in these
recorded experiences. The important point to note here is the depth of his ethical experience of the
natural world. A simple, everyday observation prompts a deep reflection on the banality of human
cruelty to animals. His sentient compassion is awakened by the sight of a dead bird. Moreover, in

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each case he is prompted to relate his experience, both of his own feelings and the outer experience
which provoked them, to traditions of thought and feeling in the part of the world he is born to.

“The mailed fist of earth-hunger”

Rabindranath never thought in terms of the idea of the nation. As he once wrote to his friend
Andrews, “there is no word for ‘nation’ in our language.” He always thought in terms of Humanity
and was deeply sensitive to the relations between different peoples of the earth. His frequent
expressions of anguish at industrial modernity are prompted by a realisation of the sheer scale of
injustices and imbalances between peoples that it has precipitated. In his 1924 essay Robbery of the
Soil (sometimes also rendered as City and Village), he writes:

“Civilization has turned into a vast catering establishment; it maintains constant feasts for a whole
population of gluttons. The intemperance which could have been tolerated in a few has spread to the multitude.
The resulting universal greed is the cause of the meanness, cruelty and lies in politics and commerce that vitiate
the whole human atmosphere. A civilization with an unnatural appetite must feed on numberless victims, and
these are being sought in the parts of the world where human flesh is cheap. The happiness of entire peoples in
Asia and Africa is being sacrificed to provide fastidious fashion with an endless train of respectable rubbish.”

He reminds the reader of Shakuntala:

“The living beauty, whose representative in this drama is Shakuntala, is not aggressively strong like the
callous destructiveness of lust, but, through its frailness, it is sublimely great. And it is the poet’s pleading
which still rings in our ears against the ugly greed of commercialism in the modern age, against its mailed-fist
of earth hunger, against the lust of the strong, which is grossly intent upon killing the Beautiful and piercing
the heart of the Good to the quick. Once again sounds the warning of the forest, at the conclusion of the first
act, when the king is engaged in fateful dalliance with the hermit girl: “O Tapaswis, hasten to rescue the
living spirit of the sacred forest, for Dushyanta, the lord of the earth, whose pleasure is in hunting, is come.”
It is a warning of India’s past, and that warning still continues against the reckless carnival of the present
time, celebrated by the lords of the earth, whose pleasure is in hunting to death with their ruthless machines all
that is beautiful with the delicacy of life.”

Apart from being sensitive to the needs of sentient beings, Tagore reflected on the destructive effect
of over-accumulation and high degrees of consumption. There is such a thing as too much wealth.
Deeply attractive at first, inescapably addictive in the end, too much of a good thing turns into a bad
thing. Tagore was only too mindful of the possibility. He held that many of the distortions of the
modern world were a direct result of the temptation to exceed the bounds of moderation in the
accumulation of wealth made possible through the concentrated application of science and technology
to facilitate human prosperity.

“In the modern age the machine has not only multiplied working capacity but also the hunger for gain and the
scale of profit. That is why there is disharmony between the interest of the individual and the community,
leading ultimately to conflict. Greed severs the relations between town and village. The town has become a
drain on the village because it has ceased to make its contribution to the village. The artificial lights of the
town are ablaze—lights that have no connection with sun, moon or star—but the humble lamps of the village
are dead. The siren of the factory lures men away from the peaceful refuge of their community. And man is
fast reverting to his primeval forest instincts. The individualism of those days has come back to life, but with a
new, gigantic stature.”
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The contemporary blight is serious because it has destroyed all semblance of simplicity and has
affected the entire length and breadth of human civilisation because of the sheer force of
technology:

“When life is simple, wealth does not become too exclusive. Individual property then readily admits its duties
to the people. But with the rise in living standards property changes its aspect. It shuts the gates of hospitality,
which is the best means of social intercommunication. It displays itself in extravagance. It begets rigid class
divisions. In short, it becomes anti-social. With material progress, property has become intensely individualistic:
the method of gaining it has become a matter of science and not of social ethics. It breaks social bonds; it drains
away the sap of the community. Its unscrupulousness plays havoc.

Town and country: Tagore’s unorthodox view on an enduring debate

In a long series of writings that stretch across the second half of his life, Rabindranath is keen to draw
attention to the ecological follies of the modern age. One of the things that concern him most is the
imbalanced relationship between town and country, so central to our time. At one pole of the debate,
Gandhi castigated the destructiveness of urban life and argued for Graam Swaraaj, (village republics).
At the other extreme, Dr. Ambedkar argued strongly in favour of urbanisation since villages had
become havens for caste oppression.

Tagore’s views takes neither of the extreme positions, suggesting that the relationship between town
and country is too organic to be sundered. It has to be renegotiated with greater ecological and
cultural intelligence. It is not a marriage where divorce is an option.

It is in the poorly read essay, Robbery of the Soil, where he articulates in unalloyed terms his deep
apprehensions about the predatory relationship between the city and the village in the modern world
(especially in India) and the urgency of renegotiating it afresh and invigorating it with a mature
ecological ethics.

“The consequence of such a material and moral drain is made evident when one studies the condition manifested
in the grossness of our cities and the physical and mental anaemia of the villages almost everywhere in the world.
For cities inevitably have become important. The city represents energy and materials concentrated for the
satisfaction of an exaggerated appetite, and this concentration is considered to be a symptom of civilisation. The
devouring process of such an abnormality cannot be carried on unless certain parts of the social body conspire
and organise to feed upon the whole. This is suicidal; but before a gradual degeneracy ends in death, the
disproportionate enlargement of the particular portion looks formidably great. It conceals the starved pallor of
the entire body. The illusion of wealth becomes evident because certain portions grow large on the robbery of the
whole.”

Sensing the unholy alliance of democracy and capitalism, he writes:

“What in the West is called democracy can never be true in a society where greed grows uncontrolled and is
encouraged, even admired, by the people. In such an atmosphere a constant struggle goes on among individuals
to capture public organizations for their personal ends. Democracy is then like an elephant whose one purpose
in life is to give joyrides to the clever and the rich.

“Under such conditions the organs through which public opinion is formed together with the machinery of
administration are all openly or secretly manipulated by the prosperous few. They have been compared of old,
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 to the camel, which can never pass through a needle’s eye —the gate that leads to the kingdom of ideals. Such
a society is callous and cruel to those who preach their faith in spiritual freedom. In such a society people are
intoxicated by the constant stimulation of what they call progress, a progress which they are willing to buy at
the cost of civilization itself, like the man for whom wine is more attractive than food.”

Rabindranath reminds us of the commonsensical fact that rural life is lived ecologically closer to the
natural world:

“Villages are like women. In their keeping is the cradle of the race. They are nearer to nature than towns,
and in closer touch with the fountain of life. They possess a natural power of healing. It is the function of the
village, like that of women, to provide people with their elemental needs, with food and joy, with the simple
poetry of life and with those ceremonies of beauty which the village spontaneously produces and in which she
finds delight. But when constant strain is put upon her, when her resources are excessively exploited, she
becomes dull and uncreative. From her time- honoured position of the wedded wife, she descends to that of a
maid-servant. The city, in its intense egotism and pride, remains unconscious of the hurt it inflicts on the very
source of its life, health and joy.”

However, does all this mean that things have to be like this, that cities must necessarily be predatory?

Cities are necessary to human civilization:

“Cities there must be in man’s civilization, just as in higher organisms there must be organized centres of life,
such as the brain, heart, or stomach. These never overwhelm the living wholeness of the body; on the contrary,
by a perfect federation of their functions, they maintain its richness. But a tumor in which the blood is congested
is the enemy of the whole body upon which it feeds as it swells. Our modern cities, in the same way, feed upon
the social organism that runs through the villages. They appropriate the life stuff of the community and slough
off a huge amount of dead matter, while making a lurid counterfeit of prosperity.”

Tagore adds:
“Cities have their function of maintaining wealth and knowledge in concentrated form. They should do so not
for their own sake alone; they should be centres of irrigation; they should gather in order to distribute; they
should not magnify themselves, but should enrich the entire commonwealth. They should be like lamp-posts,
and the light they shed must transcend their own limits.

“Such a relationship of mutual benefit between the city and the village can function only so long as the spirit
of co-operation and self-sacrifice is a living ideal in society. When some temptation defeats this ideal, when
selfish passion gains ascendency, a gulf is formed and goes on widening. City and village then stand as
exploiter and victim.”

Concluding Comments
Rabindranath Tagore is often understood to be a thinker immersed in mysticism and romanticism.
Much of his poetic and literary writings do point in that direction; he was providing a well-defined
path of action like Gandhi or Marx. But through his own life, in his actions of establishment of
Shantiniketan and Sriniketan (a school, university and cottage industries initiative), he showed enough
practical vision to take his beliefs and thoughts towards some form of fruition. His ecological vision
may be understood in two ways: a) embrace of nature and response to all sentient beings as a means
to achieve wholeness and proceed on a journey towards God; b) the political criticism of plundering

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motives of industrial capitalism and the social institutions that flourish through it. While the mystical
quest for human completeness is present throughout Tagore’s oeuvre, it must also be pointed out that
he provided a clear-eyed and unequivocal critique of industrial modernity and nationalist egotist
loyalties that entail plunder and colonization of nature to feed the materials hungers of human
enterprise.
Further Reading
Journal Articles
Bhowmik, Devesh (2012) ‘Rabindranath Tagore: An Environmentalist and an Activist’, in International
Research Journal of Humanities and Environmental Issues, Vol I, no 5, pp. 10-13.
Das, Debmalya (2012) ‘Rabindranath Tagore’s ‘Religion of Forest’: An Ecocritical Reading’, in Muse
India, No 45, http://www.museindia.com/viewarticle.asp?myr=2012&issid=45&id=3665
Dasgupta, Uma and Annadrupa Ray (2009) ‘Rabindranath Tagore and his Contemporary Relevance’,
Parabaas, (August 07, 2009)
http://www.parabaas.com/rabindranath/articles/pContemporaryTagore.html
Newspaper Articles and Blogs
Basu, Jayanta (2003) ‘Language of Rivers and Leaves: International Effort to Celebrate Friendship of
Poet and Ecologist’, The Telegraph (January 01, 2003)
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1030101/asp/calcutta/story_1508596.asp
Marsh, Chris (2013) ‘Tagore and ‘The Robbery of the Soil’’, blogpost on tagoreanworld, (January 13,
2013) https://tagoreanworld.wordpress.com/2013/01/31/tagore-and-the-robbery-of-the-soil/
Sahu, S. N. (2012) ‘Tagore’s Prophecy’: A Speech delivered at Nikhil Bharat Bango Sahitya Sammelan
at Rourkela, Odisha on December 25, 2011, in Hardnews, (February 13, 2012)
http://www.hardnewsmedia.com/node/4435
Rahman, Atiur (2011) ‘Tagore’s Thoughts on Environment’, The Daily Star, (June 03, 2011)
http://archive.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=188331

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 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Marx and Ecology

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Value, production, capital, labour, base, superstructure, commodity, use

value, exchange value

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary Karl Marx is an economist and philosopher best known for his theories of
how capitalist production in the modern world works, how class struggle
alters history and the normative framework of communism to correct the
injustices of the capitalist system. Through the materialist perspective,
Marx shows how human social and productive life is fundamentally
concerned with the metabolisation of nature, and how the segregation of
anthropocentrism and ecocentrism misunderstands the intrinsic connection
to the physical world and the whole social realm.

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Atreyee Majumder

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR)
Language Editor (LE)

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INTRODUCTION

Human domination of nature for the purpose and securing and expanding productive capacities

that service capitalism, is another important way to understand the ecological concern. As nature

is burdened with more and more productive demand from the world of industrial enterprise, labour

(manpower or workforce that produces for consumption of society) comes to combine with nature

as the primary ingredients of this productive greed. We inherit an understanding of how labour

and nature come to combine in order to provide for capital’s expanding productive agenda from

the works of Karl Marx. In this module, the work of Karl Marx is introduced, some key concepts

are explained, their relevance to ecological perspectives are explained.

We know of Karl Marx’s contribution to the ideas of communism and socialism. Famously, the he

wrote the Communist Manifesto that became the instrument of many political churnings and

labour struggles the world over. But Marx also wrote an exhaustive amount of work that

contributes to the understanding of how capitalist production in the modern era works – primarily

in Europe, but also in other parts of the world. Some of his work shares the ecological concern

but in different ways from many ecologists.

BIOGRAPHY

Karl Marx (1818-1883) was born in Trier in the Prussian Rhineland. He studied at the Universities

of Bonn and Berlin. He was interested in Hegel’s idea of dialectics from a young age. His father

had converted from Judaism to Lutherianism to escape the impact of anti-semitism in Germany.

He studied philosophy and literature at Bonn and went on to study law at Berlin. He was influenced

2
by Hegel and came in contact with a group called Young Hegelians at this time. He completes his

PhD in 1841, titled “The Difference Between Democritean and Epicurean Philosophy of Nature”.

He started writing voraciously during this period, and also wrote some fiction. In Paris, and after

having met Friedrich Engels (in 1844), he engaged in the continued study of ‘political economy’

(especially economists like Adam Smith, David Ricardo). The product of this study was the

publication of The Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844. Engels went on to become a

lifelong intellectual collaborator.

Marx’s engagement in communist discourse increasingly led him to be exiled – first to Brussels

and later to London. The Communist Manifesto was published on February 21, 1848. From this

time, Marx involved himself in working class organizing and with a number of revolutionary

newspapers. He initiated the First International in the International Workingmen’s Association to

whose General Council he was elected in 1864. His Theory of Alienation as an essential effect of

the capitalist mode of production is enshrined in Capital Vol. 1. Capital Vol. II and III were

published posthumously by Engels. Many of his writings were published after his demise. Much

of his life was spent in great poverty.

KEY CONCEPTS

Historical and Dialectical Materialism

Marx analyses the state of capitalist production and the economic structure supporting it as having

evolved in stages of history. These stages can be understood through the rubric of productive

forces and production relations. Production relations in each phase carries the struggle between

classes (especially in a way that the class that owns and controls productive forces rules).

Productive forces would be the factors of production – land, labour, machines, fertilisers,

3
monetary capital. Classes respond to each other’s structural location through the act of

production. This act of production is the fundamental explanatory rubric of history – materialism,

or that which corresponds to matter, as opposed to the work in the realm of thought or ideas. All

history follows the pattern of struggle between classes over control of modes of production, and

thus, proceeds in a dialectical way. As productive forces grow, these class relations change and

the economy moves to a new stage. In modern capitalism, the most important form of struggle is

between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat. This pattern of struggle and growth is analysed by

Marx as ‘dialectical materialism’.

The stages Marx envisages are - tribal form of production, primitive communism, feudalism,

capitalism. For non-western countries like India, he envisages a system of Asiatic mode of

production. In tribal economy, ownership is determined by kinship and there are no classes. In

primitive communism, private property begins to develop, and the peasant class is slowly seen to

be transforming into proletariat. Under feudalism, production is organized in trade guilds as

craftsmen of smaller scale industries dominate production. It is also characterized by minimal

division of labour. With the arrival of capitalism, the division of labour becomes highly specific, the

production is organized on a mass scale where the worker reproduces only a fraction of the large

and complex system. Most production is carried out in factories under a rigid working-day regime

which results in the worker feeling alienated from the production process. Society is structured

around profit and commodity-consumption. The state emerges as a protector of the interests of

the capitalist. It is from this deep entrenchment in capitalism that Marx argued workers must carry

out a revolution and bring in the era of communism wherein modes of production will be socially

owned. He analysed production in Asian societies as the Asiatic Mode of Production – where the

state emerges with far greater power, holding a monopoly over productive assets like irrigation

systems.

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Use Value/Exchange Value

Use-value derives from the physical characteristic of the commodity. Exchange value derives

from the value it is accorded in the market of commodities through the mechanism of price. Use

value is intrinsic to the thing itself, and unrelated to its status as commodity or relations of

production. It is realized in the consumption of the thing. For example, a fruit is plucked off a tree

and eaten. Its use value is realized. When it is packaged, loaded on a ship, and served as part of

dessert at a restaurant in a faraway country, its value combines with the labour of several quarters

in plantation economy, shipping and cargo economy and restaurant economy, to determine its

exchange value as the price of the dessert. As the thing (from the nature, serving as ‘raw material’)

combines with human labour to determine a marketable commodity, the surplus value which is

rendered as profit for the capitalist is derived from the extra human element of labour which cannot

be priced. It is this extra human element that ensures the working of the principle of labour theory

of value which Marx derives from David Ricardo and complicates.

Commodity

Marx conceptualises the commodity as the symbol of capitalist society. He examines the inherent

usefulness of a thing - that makes it attractive for consumption (its use-value), and its relative

value in the commodity market (exchange value). Marx asks the question - how do intrinsic values

of two different things compare with each other in order to make them comparable as an equal

magnitude at the time of exchange? It is their reducibility to this third thing - money - that makes

two things compare in their intrinsic characters. Money becomes the absolute equivalence that

purports to be able to translate all things in its language and churn out their exchange-value.

5
Marx says, further, that commodities are carriers of the abstracted, congealed form of human

labour (that goes into making the commodity). Their exchange-values reduce the diverse

expressions of labour into a homogenous form that can be measured in terms of exchange-value

at the time of an act of exchange between things. “As exchange-values, all commodities are

merely definite quantities of congealed labour-time” (Capital Vol.1, 130)… “It is labour. We know

the measure of its magnitude. It is labour-time. The form, which stamps value as an exchange-

value.” (Capital Vol.1, 131) In the chapter, The Commodity in Capital Vol.1, Marx looks at the

commodity from the point of view of the object produced by linking labour-power to nature, with

the help of instruments of labour provided by the capitalist. When the initial commodity C (20

yards of linen) is mixed with labour-power under the diktat of the capitalist, a new C (C`), the coat

(transformed with the congealed labour imprinted on it) emerges. This metamorphosed

commodity, which embodies objectified labour - the coat - now has a universal equivalent as

against the infinite series of commodities in the world. Its exchange-value will determine, in terms

of money (the absolute equivalent), how it compares with exchange-values across the board.

Marx’s notion of the social character of labour gets across to consumers of the commodity, who

perceive its exchange-value in light of this sensation of the social character that the commodity

carries.

Alienation

This congealed form of labour that gets imprinted onto the body of the commodity is an abstraction

of the personhood of the worker, which makes the charismatic form of the commodity, and strips

the worker of some of his intrinsic personhood. In the capitalist mode of production, the worker is

stripped of his prerogative of creative expression of humanness through the act of producing. The

early Marx expresses this humanistic lament at the tragedy of “commodity”: “The product of labour

is labour which has been congealed in an object, which has become material: it is the

6
objectification of labour”(Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844, 71). This physical loss

that the worker experiences when he confronts the product of his labour - the commodity, a thing

independent of himself, that he now has no control over - causes what Marx calls estrangement

or alienation of labour. Its passing into the hands of the capitalist now informs his permanent state

of bondage to the capitalist system of production. (Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of

1844, 72-3)

Base/Superstructure

In the corpus of Marx’s work, society can be seen as a combination of base and superstructure.

Base consists of the material substratum on which production relations are built – all the

productive forces in a society. Other relations and ideas that a society builds on the base, are

known as superstructure. Culture, morality, aesthetics, political institutions come in the ambit of

superstructure. The rubric of base and superstructure runs through the work of other Marxist

theorists as well. Theorists like Antonio Gramsci see it as ‘hegemony’ – the subtle and all-

encompassing power in the complex of cultural and political value-making and value-enforcing

institutions (church, school etc.) in society that enforce and sustain production relations. Louis

Althusser proposes two distinct categories through which to understand the non-material

elements of society – repressive state apparatus and ideological state apparatus – the former

being the force of the political apparatus of modern states (military, police) and the latter the

institutions indirectly transmit class relations (church, school, club and so on). Marxists of the

Frankfurt School, whose work was also a result of the destruction of the World War II and the

Jewish Holocaust carried out by the Nazi regime, significantly, Theodor Adorno and Max

Horkheimer saw a similar significance of superstructure in operationalizing production relations,

crucially through the institutions of mass media and culture industries. Walter Benjamin who took

Marxism into the realm of artistic and literary theory, seems the layers of history in the spatial

7
layering of European cities which he shows bare the marks of historically produced class relations

on the mundane layout of public spaces in cities. Raymond Williams’ work explores materialism

and related Marxist categories in literature. Sociologist Pierre Bourdieu sees the working of

superstructure through social norms of ‘distinction’ – performances of sophistication – by which

each class sets itself apart from the class below. Feminist Marxists have interrogated the

patriarchal institutions as superstructure, and emphasized the undervaluing of women’s work and

its links to the system of private property in which women’s labour is used in the family and in the

factory. These arguments originate from Engels’ text The Origin of the Family, Private Property

and the State. Geographers like David Harvey and Neil Smith have taken the analysis of Marxist

categories to the realm of urban space, real estate markets and the process of gentrification (the

artificial valuing of properties and spaces rendered devalued in the decline of manufacturing

industries). The discussions of deindustrialization in the West in the milieu of post-Fordism (the

era of dismantling of the structures of largescale manufacture – Fordism – in favour of service

and luxury industries) have contributed to the Marxist study of space and landscape. These are

ways in the materialism and base/superstructure dyad of Marx is extended into a corpus of Marxist

theory of the twentieth century that took Marxism away from its economic emphasis. These ideas

see the operation of production relations in unlikely zones – which are not necessarily in places

directly linked to economic activity. They also share the common thread of not seeing state and

non-state as categorically separate, but linked through and through to production relations.

MARX AND ECOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES

Fundamentally, he has a materialist conception of nature, a clearer idea of which we get in John

Bellamy Foster’s seminal work Marx’s Ecology. This materialism as an explaining mechanism for

social history, has an intimate relation with nature. The process of natural history defines human

materialism. The base-superstructure categorical divide has been increasingly diluted by the

8
critical Marxists of the twentieth century. But the connection to the natural physical world has been

continually recognized in understanding the limits of productive existence. Therefore, following

Foster, we may understand that Marxian productivist understanding of social relations and class-

antagonism has deep links with the physical characteristics of the world in which these relations

are borne out.

Foster addresses the criticism ecologists target at Marx for taking Promethean point-of-view in

showing human history as pro-industrial and anti-ecological. He shows that Marx’s ecological

sensitivity was not one of reducing ‘ecology’ to ‘values’ that one must propound. Marx’s ecological

perspective was a fundamental sensitivity to the nature human relations with nature – that this

‘metabolic’ relation through which nature was brought into the social productive fold was at the

core any ecological understanding of human society. Marx’s materialism was instructive in

providing the view that ecology is not a matter of spiritualism or philosophical idealism. A complex

materialist view of human metabolic relations with nature was required to understand how

capitalism impacted ecology, or how an ecologically protective viewpoint could be taken on

capital’s interaction with nature. From basic nutrition, to agriculture, to feed for cattle and

ultimately providing the base of raw materials for industry, all human surviving and sustaining

force requires in some form, the metabolic interaction with nature. Environmental social science,

Foster points out, is mired in the compartmentalisation of anthropocentrism and ecocentrism.

Foster and his economist ally Paul Burkett make crucial interventions in showing the ecological

lens in Marx, with sharper analysis of Marx’s materialism.

Marx’s fundamental grounding of political economy is in materialism – the pre-eminence of matter

in the study of human society; and matter arises from the physical world. Human beings are social

9
through their productive activities. This realm of production cannot go a step without engaging

matter – the earth. Hence, the earth as a universal human instrument becomes tied to all forms

of human endeavour (given that human endeavour is seen as driven towards production). A

farmer needs a plough and seeds, a trucker needs a trucker, a tailor needs thread. These are

all components of nature that lend themselves to instrumentalisation through human intention of

production. Nature is metabolized by human labour under the governance of capital as a

fundamental feature of production. Marx also considers the effect on production of ‘free gifts of

nature’ – that the capitalist does not have to rent. The main natural goods whose scarcity impacts

production are land, mineral, raw materials, potable water. These goods have to be paid for as

rent, licensing fees and such.

The ecological crisis fundamentally arises as capital’s infinitesimal thirst for surplus encounters

the limited nature of natural resources. Marx’s theorisation of value encompasses attention to the

pressures and threats to natural resources through capital’s program of expansion across the

globe. Marx shows that logic of capital takes for granted human domination of nature for the

generation of surplus value. He further shows that this surplus value is essentially drawn from

nature and labour. There is no action possible for labour alone if there is no nature. Paul Burkett,

in the book Marx and Nature, which acts as a theoretical complement to Foster’s work,

disaggregates Marx's reading of nature as that which can be freely appropriated by capital from

that who’s harnessing costs money. Burkett emphasises the eco-regulatory nature of capital's

fundamental intention in applying labour to nature.

Burkett analyses Marx in refuting the viewpoint that nature is a pure category that is

conceptualised outside of human existence. He points to natural management philosophies such

as Common Property Rights that would point towards Marx's socialist utopia where modes of

10
production would not be held individually, and natural resource would not be infinitesimally

deployed to generate surplus. Burkett is conscious that Marx was in agreement with Capitalism's

view of nature as a resource base to bring within the control of human labour and technology in

order to further social life (social life made meaningful by production). Burkett is of the view that

Marx's value-analysis was attuned to the ecological point of view.

Geographer David Harvey has produced a body of work commenting on Marxian categories

insofar as they spell out on space – especially, urban space. David Harvey, in the masterful

commentary on Marx – Limits to Capital – shows that capital is a social relation interested in

expanding its logic and covering new set of resources (natural and social) within its mode of

operation. When the physical wherewithal of one set of productive forces gets overburdened and

cannot absorb the new level of technology, capital ejects itself out of this physical setup (for

example, a factory of outmoded technology) and inserts itself into a new setup (new factory with

new resources, perhaps in a new industry altogether). This creates waves or phases in capital’s

production and makes natural resources vulnerable to overuse and waste as capital moves from

one set of physical infrastructure to another. Harvey shows specifically, the ecological implication

of post-Fordist productive techniques – that of flexible accumulation. Flexible accumulation –

where the absorption of material by labour for production is no longer clubbed together in a factory

(consider for instance, production in garment sweatshops where each component of a product –

say jeans - is produced separately in different part so the world, under different labour regime)

separates and disperses many aspects of production and circulation across the globe. Harvey

asserts that internal contradictions of capital play out explicitly on the domain of space.

Simon West, a PhD student at the Stockholm Resilience Centre, in his short discussion blogpost

attempts to answer the question if Marx can be referred to as the first ecological socialist.

Concluding comments

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The question of post-industrial space - space that has been rendered devalued after a phase of

in the course of industrial production is thus crucial to the Marxist understanding of ecology. The

ecological problems of pollution, degradation, depletion of natural resources, occurring greatly on

account of capital’s drive for greater and greater surpluses, shifting between old and new

geographies, can be clearly understood using Marxian categories. It must be remembered, more

than anything else, that nature exists in as a resource base for capital’s exploitation, and the

ecological perspective must not take ecology as simply a value-regime but a preserve of

understanding human production relations. This understanding is sharpened in Marxist thought.

- The drive for surplus is intrinsic to the working of capital. It is achieved primarily in

applying human labour to nature under the governance of the capitalist.

- Capital endlessly looks for new opportunities for exploitation of nature and labour to

increase the rate of profits. This logic poses a fundamental ecological problem given

the finitude of natural resources like land and minerals.

- Advanced capitalism creates postindustrial ecologies – locales and natural resources

depleted or degraded due to exhaustion from industrial use. The ecologies are often

taken over urban industries of real estate (hotels, gated communities) or luxury

(gardens, parks) which generates artificially high rent.

12
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Ecology and Anarchism – Peter Kropotkin

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords State, society, resource, distribution, history, anarchism, communism

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary Peter Kropotkin is the most famous and important anarchist theorist. This
module tries to introduce his contribution to ecological thinking and radical
environmental movements.

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Atreyee Majumder

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR)
Language Editor (LE)

1
BIOGRAPHY

Peter Kropotkin (1842 – 1921) was born in Moscow into a noble family, where his father was an

army officer. He developed an early interest in the condition of peasantry. He left for military service

in Crimea in 1853. He began run-ins with authority initially by rebelling in the Corps of Pages. In

1862, he was placed in Siberia under the command of General Kukel. He acquainted himself with

the power hierarchies of the military and the condition of peasants during his time in Siberia. In

1866, he began engaging with the writings of the French anarchist Proudhon. The very next year, the

influence of his readings and his being witness to the condition of peasantry in Siberia made him to

resign his commission into army and return to academics.

In 1872, he signed on to be member of the International Workingmen’s Association at Geneva.

However, soon he came to develop discontentment with IWA’s style of functioning and felt inspired

by radical currents of Jura Foundation at Neuchatel. On his return to Russia, he was introduced to

the Tchaikovsky Circle by his friend. As part of Tchaikovski Circle, he convinced his fellow

members about the need to spread socialist ideology by talking about stories of revolts by the masses,

instead of constantly harping on socialist intellectuals. His lectures and writings brought him

displeasure with the government. (Read more at http://www.ditext.com/woodcock/kropotkin.html)

He was imprisoned in April 1874. In 1876, he fled to England, having suffered continued political

persecution. In 1879, he founded Le Revolte, the anarchist newspaper which was to grow in

considerable importance. In 1882, he was arrested by the French authorities, tried in Lyons along

with other anarchists and sentenced to five years imprisonment for his association with the

International Workingmen’s Association. Protests against his arrest led to his release in 1886. He

lived and wrote articles mostly in newspapers like Le Revolte and returned to Russia after the Russian

Revolution in 1917.

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In a short biographical note on Kropotkin, John P. Clark states that “his ideas have had an enduring

influence on decentralism, regionalism, and alternative technology and later thinkers such as Patrick

Geddes, Lewis Mumford and Paul Goodman have looked to him for inspiration. More recently, he

has been recognised for his influence of the radical environmental movement and more specifically

as the most important theoretical forefather of green anarchism. Kropotkin’s most famous concept

is the idea that evolutionary advances throughout the natural world are promoted best through

mutual aid, cooperation and symbiosis. His social theory, including his view of religion and other

institutions, is grounded in this view of nature.”

Anarchism and distrust of the State

Kropotkin’s name occupies the canon of anarchism along with Fourier, Proudhon and Mikhail

Bakunin (read more on anarchism here - http://theanarchistlibrary.org/special/index). It differs from

its ideological cousin of communism insofar as it does not see the requirement for a strong,

centralised, planning state mechanism to procure the ideological end-products of need-based

resource use and non-profit-oriented production. Kropotkin interrogates the state historically. He

shows that states are relatively newer historical formations as compared to societies. He found in

human society the profound ability to respond to each other’s needs as well as collectively create

things for social reproduction. This character of society, he believed, reduced immensely, the need

for government. Coupled with this was the emphasis on localised use of resource and the need for

federalism in organisation of government.

Before going into the various threads of Kropotkin’s thought, I wish to dwell on his fundamental

interrogation of ‘state’. Families of humans combined into clans and tribes in which persons

relinquished their autonomy to a centralising force in order to receive protection and security. This

process was, for Kropotkin, the key element producing state. It is here that human societies become

3
different from animal counterparts. They create more and more complex protecting systems in the

form of tribes and so on. In the text “The State – Its Historic Role”, Kropotkin delineates the rise

of centralised monarchies in Europe in the Middle Ages. From the city-states, elites arose to compete

for greater agglomerations of power and control. He comments that the nature of state is

fundamentally to discourage coalitions among citizens. People have a large swathe of interest-

domains where they can collaborate and help each other. The state will not let that the happen. For

instance, if a community decides to exchange food grain for water, they can very well ensure the

subsistence of all without the intervention of a state or state-like mechanism. There were communes

of mutual co-dependence in production and decentralised governance which would slide into

monarchical wars in medieval Europe. Centralised states emerged feeding the desire for greater

security among communities. In the process, tribes and communities lost their autonomy and

freedoms. There arose a centralised understanding of resource. It was made legible through taxes,

tariffs and strongly defended borders.

He writes:

The State cannot recognize a freely-formed union operating within itself; it only recognizes
subjects. The State and its sister the Church arrogate to themselves alone the right to serve
as the link between men. Consequently, the State must, perforce, wipe out cities based on
the direct union between citizens. It must abolish all unions within the city, as well as the
city itself, and wipe out all direct union between the cities. For the federal principle it must
substitute the principle of submission and discipline. Such is the stuff of the State, for
without this principle it ceases to be State. - Peter Kropotkin, “The State: Its Historic
Role”.

Kropotkin advocates a radical intellectual move away from the notion of a centre affirming its many

parts, in the knowledge project itself. In the essay “Anarchism- Its Philosophy and Ideal”, he shows

that earlier physical sciences like astronomy were organized around the idea of a single activating

centre – like a star (the sun for our planetary system) – for charting the activity and inner coordination

4
of its member celestial bodies. With the evolution of molecular theory, there have been changes in

that lens. Celestial bodies are not looked at as complete, externally controlled things but having a

vast and complex internal mechanics – through atomic behaviour – that determine its autonomous

and coordinated existence in planetary complexes. Similarly, the political organism can survive

without a centre – through several dispersed loci of power, coordinating among themselves. This

idea of moving away from the notion of centre drove Kropotkin’s fervency for federalism and

anarchism. If people were allowed to socially coordinate and reciprocate, much of their needs would

be fulfilled and they would not have the need for a strong, centralised state. In final analysis, he saw

states as tremendous agglomerations of power – ones that evacuated all other social formations of

their power and autonomy. It may also be said that in large parts of the world, the sovereign state

exists alongside other corpuses of power – religion, family, corporation – and the state is not the only

source of power. Grids of sovereignties (Ong 2007) reveal complex grammars of power across the

globe. The neat arrangement of power between state and non-state that Kropotkin held, may not

hold true everywhere. Nevertheless, we can say about Kropotkin’s fundamental aversion for state

power, that he imagined social organizations performing political and economic functions in an

anarchist society, thereby reducing the capacity of the state for centralisation.

Nature, Geography and Human Empathy

Nature arises in Kropotkin’s work as a canvas for application of humane production relations. His

concern about nature stems from a concern about how to imbibe empathy and associated values

among human beings. Geography emerges in his thought as a mechanism through which to sensitise

human beings about the radically different forms of existence. In so doing, he was stepping into the

shoes of anthropologists and geographers.

5
 Until now the Europeans have (civilised the savages' with whiskey, tobacco, and kidnapping;
they have inoculated them with their own vices; they have enslaved them. But the time is
coming when we shall consider ourselves bound to bring them something better -- namely,
the knowledge of the forces of nature, the means of utilising them, and higher forms of social
life. All this, and many other things have to be taught by geography if it really intends
becoming a means of education. – [Kropotkin, “What Geography ought to be” (1885)]
In the above passage, he shows his sensitivity to the worldwide connections of capital, commerce

and trade that make a political stage of relations among nations and communities. In this

international stage, nature gets implicated through human choices in forming a material base for life.

Like Marx, Kropotkin is not independently concerned about nature for its own sake but as a crucial

canvas of human action, and hence, of actualisation of human ethics.

Kropotkin is also concerned about the life sciences and their systematised view of nature. He

discusses Darwin and other evolution scientists in the essay “The Direct Action of Environment and

Evolution”, he comments on the juxtaposition of natural selection as one mode of evolution and

environmental variation as another mode. He writes a vast array of essays commenting on the need

to be close to the nature through bodily work. A perfect balance in human existence can be achieved

through a combination of field and factory, brain and bodily work to restore human life to the

completion that industrial capitalism had deprived it from. In many ways, Kropotkin’s views on the

relationship between man and nature is akin to Marx. He does not see nature as a glorious preserve

whose being must be accounted for as separate domain from human existence.

Kropotkin and the Theories of Modern States

I find it instructive to see Kropotkin and other anarchists as making the distinct shift in the study of

rule in human society, by taking the focus away from power. The idea that human beings can relate

to each other aside from the disproportionate occupation of power by one party and its exertion

6
over another, is at the core of their ideology. Some practical applications of this ideology, as we have

seen through later anarchists like Bookchin, is in democratic and decentralised method of decisions

regarding nature’s use for satisfaction of human wants. But in principle, these thinkers are telling a

whole host of political thought of varying origin that governance can be ensured to procure good

lives a large number without the resort to a complex machination of power. At the core of their

strategy is a move away from the phenomenon of strong centralised states.

A host of political thought has been generated as a result of the two Great Wars in the twentieth

century – focusing on the study of how the elaborate and deep apparatus of control by the state over

all conditions of its subjects. These are crucially embedded in the terrain of the modern democratic

state, tied economically to capitalism. Max Weber shows the evolution of modern state by erasing

of charismatic authority and the impersonalisation of the conduct of power through anonymous

bureaucratic authority. Unlike Weber, Foucault steers clear of trying to provide a holistic story

through institutions of market, law, state as structures of modern power, but zooms onto the

unpredictable coalition of institutions of knowledge, punishment, juridical discourse to collect an

uncanny feel of modern power. Synoptic visibility is ensured by various institutional and processual

mechanisms that make the object of governance – population, significantly – visible in its entirety,

and amenable to assessment and measurement. Panopticism of the carceral as described in

Discipline and Punish (1975) is a key moment of Foucault’s explication of such synoptic visibility,

where the prisoners are entirely visible from the top of the watchtower. Individualisation, as brought

out in Discipline and Punish, is carried out in the infusion of time and space onto prisoners to create

‘docile bodies’. He makes similar arguments for asylums, hospitals, schools. To this effect, he

discusses the role of the ‘scientifico-juridical complex’ in furtherance of modern state power.

7
One might see Kropotkin in contrast with someone like Foucault who sees the pernicious power of

the state everywhere. As opposed to this, Kropotkin sees the state as a tightly held together,

monolithic monument of power – one that citizens are best left at a great distance from. He makes

a value-laden and aesthetic difference between state and citizens as vehicles of power, whilst Foucault

sees both as different but continuous carriers of technologies of modern power. The citizen, for

Foucault, becomes an agent of modern power through the school, the church, the hospital and other

social disciplining institutions. Although Kropotkin advocates a move away from agents of social

power such as priests and judges, he does not advocate a move away from forms of social power like

education and medicine. So the picture of citizens as camouflaged agents of state power does not

occur in Kropotkin’s work. In the contemporary debates about the modern state and its vehicles,

one might see Kropotkin as a refreshingly different voice – one that is advocating a view of social life

in which the role of power, especially state power, is minimised.

Graham Purchase, in his essay Green Flame: Kropotkin and the Birth of Ecology, gives an account

of Kropotkin as a leading historical and philosophical figure in the early development and emergence

of environmentalism as a political ideology. It would be relevant to add here that Purchase submitted

in the year 203 his doctoral thesis that looks at Peter Kropotkin as Ecologist, Philosopher and

Thinker. He states, “Kropotkin’s major works were all republished and discussed in the 1970s such

that his late 19th century ideas and insights influenced and shaped the direction and definition of

the early-modern environmental movement. Kropotkin was the first person to mould proto-

ecological concepts within the then fledgling fields of economics, agricultural science, conservation-

ism, ethology, criminology, city planning, geography, geology and biology into a coherent new

scientific outlook combined with a radical political or social ecological program for rejuvenating

society and our relationship with the Earth. It is instructive to re- examine Kropotkin’s scientific

8
career because his multi-disciplinary contribution to ecological science and environmental politics is

obscured by the fact that he defined himself as a geologist and anarchist and not as an

environmentalist.”

Purchase finds Kropotkin’s 1899 book, Fields, Factories and Workshops similar to E. F.

Schumacher’s famous 1960 classic Small is Beautiful. Through this book, Kropotkin made an effort

to “re-evaluate regional self-sufficiency and community life” by resorting to “appropriately scaled

alternative technology and modern communication facilities”. Purchase recommends the annotated

and abridged version of this book by Colin Ward titled Fields, Factories and Workshops Tomorrow

to understand “how Kropotkin’s ideas foreshadowed Geddes’ ideas and other well-known non-

socialist ventures of his period such as the Garden City Movement.

Trent Trepanier in his essay ‘Peter Krtopotkin and Radical Environmentalism’ delineates the

influence of Kropotkin’s political theory of Anarchist Communism on the modern day radical

environmental movements.

Dario Padovan in his essay, ‘Social Morals and Ethics of Nature’ argues that “according to the ethical

naturalism advanced by Kropotkin, struggles within nature were often limited and mutual aid was

the dominant factor”. Padovan argued that Kropotkin’s naturalism offered a possibility to find a new

ethic, which was radically different from the Darwinian concept. Kropotkin was convinced that

struggles within nature were “often circumscribed, restricted to a struggle between different species,

whereas within the group formed either by one species, or by more than one species cohabiting, the

general rule was that of mutual help. Mutual aid is the dominant factor in Nature”.

Alvaro Giron in his perceptible essay, in which he recounts his journey of ‘Taking Pyotr Kropotkin

Seriously’, claims that “one of the recent efforts to scientifically rehabilitate Kropotkin’s

interpretation of Theory of Evolution came, and perhaps not coincidentally, from the pen of the late
9
Stephen Jay Gould in his 1997 essay, ‘Kropotkin Was No Crackpot’. In it while making generous

use of the contributions of Daniel Todes (1989) on Russian Darwinism, Gould challenged the image

of the idiosyncratic character who shapes the contours of natural economy in terms of his own

peculiar political convictions

References Cited

Purchase, Graham (2010) ‘Green Flame: Kropotkin and the Birth of Ecology’, Anarcho-Syndicalist

Review, No. 54,

http://zabalazabooks.net/2013/12/04/green-flame-kropotkin-and-the-birth-of-ecology/

Purchase, Graham (2003) Peter Kropotkin: Ecologist, Philosopher and Revolutionary, Doctoral

Thesis submitted to The University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia

http://www.leedugatkin.com/files/5014/0594/9832/Purchasephd.pdf

10
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Ecological Thinkers: Charles Darwin

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Evolution; Earthworms; Social Darwinism; Malthus; Haeckel; Earthworms

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary Darwin never described himself as an ecologist and preferred to use to be

called a naturalist. Yet he anticipated the ways ecologists work—both in his
theories and methods

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Kaushik Dasgupta Asst. Editor, Economic and Political

(CW) Weekly
Content Reviewer (CR) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Language Editor (LE) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University
Introduction

Darwin is not always seen as an ecological thinker. He himself did not like
the term, ecology. However, the thinker who gave us the Theory of
Evolution anticipated many of the methods of modern day ecologists. This
chapter tries to understand the ecological underpinnings of Darwin’s
thoughts by looking at his Early Influences, His Sojourn on the HMS Beagle
and His Ideological Moorings. It then tries to answer if Darwin can be called
an Ecologist. This chapter ends by discussing an important fallout of
Darwinism—Social Darwinism—that legitimised colonialism and racial
theories.

The Earty Influences

Charles Darwin was born in Shrewsbury, England, on February 12, 1809.

The country town near the Welsh border was untouched, yet, by the
Industrial Revolution. Charles was the fifth of six children of Dr R W Darwin,
a physician, and Susanna who died when Charles was only eight years old.

Darwin’s family had a long line of scientists. Grandfather Erasmus

Darwin was a formidable botanist, inventor and a polymath. He was also a
campaigner against slavery. His maternal grandfather, Josiah Wedgewood, a
famous chinaware manufacturer, was also a leading campaigner against
racism. Wedgewood, in fact, designed the logo of the anti-slavery
movement: a seal featuring a slave of African origin kneeling and the words,
“Am I not a Man and a Brother”. Darwin’s sisters and cousins were also
passionate campaigners against slavery and his family’s political leanings
left a deep impact on the young Charles.
In 1825, when he was 16, Darwin enrolled at Edinburgh University. Darwin’s
father wanted his fifth child to followed in his footsteps and become a
physician but the sight of blood made young Charles uneasy. He then
enrolled himself at Christ’s college in Cambridge. But his short spell as a
medical student was to provide Darwin one of his formative influences. He
learnt the art of taxidermy from a freed slave.

Edinburgh University, ironically, was in those days the hot bed of

racial science dedicated to defining the races and labelling some of them as
inferior. Phrenology, which ascribed human intellect to shape of skulls, was
a major intellectual trend. People were seeing shapes in human skulls and
deciding they defined racially unique characteristics. Young Charles revolted
at the thought.

Once his son had enrolled at Cambridge, R W Darwin suggested that

young Charles study to become a priest. But the young Darwin was to come
under the influence of John Steven Henslow, the Regius Professor of Botany
at Cambridge. Henslow was a popular teacher and Erasmus Alvey Darwin,
Charles’s elder brother would regale him with tales of the botany professor’s
brilliance. Charles Darwin was studying for a degree in Theology and the
Classics but he was soon drawn towards Henslow.
 The Regius Professor of Botany’s popularity owed much to his
teaching methods. Henslow, unlike his contemporaries, was not a scientist
who spent time in laboratories. He also did not believe in spoon feeding his
students. Henslow encouraged his students to make observations in gardens
and fields. Darwin managed to secure an invitation to one of Henslow’s field
trips and very soon became a regular on the trips, acquiring the reputation
as “the man who walks with Henslow”. The Botany’s professor’s insistence
on field visits left a deep impression on Darwin.

After Darwin gave his final examination in 1831, Henslow persuaded

him to begin studying geology, and made arrangements for him to become
an apprentice of the renowned palaeontologist Adam Sedgwick. On a
geographical excursion to North Wales, the palaeontologist was to teach
Darwin how to read maps and to collect and describe specimens.

While Darwin was apprenticing with Sedgwick, Henslow received a

letter informing him that Robert FitzRoy, a scientist and a sailor, was looking
for a companion on a planned two-year trip to survey South America aboard
HMS Beagle. Henslow thought the opportunity was perfect for young Darwin
and recommended him to FitzRoy.

The sailor-scientist was reluctant initially. Darwin's nose seemed to

work against him. FitzRoy was a passionate believer of phrenology and
suspected that Darwin's nose revealed a constitution too weak for an
extended voyage, but Darwin persuaded FitzRoy that "my nose had spoken
falsely," and the captain relented. In December 1831, Darwin set sail for
South America—it was actually the first leg of a landmark five-year
circumnavigation of the world.

On HMS Beagle
Over the course of the trip, Darwin used the methods he had learnt from
Henslow and Sedgwick to collect a variety of natural specimens, including
birds, plants and fossils. Through hands-on research and experiments, he
had the opportunity to closely observe principles of botany, geology and
zoology. The Pacific Islands and Galapagos Archipelago were of particular
interest to Darwin, as was South America.
Darwin corresponded with his mentor as much as the rudimentary
postal system of his times would allow. He would dispatch his collection of
scientific samples to Henslow, who saw to it that they were passed on to the
appropriate experts for analysis, and took it upon himself to publish extracts
of Darwin's letters in respectable scientific journals.

While his trip aboard HMS Beagle was intellectually stimulating, the
sojourn was not without trouble for Darwin. Life on the vessel was
uncomfortable and in the first three weeks of the voyage, Darwin was struck
by a debilitating bout of sea-sickness. Peace on the Beagle was very often
disturbed due to fearsome arguments between Darwin and FitzRoy, an
ardent supporter of slavery.1 But the two remained friends nevertheless and
his revulsion at slavery notwithstanding Darwin described Roy as “one of the

1
Charles Darwin, Autobiography of Charles Darwin, New Delhi: Rupa, 2003, pp 33-34
most noble I have ever known”.2 The sailor-scientist presented Darwin with
with the first volume of Charles Lyell's Principles of Geology.

The gift was a major turning point in Darwin’s life. Over the voyage,
Darwin was converted to the Lyellian view of nature as one undergoing slow
and gradual change. He now believed that the Earth’s surface was
constantly oscillating in response to forces of uplift counterbalanced by
subsidence elsewhere. The land in one part of the world, the Andes say, was
rising from beneath the waves even as the coral-encircled extinct volcanoes
of the South Pacific were sinking below them. By the end of the five-year
voyage Darwin was convinced that the sea was the dominant force of
erosion and he viewed landscapes such as the Blue Mountains of Australia or
the lochs of Scotland as scenery sculpted by the sea before those countries
had risen above it.3

We now know, and Darwin came painfully to realise with the advent
of glacial theory in the 1840s, that ice and rain water could be just as, if not
more powerful, given enough time.4

Darwin returned to England in 1836 and two years later married his
cousin, Emma Wedgewood. In 1842, the young couple moved to a house in
Down, a small village in Kent. The move was dictated by Darwin’s ill-
health—he was ailed with intestinal ailments for the rest of his life and
would often be struck by nausea and severe fatigue—and he was to be an
infrequent visitor to London in the coming years. The five-year sojourn on
HMS Beagle affected Darwin’s health for the rest of his life. But he was to
use the periods of ill health productivily: in deep contemplation, very often
over what he saw during the trip.

Ideological Moorings
Upon his return to England, Darwin began to write up his findings in the
Journal of Researches, published as part of FitzRoy's larger narrative and
later edited into the Zoology of the Voyage of the Beagle. In 1837, Darwin
was to read out the abstract of his first scientific paper, Coral Reef, before
the Geological Society. Later that year, he read another paper, “On the
formation of Mould”—the paper contained germs of his ideas on earthworm,
the subject of his last book, The Formation of Vegetable Mould Through the
Action of Worms, with Observations on their Habits .
The trip aboard HMS Beagle made Darwin realise his calling: theology was
not for him. Darwin had left England a devout Christian but two years after
his return he gave up Christianity, saying he no longer required a
supernatural watchmaker. But with his wife and several other family
members remaining devout Christians, Darwin chose to be careful about his
religious views, describing himself as an agnostic. “The mystery of the

2
Ibid
3
http://darwin-online.org.uk/EditorialIntroductions/Chancellor_Earthworms.html
Viewed on 20 September, 2015
4
Ibid
beginnings of all things is insoluble, and I must remain an agnostic,” he
said.

Darwin, however, remained ambivalent about religion. Though he

renounced religion, he remained a lifelong member of the St Mary’s Church
in Downe, England. He served on its parish council and was a close friend of
the vicar, Reverend John Brodie Innes.5 Francis Darwin writes that in his
published works, his father “was reticent on the matter of religion and what
he has left on the subject was not written with a view to publication”.6

Darwin shrank from wounding the conservative Anglican dons, and in

a letter to one Dr F E Abbot, he writes that “he was influenced by the
consciousness that a man ought not to publish on a subject to which he has
not given special continuous thought”7. Besides Darwin’s mentors, Henslow
and Sedgwick, held positions in the church leading Darwin to be cautious
about his views on religion

Moreover, the reticent Darwin was up against current beliefs. Most

people during Darwin’s time, held the divine as the creator and lynchpin of
all life on Earth. They believed immutability was the essential characteristic
of the world: the natural world had been created by divine force in more or
less the form they appeared then. If there was any change, it was seasonal
or cyclical. All creatures had a pre-destined place and they were designed to
fit in the world.

The earliest geological research in the late 18th and early 19th century
cast doubts over such a world view. They showed evidence of vast
upheavals in the earth’s history. The discovery of fossils indicated that
organisms were very different from the current ones. A picture of change
and relatedness was emerging, and scientists were beginning to show that
species had changed over time.

In 1838, Darwin read Robert Malthus’ "Essay on the Principle of

Population". The central theme of Malthus' work was that population growth
would always overpower food supply growth, creating perpetual states of
hunger, disease, and struggle. Malthus, like many of his contemporaries,
accorded a prime role to religion. An ordained minister, he believed that
disease and hunger were divine instruments that kept populations from
exploding. Darwin was, however, not drawn to aspect of Malthus’ theory.

5
Marc D Hausser: “Parental Guidance Required” in John Brockman edited Intelligent
Thought: Science versus the Intelligent Design Movement, New York: Vintage Books;
pp 209
6
Darwin, Charles, Autobiography, p 131
7
Charles Darwin, Autobiography, Pg 132
Instead he considered that some of the competitors in the perpetual
struggle, postulated by Malthus, would be better equipped to survive. The
ones less adept would perish, leaving only those with desirable traits. The
seeds of the Theory of Evolution were sown.

But Darwin had to hold back. His caution had to do with the release,
in1844, of a 400-page, Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation. The book
began by describing the formation of the Solar System, it traced the origins
of plant and animal life and went on to detail the genesis of humankind. It
was a history of life on Earth stripped of any divine attachment. The book
appeared initially the work of an anonymous author. It sold remarkably:
20,000 copies in a decade. Queen Victoria raved over it, so did phsycist
David Brewster. Other readers included Abraham Lincoln, Benjamin Disraeli,
Alfred Tennyson and John Stuart Mill.

But there were critics too. Darwin’s mentor Sedgwick slammed the
book. In an 85-page review, the palaeontologist described this anti-Biblical
theory of life on Earth as a “grand delusion under influence of the serpent
coils of false philosophy”.

Darwin shrank from hurting the conservative establishment, even

though he had much more evidence for his theory than the then anonymous
author—revealed several decades later as the publisher, Robert Chambers.
At the same time, though, he balked at the racial theories of his time. The
deeply racist Anthropological Society of London War stepped up its activities
in the run up to the American Civil War.
Darwin’s biographers Adrian Desmond and James Moore (Darwin’s Sacred
Cause) note that this was the last straw for the reticent scientist.8 To show
that human beings, in all their variety, descended from a common ancestor,
Darwin needed to demonstrate similar variation in other creatures. He
turned to the pigeon, all of whose many variants descended from the same
source, the rock dove. The pigeons would form the starting point of On the
Origin of Species. It was published in 1859.

In the 1850s, there was a debate over whether or not all pigeon
breeds descended from one stock. Most naturalists believed they were,
while pigeon breeders believed they were descended from probably seven or
eight species. By tracing the various breeds to one ancestor, Darwin showed
two things. First—a socially controversial view at the time when the origin of
divine theory of life was preponderant—was that humans were responsible
for creating vastly different varieties of the same species. The selective
breeding was designed to produce the most desirable characteristics in the
birds—a process he referred to as “artificial selection”. Second, and more
importantly, this study of artificial selection helped Darwin arrive at his
theory of evolution. If humans could create this degree of variation in a few

8
Desmond, Adrian and Moore James: Darwin’s Sacred Cause, Boston: Houghton
Miffin Harcourt, 2009
hundred generations, Darwin reasoned, then nature, acting over much
longer period could have worked out diverse life forms on Earth.9

According to this theory of natural selection, small variations between

organisms would give some an advantage in the struggle for existence.
These relatively stronger individuals would produce more offspring, who
would inherit their parents’ advantage. But Darwin did not look at the living
world in isolation. His apprenticeship with Henslow and Sedgwick—and his
reading of Malthus and Lyell—had alerted him to the geological world. He
also knew that the environment would always be changing. That made him
postulate natural selection as a perpetual process, as organisms adapt to
the natural world and in turn leave their imprint on it —though Darwin was
not always explicit about this. Nevetheless, this is remarkably akin to the
concept of ecological footprint that modern day ecologists use. It makes us
ask if Darwin was an ecologist.

An Early Ecologist

Darwin’s reliance on the complex interactions between the different

elements of the natural world have led many to call him one of modern
times’ early ecologists. The word “ecologist”, though, was not coined when
Darwin wrote the Origin of Species. Darwin himself described himself as a
naturalist.

But what is in a word. In many ways, Darwin anticipated the methods

of modern ecologists. He distinguished himself from his predecessors and
several of his contemporaries by drawing attention the complex web of
relations between the natural and living creatures. Several sections of On
The Origin of Species bear striking similarities with the way modern
ecologists. In one of them Darwin describes an enclosure in Surrey. Midway
through the description he wonders how fir trees could have proliferated in
the enclosure. Darwin’s answer: the exclusion of cattle that graze on
seedlings.

This is followed by a discussion on cattle, horses and dogs in

Paraguay. Darwin argues that the animals never went feral in a region
Parguay, while they did so a few hundred kms away, owed to their
populations being kept in check by flies. Insectivores fed on these flies and
they in turn were food for larger birds. Any change in this delicate balance
of animal life could lead to cattle, dogs and horses turning feral, Darwin
surmised.10 He may or may not have been right, but Darwin ways of looking
at the natural world seem remarkably close to that of modern ecologists.
Darwin never used the term eco-system, yet his understanding of the links
between different creatures and the geological world strikes a chord with the
way modern ecologists deploy the term.

9
http://darwin200.christs.cam.ac.uk/pages/index.php?page_id=c6
Viewed on September 22, 2015
10
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/1228/1228-h/1228-h.htm (See especially chapter 2)
Viewed on 21 September, 2015
 Darwin’s correspondences also throw a great deal of light on his
methods. These are of utility to not just scientists but also ecologists. We
come to know about his fascination for earthworms, for example. People in
the English countryside loved earthworms. They were fishing baits. They
were also useful in gardens. When Darwin was recuperating after the tiring
five-year trip on HMS Beagle, his uncle—and later father-in-law—Jos
Wedgewood showed him a patch in his garden where he had spread ash and
lime several years ago. Darwin was struck by how soil burrowed out by
earthworms had buried the substances.

After setting up home in Kent, Darwin began a series of earthworm

experiments. Over the next 40 years or so Darwin would study earthworms
in his laboratory and his extensive gardens. He fed the worms, exposed
their sensitivity to light and even had music played to them. He recorded
they preferred wild cherry and carrots and preferred fat to raw meat.

Once he was done with his preoccupations over The Origin of Species,
Darwin spent considerable time ruminating on the intelligence of
earthworms. He observed earthworms pulled leaves in to their burrows,
plugging openings to keep out chilled air. He also conducted bizarre
experiments like asking his son to play the bassoon to the worms. The
reactions were to convince him that the creatures did not have a musical
ear.
At most times, however, Darwin’s insights into earthworms were eye-
opening—and they continue to fascinate soil scientists, botanists, agriculture
scientists and ecologists. He wrote in The Formation of Vegetable Mould
Through the Action of Worms, with Observations on their Habits:
“The plough is one of the most ancient and most valuable of man’s
inventions; but long before he existed the land was in fact regularly
ploughed, and still continues to be thus ploughed by earth-worms. It may
be doubted whether there are many other animals which have played so
important a part in the history of the world, as have these lowly organised
creatures. Some other animals, however, still more lowly organised, namely
corals, have done far more conspicuous work in having constructed
innumerable reefs and islands in the great oceans; but these are almost
confined to the tropical zones.”11
The book was published in 1881, a few months before Darwin’s death.
Although Darwin himself described it as a small work, The Formation of
Vegetable Mould, became a best seller of sorts, doing much better than the
Origin of Species in its first print run. Much of the book’s initial success,
though, owed to the part where Darwin put the worms to scrutiny to
understand if they were intelligent creatures.
Over the years it was neglected by soil scientists. As agriculture came
to be dominated by chemical processes, biomechanical processes described
in The Formation of Vegetable Mould were ignored. Zoologists, though,
continued to read the book and with environment becoming a concern from

11
Darwin, Charles, The Formation of Vegetable Mould Through the Action of Worms,
with Observations on their Habits, London: John Murray, 2003, p 232
the last three decades of the 20th century, The Formation was back in favour
as a new generation learnt the value of earthworms.12

Was Darwin a forebear of ecology then? The answer isn’t

straightforward. What we can say, though, is Darwin’s work was pivotal –
and in more ways than one – in establishing the modern field of ecology.
Though Darwin described himself as a natural scientist, his experiments
challenged the old, purely observational tradition of natural history. But at
the same time, Darwin also challenged high-flung laboratory science and
demonstrated that field-based experiments could be highly sophisticated.
More importantly, Darwin broke down the rigid barriers between disciplines
and anticipated the ecological approach of combining insights from
geological and natural sciences to unravel the complex web of life.

Ecology and Social Darwinism

In 1866, the German scientist and theorist Ernst Haeckel defined ecology.
“By ecology, we mean the whole science of the relations of the organism to
the environment including, in the broad sense, all the conditions of
existence.”’13

The term first appeared in English in E. Ray Lankester’s translation of

Haeckel’s History of creation in 1876. Though Darwin had never used the
term, “ecologist,” Haeckel cited Origin of Species as the primary inspiration
for his description of the field he called ecology. “Ecology is the study of all
those complex interrelations referred to by Darwin as the conditions of the
struggle for existence,” he remarked in a lecture.14

Haeckel mailed Darwin a copy of his book. The reaction was mixed.
Darwin thought Haeckel’s work was important and wrote to the German
theorist to say that "I am delighted that so distinguished a naturalist should
confirm and expound my views; and I can clearly see that you are one of
the few who clearly understands Natural Selection."15 Darwin, however,
wasn’t very impressed with the German scientist coining the new term,
“ecology”. In a letter to his friend, the scientist T H Huxley, Darwin wrote,
‘He seems to have a passion for defining, I daresay very well, and for
coining new words….The number of new words … is something dreadful”.16

12
Kutscheral, U and J M Elliot, “Charles Darwin's Observations on the Behaviour of
Earthworms and the Evolutionary History of a Giant Endemic Species from Germany,
Lumbricus badensis,” in Applied and Environmental Soil Science, 2010,
http://www.hindawi.com/31824050/
Viewed on 18 September, 2015
13
https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/was-darwin-an-ecologist
Viewed on 20 September, 2015
14
Ibid
15
ome.uchicago.edu/~rjr6/articles/Myth.pdf
Viewed on 20 September, 2015
16
https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/entry-5315
Viewed on 19 September, 2015
 Unlike his sagely intellectual mentor, Haeckel is a controversial figure.
His appropriation of Darwin’s theory is seen as a travesty and Haeckel is
regarded as the progenitor of that unholy variant of Darwinism: Social
Darwinism. Social Darwinism essentially holds that aggression is a key
instinct of all animals, including humans. Social Darwinists argue that this
inherent attribute of all living creatures militates against cooperation.

Haeckel’s thought developed along these lines. He perceived a close

relation between ecology and philosophy; his own philosophical system was
monism, which asserted the “unity of all, the animating of all matter and the
inseperability of mental power and corporeal substance.”

Haeckel tirelessly reminded his readers that human beings were

governed by the same laws that ruled the natural universe. He castigated
the anthropocentric view of the universe and insisted that as “our mother
nature is a mere speck in the sunbeam of the universe, so man is a
protoplasm in the perishable framework of organic nature”.17

Haeckel would, at times, try to understand social phenomena through

biological lenses. For example, he claimed that “We can arrive at the correct
knowledge of the social body, the state, through the structure and life of the
individuals who compose it and the cells which, they are in turn,
composed.”18 Social division of labour was akin to the division of labour in
the natural world; it was product of the struggle for existence.

We shall find everywhere a pitiless embittered struggle of All against All. Nowhere in nature, no matter
where turn our eyes does that idyllic peace celebrated by poets exist; we find everywhere a struggle and a
striving to annihilate competitors and neighbours. Passion and selfishness, conscious or unconscious is
everywhere the motive force of life. Man in this respect forms no exception from rest of the animal
world19.

He concluded that the whole of history of nations or “what is called

universal history must be explicable by means of natural selection”.20

For many, this meant a call to racism. This was an unholy

appropriation of Darwin’s theory of natural selection. It meant that the
species which survived the struggle were “higher’ than others and by
extension some groups of human beings were more advanced than others.
In the History of Creation, Haeckel argued that all “organic individuals,
though seemingly alike, are unequal from birth. The original differences
were exacerbated due to adaption during the life-cycle and transmitted to
progeny thus producing greater degrees of differentiation through time.”21

17
Hawkins, Mike, Social Darwinism in European and American Thought, Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 1997, p 135
18
Ibid, p 136
19
Ibid, p 135
20
Ibid, p 137
21
Ibid, p 142
 During the Franco-PrussianWar of 1870–1871, Haeckel described
“military selection,” in which the bravest and brightest were slaughtered on
the fields of battle while the weak and cowardly were left to man the
bedrooms and thereby perpetuate their low moral character.22

For Haeckel’s later day detractors like the historian Daniel Gasman
and the scientist Stephen Jay Gould all this was a clear enunciation of the
superiority of some races.23 Haeckel divided humanity in 12 races and 36
species on basis of differences in hair-type and speech. These races could be
arranged in hierarchy, according to their degree of proximity to apes.

So was Darwin complicit in Social Darwinism? Most critics absolve

Darwin from the regressive variant of his theory. Many critics of Social
Darwinism have pointed the concept is a pernicious appropriation of
Darwin’s theory. Although human beings are products of evolution and are
descended from apes, that doesn’t mean that their social structures must
function according to the ‘survival of the fittest’. Social Darwinism doesn’t
grasp the kernel of evolution. Evolution doesn’t necessarily mean things
improve for the best, nor is it strength and power that are automatically
desirable, but rather flexibility. The critics of Social Darwinism point out
that Darwin never used a phrase commonly ascribed to him: survival of the
fittest.

Did Darwin anticipate some of the pernicious effects of his theory?

Darwin was ambivalent about the then current trend of recognizing some
races as high and some as low. At times, he went with the trend. But he
abhorred slavery and detested phrenology. That meant that though he
recognized that some races were high and some low, this did not mean less
than humane treatment had to be meted out to those who were deemed
low. Darwin’s abolitionist beliefs were strongly confirmed when visiting the
slave countries of South America on the Beagle in the early 1830s. Later, he
longed for the defeat of the slave-holding Southern states during the
American Civil War. 24

Social Darwinism was used to legitimate colonialism as an expression

of the notion that in the ‘struggle of existence’, the stronger party has the
right to overcome the weaker party and claim territory. Haeckel’s ecological
ideas were popular among the Nazis. Ecologists have, however, rarely
associated with the man who gave their discipline its name.

They have a somewhat different association with his intellectual

mentor, Darwin, though. They have used his methods, sometimes without
acknowledging him. With the current environmental crisis necessitating a
multi-disciplinary study of the natural world, Darwin’s methods have
become even more relevant. Darwin’s great grandson, the anthropologist
Felix Padel who works amongst tribal communities in Odisha, has described
Darwin’s relevance to the ecological movement very aptly. Padel said

22
http://home.uchicago.edu/~rjr6/articles/Myth.pdf
23
Ibid
24
Ibid. Also Desmond, Adrian and Moore James: Darwin’s Sacred Cause, Boston:
Houghton Miffin Harcourt, 2009
 To me, what is most radical and beautiful in Darwin’s work was his emphasis on
human’s relatedness to nature — that in anatomical structure as well as expression
of emotion, animals are our close relatives. And if you look at the myths of any
indigenous society, in India or America or anywhere else, there’s a strong emphasis
on this idea — that other species are our close relatives, and we shouldn’t see
ourselves as ‘superior’.25

FURTHER READING
Bowler, Peter J. (2003). Evolution: The History of an Idea, Oakland:
University of California Press
Darwin, Charles (2003): Autobiography of Charles Darwin, New Delhi: Rupa
Dawkins, Richard (1976). The Selfish Gene, Oxford: Oxford University Press
Desmond, Adrian and Moore James (2009): Darwin’s Sacred Cause, Boston:
Houghton Miffin Harcourt
Gasman, Daniel (1971): The Scientific Origins of National Socialism. Social
Darwinism in Ernst Haeckel and the German Monist League, London:
Macdonald
Gopnik, Adam (2009). Angels and Ages: A Short Book About Darwin,
Lincoln, and Modern Life, London: Quercus
Gould, Stephen Jay (1977): Ontogeny and Phylogeny, Cambridge: Harvard
University Press
Hawkins, Mike (1997): Social Darwinism in European and American
Thought, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

Online Resources
http://darwin-online.org.uk/biography.html (The Complete Works of Charles Darwin)

25
http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/sunday-special/kaleidoscope/-survival-of-fittest-
not-darwin-s-phrase/123135.html
Viewed on 22 September 2015
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Ecological Thinkers: Tim Ingold

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Ethnography, Social Anthropology, Biological Anthropology, Pastoralism

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR) Savyasachi Jamia Milia Islamia
Language Editor (LE) Savyasachi Jamia Milia Islamia
Tim Ingold

Biography

Tim Ingold is a professor of Social Anthropology at University of Aberdeen, and a Fellow of both the
British Academy and the Royal Society of Edinburg. Tim Ingold was born in 1948. His father was a
famous mycologist Cecil Terence Ingold. Tim was enrolled in Leighton Park School in Reading, UK and
attended Churchill College, Cambridge; where he initially studied natural sciences but shifted to
Anthropology. Talking about how he shifted to studying anthropology, Ingold states,

“At school, I had done well in Mathematics, and thanks to a wonderful teacher, I had been fired
by a passion for physics. It was assumed that I should go to university to read natural science.
But my initial enthusiasm soon gave way to disillusionment. Like so many of my contemporaries,
I was appalled by the extent to which science had reneged both on its sense of democratic
responsibility and on its original commitment to enlarge the scope of human knowledge, and
had allowed itself to become subservient to the demands of military-industrial complex. The
scientific establishment, it seemed to me, was so massively institutionalized, internally
specialized and oppressively hierarchical that as a professional scientist one could never be
more than a small cog in a huge juggernaut of an enterprise. Toward the end of my first year at
university, I went to see my tutor, and politely informed him over a glass of sherry (this was
Cambridge!) that natural science was not for me, and that I was seeking a discipline where there
was more room to breathe. It would be exciting, I thought, to join in a subject still on the make –
one, perhaps, that was in the same formative stage that physics was in at the time of Galileo.”

He received his BA in Social Anthropology from the University of Cambridge in 1970, and his PhD in
1976. Tim Ingold’s doctoral research work was about Skolt Saami of northeastern Finland, studying their
ecological adaptations social organization and ethnic politics. His early concerns as articulated in
doctoral research with northern circumpolar peoples, looked comparatively at hunting, pastoralism and
ranching as alternative ways in which such people have based a livelihood on reindeer or caribou.

Ingold began his career at the University of Helsinki (1973-74), where he spent twelve months writing up
his field material. . The monograph emerging from his doctoral research was titled, The Skolt Laps Today
(1976).

He then moved to University of Manchester, where he started teaching a course titled, Environment and
Technology, which was basically an introduction the sub-field of cultural anthropology. This was soon to
be renamed as Environment and Economy. In the year 1986, two important conferences took place: the
World Archaeological Congress (Southampton), in which Ingold organised a series of sessions devoted to
cultural attitudes to animals, and the Fourth International Conference on Hunting and Gathering
Societies (London), of which he was a principal organiser. Ingold edited one of the volumes to arise from
the Southampton Congress, 'What is an animal?', published in 1988, and was co-editor of the two-
volume work 'Hunters and Gatherers', consisting of papers from the London conference and published
in the same year.

Through a reconsideration of toolmaking and speech as criteria of human distinctiveness, Ingold became
interested in the connection, in human evolution, between language and technology. With Kathleen
Gibson, he organised an international conference on this theme in 1990, and the resulting volume,
edited by Gibson and Ingold 'Tools, language and cognition in human evolution', was published in 1993.
Since then, Ingold has sought ways of bringing together the anthropologies of technology and art,
leading to his current view of the centrality of skilled practice. At the same time he has continued his
research and teaching in ecological anthropology and, influenced by the work of James Gibson on
perceptual systems, has been exploring ways of integrating ecological approaches in anthropology and
psychology.

At University of Manchester, Ingold became Professor in 1990 and Max Gluckman Professor in 1995.
Starting from 1990-’91, he developed two other courses, Culture, Perception and Cognition and
Anthropology of Art and Technology. He was Editor of 'Man' (the Journal of the Royal
Anthropological Institute) from 1990 to 1992, and edited the Routledge 'Companion Encyclopedia
of Anthropology', published in 1994. In 1999, he moved to the University of Aberdeen, where he
went on to establish the UK’s newest Department of Anthropology. In 1999, he also held the position of
being President of the Anthropology and Archeology section of the British Association for the
Advancement of Science.

Before moving to University of Aberdeen, Ingold along with a few others had founded a seminar to
explore the relations between art, architecture and anthropology. This seminar was rather remarkable
for the commitment that Ingold and his co-organisers expressed toward grounding discussions in
practical activity, ranging from making string to repairing a dry-stone wall.

At University of Aberdeen, Ingold started teaching a new course on Anthropology, Archeology, Art and
Architecture, which he taught intermittently from 2004 to 2011, and finally converted into a book,
entitled Making (2013).

Honorary Doctorate

In recognition of his achievements in the field of anthropology, the Faculty of Education of Leuphana
University of Luneberg awarded him an honorary doctorate in Philosophy (Dr. Phil. h.c.) in the year
2015. The citation reads as below:

“His phenomenon-oriented, transdisciplinary research connects aspects common to disciplines

such as music, art, linguistics, anthropology, environmental research, phenomenology and
educational sciences. His anthropological work has proved to be extremely influential in various
disciplines ranging from biology to theology.

Ingold’s core hypothesis proposes that personhood rests on the biosocial process of becoming
human. Humans are more human becomings rather than human beings. Beyond abstract
nature/nurture and subject/object separations, the relational animal homificans emerges as
activity (“To human is a verb”), where an animate lifestyle develops from a prior passivity. This
education is understood as a continuous e-ducere, “leading out”: Fixed or changing perspectives
and intentional destinations are not appropriate to human will. Quite the contrary, it is the
dynamic perspective of the open path which generates attention in the midst of the
environment.”

Tim Ingold’s Writings

The Skolt Lapps today (1976) Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

Hunters, pastoralists and ranchers: reindeer economies and their transformations (1980) Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press

This second book resulted from a further spell of ethnographic fieldwork, this time among Finnish rather
than Saami people, was undertaken in the district of Salla, in northern Finland, in 1979-80. The purpose
of this research was to examine how farming, forestry and reindeer herding were combined on the level
of local livelihood, to investigate the reasons for the intense rural depopulation in the region, and to
compare the long term effects of post-war resettlement here with those experienced by the Skolt
Saami.

Evolution and Social Life (1986) Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

In the year 1986, Tim Ingold published a book Evolution and Social Life, wherein he “attempts, among
other things, to establish this complementarity thesis”. This book extensively attempted to present what
had been written in the disciplines of anthropology and biology, in an effort to cohere the connection
between human beings as biological organism and as a social subject or person. Setting out from such a
complementarity thesis, Ingold has repeatedly argued that human beings must simultaneously be
constituted both organisms within system of ecological relations, and as persons within systems of social
and as persons within systems of social relations.

The Appropriation of Nature: Essays on Human Ecology and Social Relations (1986) Manchester:
Manchester University Press

In this collection of essays, Ingold tried to explain the interplay between human sociality (i.e. human
being as subject-person with his or her interactions with other members in the community) and human
organicality (i.e. human being as an organism interacting with other elements and organisms in the
natural world).

Recalling that moment of his thinking and writing in 1986-88, Ingold recollects, “Yet, I was increasingly
troubled by this splitting of the human into personal and organic components, partitioned respectively
into the separate domains of society and nature, and in 1988 it all collapsed – a moment I vividly recall
as a watershed when everything I had argued until then seemed irredeemably wrong.” Referring to his
old class notes for introductory lecture for the course, Environment and Economy (October 4th, 1988), he
recalls where his notes abruptly ended,

“Ultimately, of course, the aim should be to transcend such dichotomies as economic versus
ecological, social versus natural, person versus individual. Because aren’t made up of two semi-
independent parts, as the Homo Duplex model has it. That’s just a first approximation”.

In 1989, in a lecture presented to the Royal Anthropological Institute, entitled An Anthropologist looks at
biology, Ingold presented his first effort to extend relational thinking to biological domain as well.
Recollecting this moment, he writes,

“My aim was to restore the person to the continuum of organic life, not in the reductionist
model fashion of sociobiology, by putting it all down to genes, but by repositioning the
organisms as a locus of growth within a continuous field, and by thinking of evolution not
statistically but topologically, as the unfolding of that field. Life, I insisted, is not in organisms,
rather organisms are in life. Or in other words, living things are both generated and held in place
 within the ever-unfolding matrix of relations to which they contribute in their activity. This
meant giving a central place to growth and development in the constitution of the life-forms,
and here my inspiration came from the work of D’Arcy Thompson, On Growth and Form, that
had so inspired me as a child. I was at last, coming full circle”.

Key Debates in Anthropology (1996) (An Edited Volume) London and New York: Routledge

http://etnohistoria.fflch.usp.br/sites/etnohistoria.fflch.usp.br/files/Ingold,%20T%20-
%20key%20debates%20in%20anthropology.pdf

‘Life beyond the edge of nature? Or the mirage of the society’, in The Mark of the Social, John D
Greenwood (ed) (1997), Lahman MD: Rowman and Littlefield, pp. 231-252.

The Perception of the Environment: Essays on Livelihood, Dwelling and Skill (2000) London: Routledge

In these essays, Ingold “tried to develop a new synthesis, alternative to the mainstream alliance of
cognitive science and neo-Darwinism, which would draw together insights from developmental biology,
ecological psychology and phenomenology, starting from the premise that the organism-person is not a
bounded, self-contained entity, set over against the world, but a knot that is perpetually raveling and
unraveling within an unbounded matrix of relations”.

‘Two reflections on ecological knowledge’ in Nature Knowledge: Education, Cognition, Identity; Glauco
Sangra and Gherardo Ortalli (eds) (2003) New York: Berghahn, pp. 301-311.

‘Beyond biology and culture: the meaning of evolution in a relational world’ (2004) Social Anthropology,
Vol 12, No 2, pp. 209-221.

‘Rethinking the animate: reanimating thought’ (2006) Ehtnos, Vol 71, No 1, pp. 9-20.

‘The Social Child’, in Human Development in the Twenty-First Century: Visionary Ideas from Systems
Scientists, Alan Fogel et al (eds) (2007) Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 112-118.

Being Alive: Essays on Movement, Knowledge and Description (2011) Abingdon: Routledge

Making: Anthropology, Archeology, Art and Architecture (2013) Abingdon: Routledge

Bio-Social Becomings: Integrating Social and Biological Anthropology (2013) Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press

The nature/culture binary and dichotomy comes under an intense criticism in this edited volume, which
resulted from the panel organised by Tim Ingold and Gisli Palsson in 2010 as part of the EASA conference
entitled, ‘Human Becomings: Beyond the Biological and Social’. Both the editors and several
contributors set out to demonstrate the limits of these concepts in explaining human representations
and practices. Writing a review of this volume, Perig Pitrou, a Portugese scholar states:

“Ingold’s work has long expressed a desire to go beyond dichotomies; this is one of the main
themes of The Perception of the Environment (2001), which proposed studying organisms
without abstractly disconnecting them from their environments. His introduction here revisits
ideas from that classic text, while affirming even more strongly an alternative conception of
biology on the basis of which a renewed anthropology should develop. He begins by polemically
declaring that “Neo-Darwinism is dead” (1), before going on to vigorously critique the negative
 influence of this—in his eyes erroneous—theory on explanations of human phenomena. He
reproaches a certain kind of naturalist epistemology for interpreting the evolution of culture on
the basis of the Darwinian paradigm by establishing an analogy between genes and memes. For
several decades now, Marshall Sahlins has been battling against sociobiology, proclaiming loud
and clear the primacy of cultural determinisms. This is not the strategy of Ingold, who seeks
instead to dismantle biology’s very concepts, in order to transform the usage that the social
sciences may make of biology, without getting trapped in reductionism. Ingold’s criticism targets
the notions of evolution and design: “Evolution, in our view, does not lie in the mutation,
recombination, replication, and selection of transmissible traits. It is rather a life process. And at
the heart of this process is ontogenesis” (6).”

That’s enough about ethnography (2014) HAU: Journal of Ethnographic Theory, Vol 4, No 1, pp. 383-395.

To read full text click: https://www.haujournal.org/index.php/hau/article/view/hau4.1.021/665

After the publication of this paper, Ingold gave an interview to Susan Mac Dougall which got published
in the journal Cultural Anthropology on 5th April 2016. For the text of the interview see:
https://culanth.org/fieldsights/841-enough-about-ethnography-an-interview-with-tim-ingold

The Life of Lines (2015) Abingdon: Routledge

From Science to Art and Back Again: The Pendulum of an Anthropologist (2016)

http://ojs.unica.it/index.php/anuac/article/view/2237/2055

In this paper, which Ingold published in Anuac, he looks “back over four decades of his academic career
as professional anthropologist, starting with an orientation that was heavily weighted towards the
natural science, and ending in a project that seeks to integrate anthropology with the practices of art,
architecture and design”. Drawing parallels between the tasks confronting a mycologist and an
anthropologist, he states, “just as mycology subverts deeply held intuitions in the biological sciences, so
– it now seems to me – anthropology does the same for the social sciences”. He calls anthropologists,
“mycologists of the social” and addresses them as “the awkward squad, the jesters, the fools, who sidle
up to the power and chip away at pretensions”. In his opinion, awkwardness of the anthropologists lies
in their aptitude of “seeing the world of intricately enmeshed relations rather than one already divided
into discrete and autonomous entities”.

He underlines that “Anthropology, for me, is not about describing the world, or wrapping it up. It is, in
the first place, about attending to presence, about noticing and responding in kind. It means
acknowledging that persons and other things are there, that they have their own being and their own
lives to lead, and that it behooves us, for our own good, to pay attention to their existence and what
they are telling us. Only then can we learn. The same, I think, might be said for art. It too is an opening
on the world rather than an attempt at closure – an opening that exposes the practitioner to its trials
and to its gifts. That is why art combines well with anthropology but not with ethnography. For what art
and anthropology open up, ethnography – like art history – seeks to constrain.”
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Ecology and Aesthetics

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Ecological Aesthetics, Pristine Nature, Ecological Romanticism, Posterity

Movement, Deep Ecology

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary The emerging sub-discipline of ecological aesthetics concerns the aesthetic

appreciation of the world in its entirety, including both the natural and built
environments, and is consequently the broadest category of aesthetics. This
area of study emerged as a distinct field in the latter half of the twentieth
century, although its historical roots may be traced to eighteenth century
British and Scottish theories of natural aesthetics, especially their treatment
of the picturesque in landscape painting, which culminated in Kant’s
analysis of the beautiful and sublime in nature. During the nineteenth and
twentieth centuries, aesthetic theory tended to focus almost exclusively on
artworks and other objects of human design. But encouraged by increasing
concern with environmental issues among philosophers and the general
public, a new interest in the aesthetics of nature and its relationship to the
built environment has emerged over the last several decades.
Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Gayathri V. Researcher, Azim Premji University

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Language Editor (LE) Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

The emerging sub-discipline of ecological aesthetics concerns the aesthetic appreciation of the world in
its entirety, including both the natural and built environments, and is consequently the broadest
category of aesthetics. This area of study emerged as a distinct field in the latter half of the twentieth
century, although its historical roots may be traced to eighteenth century British and Scottish theories of
natural aesthetics, especially their treatment of the picturesque in landscape painting, which culminated
in Kant’s analysis of the beautiful and sublime in nature. During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries,
aesthetic theory tended to focus almost exclusively on artworks and other objects of human design. But
encouraged by increasing concern with environmental issues among philosophers and the general
public, a new interest in the aesthetics of nature and its relationship to the built environment has
emerged over the last several decades.

Ecological aesthetics today incorporates studies of the aesthetics of nature, including natural objects
and larger wholes such as ecosystems, gardens and landscape architecture, environmental and earth
art, architecture and urban planning, and the relations between the different modes of aesthetic
appreciation appropriate to these different domains. This extension of aesthetic consideration to both
natural and built environments has led to a reconsideration of traditional aesthetic categories and of
central tenets of aesthetic theory.

Explicitly phenomenological work in ecological aesthetics is still in its infancy, but the insights of many of
the major figures in the tradition are applicable to this new field of study. EDMUND HUSSERL’s concept
of intentionality and his descriptions of the intuitively given experiential lifeworld, for example, provide
a concrete framework for understanding aesthetic experience as a basic and pervasive quality of
everyday life.

MARTIN HEIDEGGER’s appreciation of the role of earth in the formation of the artwork, his critique of
the enframing character of modern technology, and his description of poetic dwelling as an alternative
to modern technological civilization suggest parallels with contemporary environmental concerns and a
critique of the humanistic limits of modern aesthetic theory. MAX SCHELER proposes the aesthetic value
of nature as a paradigmatic example of the nonrelativity of values. MAURICE MERLEAU-PONTY’s
investigations of embodied perception and his later ontology of flesh hold implications for the
epistemological and metaphysical foundations of an environmental aesthetics, and many of his writings
on art address the relationship between the painter’s vision and our perceptual experience of nature.
MIKEL DUFRENNE recognizes in pure aesthetic experience an incipient phenomenological reduction that
brings to the fore the intentional bond between subject and world, suggesting the particular
appropriateness of the phenomenological approach for formulating a general aesthetic theory. His
description of aesthetic objects as expressive “quasi-subjects” and of the sensuous as a common act of
the sensing and the sensed also pave the way for an elaboration of aesthetics into a philosophy of
nature.

Arnold Berleant, a leading figure in the development of a specifically ecological aesthetics, has been the
strongest proponent of the phenomenological approach in this field. His “aesthetics of engagement,”
inspired by Husserlian intentionality and Merleau-Ponty’s descriptions of embodied experience,
challenges core assumptions of traditional aesthetics. According to Berleant, the “doctrine of
disinterestedness” that pervades aesthetic theory entails the separation of a spectator, conceived as
passive and primarily visual, from an aesthetic object lacking any practical connections with the wider
natural and cultural context (Berleant 1988: 1992). In contrast, he holds that the human perceiver is
embedded in the aesthetic environment and continuously interacts with it in an active, engaged, and
multisensory fashion. This “participatory model” of aesthetic experience treats the environment as “a
field of forces continuous with the organism, a field in which there is a reciprocal action of organism on
environment and environment on organism and in which there is no real demarcation between them”
(Berleant 1988: 93). This general model of aesthetic experience is equally applicable, he suggests, to
works of art, the built environment, and the natural environment. In fact, given the continuity between
the human perceiver and the surrounding world, the cultural and historical formation of the concept of
nature, and the extension of our technological influence to every part of the natural world, it follows for
him that there is no real distinction between nature and culture: “the natural world is no independent
sphere but is itself a cultural artifact” (Berleant 1992: 167). On the basis of this aesthetics of
engagement, Berleant develops a theoretical framework for negative aesthetic judgments and suggests
a new model for education and aesthetic community that gives central place to continuity,
“connectedness within a whole rather than a link between discrete parts” (Berleant 1997).

Although Berleant has been the first to offer a comprehensive phenomenological theory of ecological
aesthetics, other themes relevant to the field have also received extensive treatment by
phenomenologists in recent years. Investigations of the role of place, for instance, have combined
philosophy with cultural geography and environmental design to form a new area of study that David
Seamon calls “phenomenological ecology” (Seamon 1993; Seamon and Mugerauer 1985).

Edward S. Casey (1993) argues for a renewed appreciation of the role of place in human experience,
which he sees as long obscured by our cultural and philosophical privileging of space and time, and he
explores the lived body’s role in the formation of place and the distinct characters of built, cultivated,
and wild place-worlds. His intellectual history of the hidden role of place from ancient creation myths
through the twentieth century devotes considerable attention to the phenomenological tradition,
especially the contributions of Husserl, Heidegger, and Merleau-Ponty (Casey 1997). Starting from the
“originative thinking” of Heidegger, Ingrid Leman Stefanovic (2000) grants an ontological primacy to
place in her proposal of alternatives to received notions of sustainable development. Gary Backhaus and
John Murungi (2002) present phenomenological analyses of the systemic transformations of urban and
suburban landscapes through their dialectical interaction with human activities. Eduardo Mendieta
(2001) maintains that our very idea of philosophy, including its account of rationality and social agency,
is informed by urban spatializing practices, a point that he illustrates by taking JEANPAUL SARTRE’s
phenomenology as a paradigmatic example.

Other relevant topics of recent phenomenological investigation include the intersection of built and
natural environments in gardening and environmental art, as well as the representation of the earth
within literature and the fine arts. Collections edited by Anna-Teresa Tymieniecka (2001, 2003) address
the representation and role of earth in literature and human existence and the phenomenological
experience of gardens, especially as figures of infinity and the sublime, across a span of cultural and
literary traditions. James Hatley (2003) finds in the Land Art of Andrew Goldsworthy a renewed
interrogation of the relation between techne¯ and physis that, rather than leaving nature untouched,
approaches nature “in such a manner that our touching is also touched by what we touch,” suggesting
an aesthetics as well as an ethics of wilderness (Hatley 2003: 14).

Central to contemporary ecological aesthetics is the question of the relation between the aesthetic
appreciation of artworks and of nature. Berleant, as noted above, stresses a continuity of all forms of
aesthetic appreciation that is grounded on the activity of the engaged and participatory human
perceiver. In contrast, Allen Carlson (1993, 2000, 2004) emphasizes the difference between these two
types of appreciation, holding that common sense or scientific knowledge is necessary for the aesthetic
appreciation of nature. According to his “natural environmental model,” nature is “an environment and
thus a setting within which we exist and that we normally experience with our complete range of senses
as our unobtrusive background” (Carlson 2004: 72).

Nature becomes an aesthetic object when we shift our attention to certain foci within this all-embracing
background, which are then experienced as forming an “obtrusive foreground.” Conceptual knowledge
of nature is needed to guide our selection of appropriate foci and boundaries for this shift of attention.

Stan Godlovitch (2004), on the other hand, holds that such positions as Berleant’s and Carlson’s
arbitrarily adopt the human scale of perception, thereby failing to appreciate nature on its own terms.
As an alternative, he proposes an “acentric” aesthetic aloofness, the leveling of all viewpoints to an
anonymous uniformity within which the human standpoint holds no particular privilege. Only such an
acentric view is capable of grounding moral respect for nature, Godlovitch holds, since it leaves nature
“fundamentally inaccessible and ultimately alien” (Godlovitch 2004: 113). Clarification of this debate
requires, first, a phenomenological account of aesthetic experience in general, and second, an account
of what appreciation of nature “on its own terms” can mean within the context of human experience.

Aesthetic experience always involves a perceptual or sensuous core, which may take as its focus one
sense in particular or a combination of senses and corporeal experiences. When viewing a painting or
listening to a symphony, for instance, cultural convention teaches us to exclude as irrelevant everything
but what the single focal sense conveys. By contrast, a stroll through a stand of old-growth Douglas fir
combines sights, smells, sounds, tactile impressions, and the kinaesthetic sense of movement in a single
aesthetic experience. (This sensuous core of aesthetic experience may also be supplied by memory or
imagination rather than by present perception, e.g., remembering a musical performance or
imaginatively anticipating a walk through the forest.)

Because the core of an aesthetic experience is always sensuous, such experience is always relative to the
perceiver’s spatial and temporal scale. The range of human spatial and temporal perception is a function
of our sensory organization and may differ significantly from the spatial or temporal organization of the
umwelt of other sentient creatures. The aesthetic appreciation of works of art generally dictates a
certain spatial or temporal context: we look at a painting from a certain distance and listen to a musical
performance at a certain tempo. We may alter these contexts at will in some cases, and they may also
be changed by habituation (familiarity with a city changes our spatial context for appreciating the
architecture of a certain building) or conceptual knowledge. The spatiotemporal limits prescribed by
human perceptual organization may also be expanded technologically, e.g., by microscopes and
telescopes or by time-lapse photography, which requires the translation or annexation of these broader
or narrower spatial and temporal contexts to those that we are able to experience directly. In addition
to such spatial and temporal contexts, the sensory aspect of our aesthetic experience essentially
involves “framing,” the selection of certain foci as aesthetically relevant against a broader background or
horizon. Such selection reflects traits of the perceiver, such as concentration, attention span,
expectations, personal history, and habituation, and it may also be guided by cultural norms and
conventions.

Framing of artworks is typically guided by convention, as with the literal frame of a painting or the edge
of a theatrical stage, and cultural framing conventions are not entirely absent when we look beyond the
world of art: directional markers and rain gutters are not the intended objects of appreciation on a
nature trail, and signs along the highway mark the appropriate stops for a “scenic overlook” of the
landscape. But aesthetic experience often extends beyond objects designed for that purpose or scenes
that are culturally endorsed, leaving us with less well-defined guidance in our framing selections. The
appreciation of sounds in nature, for instance, involves numerous selections that may be shaped as
much by individual as by cultural preferences: how long we should listen, what counts as a foreground
or background sound, whether human-produced sounds should be excluded, and even whether we
should parse natural sounds into relatively distinct melodies in a serial structure (Fisher 2004). The
appreciation of landscape also highlights the importance of such framing, since a landscape exists only
as seen from a particular point of view; the landscape scene is a “subjective object” rather than a real
part of nature (Crawford 2004b: 257).

The sensuous core of the aesthetic experience is therefore essentially relative to the perceiver. But
aesthetic appreciation is not reducible to this sensuous core, since evaluation, at least of a tacit sort,
must be involved. Although both Berleant and Carlson restrict aesthetic appreciation to humans, we
clearly share with many animals such sensory pleasures as basking in the sun or enjoying a thirst-
quenching drink, which are candidates for rudimentary aesthetic appreciation. In many cases, human
aesthetic experience will also include what Ronald Hepburn calls a “thought-component,” which is
introduced “as we implicitly compare and contrast here with elsewhere, actual with possible, present
with past” (Hepburn 1993: 66–67). This “thought-component” is not limited to conceptual thought and
need not involve self-conscious awareness or reflection. Rather, it indicates that the sensuous core is
accompanied by a mixture of emotion, imagination, conceptualization, and metaphorization, and may
also include elements of what Hepburn terms “metaphysical imagination,” a “seeing as...” that
interprets the present perception in terms of its metaphysical relevance for the whole of experience
(Hepburn 2004). Watching a frog have its innards sucked out by a giant water bug, as Annie Dillard
describes in Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, may provoke a grim realization of the “chomp or fast” law of life,
extending to a view of the cosmos as essentially conflictual. A swim in the warm and calm waters off the
Florida coast, on the other hand, might carry with it a sense of metaphysical immersion and fluid
interconnection with all things.

Such metaphysical imagination, and the “thought-component” more generally, cannot be treated as a
superficial addition to the aesthetic experience; “it is fused with the sensory components, not a
meditation aroused by these” (Hepburn 2004: 128). Despite the terminology, such “components” are
not separable parts or layers added on to an unchanged perceptual substratum, but integral aspects of a
single, holistic experience from which they are separable only abstractly. Emotions, imagination, and
conceptual knowledge may even guide the sensuous framing of experience by directing one’s attention
to what may have otherwise escaped attention, so that the sensuous components and the thought-
components of an aesthetic experience engage in a mutually informing dialectic.
This account of aesthetic experience incorporates in a limited way both the perceptual engagement
described by Berleant and the influence of conceptual information stressed by Carlson. But the
emphasis on spatial and temporal scale and the role granted to framing underscores Godlovitch’s
concerns: does aesthetic experience so described allow for appreciation changed by habituation
(familiarity with a city changes our spatial context for appreciating the architecture of a certain building)
or conceptual knowledge. The spatiotemporal limits prescribed by human perceptual organization may
also be expanded technologically, e.g., by microscopes and telescopes or by time-lapse photography,
which requires the translation or annexation of these broader or narrower spatial and temporal
contexts to those that we are able to experience directly. In addition to such spatial and temporal
contexts, the sensory aspect of our aesthetic experience essentially involves “framing,” the selection of
certain foci as aesthetically relevant against a broader background or horizon. Such selection reflects
traits of the perceiver, such as concentration, attention span, expectations, personal history, and
habituation, and it may also be guided by cultural norms and conventions. Framing of artworks is
typically guided by convention, as with the literal frame of a painting or the edge of a theatrical stage,
and cultural framing conventions are not entirely absent when we look beyond the world of art:
directional markers and rain gutters are not the intended objects of appreciation on a nature trail, and
signs along the highway mark the appropriate stops for a “scenic overlook” of the landscape.

But aesthetic experience often extends beyond objects designed for that purpose or scenes that are
culturally endorsed, leaving us with less well-defined guidance in our framing selections. The
appreciation of sounds in nature, for instance, involves numerous selections that may be shaped as
much by individual as by cultural preferences: how long we should listen, what counts as a foreground
or background sound, whether human-produced sounds should be excluded, and even whether we
should parse natural sounds into relatively distinct melodies in a serial structure (Fisher 2004). The
appreciation of landscape also highlights the importance of such framing, since a landscape exists only
as seen from a particular point of view; the landscape scene is a “subjective object” rather than a real
part of nature (Crawford 2004b: 257). The sensuous core of the aesthetic experience is therefore
essentially relative to the perceiver. But aesthetic appreciation is not reducible to this sensuous core,
since evaluation, at least of a tacit sort, must be involved. Although both Berleant and Carlson restrict
aesthetic appreciation to humans, we clearly share with T. Toadvine.

Furthermore, the relativity of aesthetic experience to a perceiver does not entail that such experience is
an anthropocentric projection. The aesthetic significance of a part of nature depends on the elements
revealed by the perceiver’s perspective and framing, but these elements are still features of nature, not
subjective projections. Crawford makes this point concerning the appreciation of natural scenery: “A
landscape, as an object of aesthetic appreciation, is in fact an expanse of the surface of the earth...; and
although its qualities are those we determine by looking at it from a particular viewpoint, that does not
preclude it from being a part of nature” (Crawford 2004b: 257). We may become aware, of course, that
our perceptual experiences are framed in an inappropriate way by limited or inaccurate conceptual
knowledge, or by the imposition of personal or cultural expectations that fail to accord with what nature
actually presents. For example, our appreciation of English ivy in a Northwestern forest may alter when
we learn that it is an invasive species crowding out native trilliums, and we may listen to birdsongs
differently after becoming aware of the Western tendency to privilege narrative musical structures. But
this ability to revise our concepts and framings relies on an expansion of experience, not on the
rejection of experience altogether in favor of aloof mystery. Even our awareness of the limitations of
human spatial and temporal scale takes our perceptual experience as its starting point, varying this
imaginatively as we conceive of other possible scales and perspectives. There is no contradiction, then,
between holding that all aesthetic appreciation is experiential, i.e., relative to a perceiver, and that it
may engage with nature on its own terms. Each particular aesthetic experience is open to evaluation
concerning its success in taking nature on its own terms, and our judgments along these lines will always
be open to revision in light of further experience.

Among non-phenomenological contributions to ecological aesthetics, the dominant line of development

has been the cognitive approach espoused by Carlson, according to which scientific knowledge is central
to aesthetic appreciation of nature. He argues that twentieth century philosophy of art downplayed
formal qualities to emphasize the role that art history and criticism play in art appreciation, so our
appreciation of nature should be guided predominantly by natural-historical and scientific knowledge
(Carlson 1993, 2001). This emphasis on natural historical knowledge follows in the tradition of John
Muir, Henry David Thoreau, and Aldo Leopold, who tied the aesthetic value of nature to its ecological
harmony and integrity, a position that has been refined in Baird Callicott’s “land aesthetic” (Carlson
2004, Callicott 1987). Because of its prioritization of scientific knowledge, the cognitive approach has
drawn criticism for underestimating the importance of nonconceptual factors in our aesthetic
appreciation of nature, such as emotions (Carroll 2004), imagination (Brady 2004, Hepburn 2004), and
the ambient dimension of experience (Foster 2004). Debate has also centered on what forms of
knowledge may be appropriate for aesthetic guidance, with suggestions that scientific knowledge be
complemented by Indigenous traditions, folklore, and myths (Saito 2004), as well as by literary
treatments of nature (Sepänmaa 1993). Carlson has refined his position in light of these suggestions and
proposes that the cognitive approach be extended beyond consideration of natural aesthetics to provide
a model for aesthetic appreciation of the world at large (Carlson 2000, 2001).
Carlson criticizes Berleant’s “aesthetics of engagement” for focusing primarily on sensory and formal
qualities, thereby making aesthetic appreciation of nature trivial and subjective and potentially isolating
the appreciation of art from that of the larger world, since contemporary art appreciation clearly
involves conceptual knowledge and understanding that goes beyond the merely sensuous and formal
qualities of the object (Carlson 2001: 429). The phenomenological approach to aesthetic experience
sketched above avoids these criticisms while incorporating the best features of both Berleant’s and
Carlson’s positions. Since all aesthetic experience is founded on a sensuous core, Berleant’s descriptions
of our continuous perceptual engagement with an aesthetically charged surrounding world are
appropriate. But Berleant overlooks the phenomenologically valid distinction between objects of human
design and those relatively free of human intervention. This distinction suggests that aesthetic
appreciation of these different objects, and of the cases that range between them, may be informed by
conceptual knowledge, and even that such conceptual knowledge may direct our perceptual scale and
framing of these objects. Contra Carlson, the phenomenological view does not prioritize conceptual
knowledge over the many other aspects of our complete aesthetic experience, including emotional,
imaginative, ambient, and metaphysical aspects, and does not exclude other sources for conceptual
knowledge apart from the scientific, such as traditional knowledge or literature.

While for Carlson, “Science is the paradigm of that which reveals objects for what they are and with the
properties they have” (Carlson 1993: 219), phenomenology sees natural science as an abstraction from
lifewordly experience oriented toward certain theoretical and practical pursuits. The most fundamental
disclosure of objects as what they are is as they are experienced pre-theoretically within the lifeworld,
although this experience may be informed by the conceptualizations and sedimentations of the natural
sciences. The contributions of the cognitive approach to ecological aesthetics are therefore not at odds
with phenomenological insights, starting from a basic description of aesthetic experience that would be
applicable both to art and nature. The two accounts may be fruitfully combined for a richer
understanding of our holistic aesthetic engagement with the world.

Bibliography

1. Backhaus, Gary, and John Murungi, eds.Transformationsof Urban and Suburban Landscapes: Per
spectives fromPhilosophy, Geography, and Architecture. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2002.
2. Berleant, Arnold. “Aesthetic Perception in EnvironmentalDesign.” In Environmental Aesthetics:
Theory, Research, and Applications Ed. Jack L. Nasar. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,
1988, 84–97.
3. Brady, Emily. “Imagination and the Aesthetic Appreciation of Nature” In
The Aesthetics of Natural Environments. Ed.Allen Carlson and Arnold Berleant. Ontario:
Broadview Press, 2004, 156–69.Callicott, J
4. . Baird. “The Land Aesthetic.” In Companion to AS and County Almanac: Interpretive and Critical
Essays. Ed.J. Baird Callicott. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1987, 157–71.
5. Carlson, Allen. “Appreciating Art and Appreciating Nature.” In Landscape, Natural
Beauty and The Arts. Ed. Salim Kemaland Ivan Gaskell. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press,1993, 199–227.
6. Carlson, Allen.
Aesthetics and the Environment: The Appreciation of Nature, Art and Architecture. New York:
Routledge, 2000.
7. Carlson, Allen. “Environmental Aesthetics.” In The Routledge
Companion to Aesthetics. Ed. Berys Gaut and Dominic McIver Lopes. London: Routledge, 2001,
423–36.
8. Carlson, Allen. “Appreciation and the Natural Environment.” In The Aesthetics of Natural
Environments. Ed. Allen Carlsonand Arnold Berleant. Ontario: Broadview Press, 2004a,63–75.
9. Carroll, Noël. “On Being Moved by Nature: Between Religion and Natural History.” In
The Aesthetics of Natural Environments. Ed. Allen Carlson and Arnold Berleant.Ontario:
Broadview Press, 2004, 89–107.
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Development and Ecology Part I: Hydroelectric Projects and Large Dams

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary This module introduces students to environmental and social impacts of

large dams and hydroelectric projects. It provides students with an
understanding of how large dams were presented as ‘temples of modern
India’ during the first initial years after India’s independence. It also talks
about the resistance to large dams in different parts of country since 1970s.

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR) Savyasachi Jamila Milia Islamia
Language Editor (LE) Savyasachi Jamila Milia Islamia
Hydroelectric Projects and Large Dams

This module will discuss why it is pertinent to talk about environmental impacts of hydropower projects
and large dams. Since independence India has already constructed more 3300 large dams and in late
1990s, even as World Commission on Dams put the paradigm of development that heavily relied on
large dams under critical evaluation, India continued to walk on the path of development through
envisioning large dams as temples of modern India.

The energy of flowing water has been harnessed by human beings for purposes such as grinding flour
since seventh century in Indian subcontinent. In his article, ‘Gharats of Uttaranchal: Harnessing Natural
Energy’, Manikant Shah talks about three kinds of watermills1. The first hydropower plan in the world
was commissioned in 1878. The biggest hydropower projects today are: Three Gorges Dam in China
(22500 MW installed capacity) and Itaipu Dam in Brazil/ Paraguay (14000 MW installed capacity). More
than 150 countries generated electricity through hydropower dams and hydroelectricity accounted for
11 percent of electricity generation in the year 2011. In India, hydropower accounts for 26 percent of
total electricity generation and compared to 508 MW installed capacity at the time of independence,
the contribution of hydropower in terms of installed capacity had gone up 43 times with 21,700 MW
installed capacity in the year 1996-’97. During late 1990s, India government launched a very ambitious
program to add 50,000 MW installed capacity.

While Jawaharlal Nehru’s speech on large dams as temples of India is oft quoted, it would be worth
reproducing the exact words in order to grasp the import of Nehru’s thoughts:

“What is now complete is only half the work. We may celebrate its completion but we must
remember that the most difficult part still remains to be done – the construction of the dam
which you have heard so much. Our engineers tell us that probably nowhere else in the world is
there a dam as high as this. The work bristles with difficulties and complications. As I walked
round the site I thought that these days the biggest temple and mosque and gurudwara is the
place where man works for the good of mankind. Which place can be greater than this, this
Bhakra-Nangal, where thousand and lakhs of men have worked, have shed their blood and
sweat and laid down their lives as well? Where can be greater a greater and holier place that
this, which we can regard as higher?”

Four years later, Nehru while speaking at 29th annual meeting of Central Board of Irrigation and Power
voiced his thoughts that suggest his commitment for environment. We reproduce words that represent
the developmental thinking and philosophy below:

“For some time past, however, I have been beginning to think that we are suffering from what
we may call, “disease of gigantism”. We want to show that we can build big dams and do big
thing. This is dangerous outlook developing in India… the idea of having big undertakings and
doing big tasks for the sake of showing that we can do big things is not a good outlook at all. We
have to realise that we can also meet out problems much more rapidly and efficiently by taking
up a large number of small schemes is much less and the results obtained are rapid. Further, in

1
See Shah, Manikant (nondated) ‘Gharats of Uttaranchal: Harnessing Natural Energy’, Infinity Foundation,
http://www.infinityfoundation.com/mandala/t_es/t_es_shah_m_gharats_frameset.htm
 those small schemes you can get a good deal of what is called public co-operation, and
therefore, there is that social value in associating people with such small schemes.”

It is also important to add that Nehru’s voices in that meeting was also marked his formal
announcement that he wished water and power engineers to start paying serious attention to the scope
of smaller schemes, as he clearly voiced his disagreement with the then president of CBIP:

“You (the then president of CBIP) have said just now in your address that the cost of production
in a small project is great. I am not at all sure if that is so, because the cost of a small project has
to be judged after taking into account all the social upsets connected with the enormous
concentration of national energy, all the national upsets, upsets of people moving out and their
rehabilitation and many other things, associated with a big project. Also it takes a long time to
build a project. The small projects, however, does not bring about these upsets nor does it
involve such a large endeavor.”

During colonial period in India, an idea that gained currency amongst development planners was trying to
seek solution for multiple problems in what came to be known as multi-purpose river valley development
projects that sought to offer large dam as providing perennial irrigation, hydropower, drinking water and
flood control. Did affected people losing their land mount protest and resistance movements against
these projects? Rajendra Vora in his book, The World’s First Anti-Dam Movement: The Mulshi Satyagrah
(1920-1924), narrates the story of struggle by affected person led by Senapati Bapat to prevent the
submergence of the Mulshi valley. Guha (2008) refers to how “as a boy growing up in Pune in the 1940s,
Madhav Gadgil had known of Senapati Bapat and later in 1960s, came across a book written by Bapat’s
associate V. M. Bhuskute and still later in 1990s, he came to read a historical study written in Marathi by
Rajendra Vora”. The struggle to oppose the dam being built by Tata Power Company, with the support of
British government, for irrigation as well as hydroelectric power under the leadership of Pandurang
Mahadev (Senapati) Bapat coincided with the ‘non-cooperation’ phase of larger anti-colonial struggle.

Vora analyses the arguments of the proponents and the opponents to the dam. The movement arose
during those years of non-cooperation movement. Malekar (2008) recollects that “the saga of
displacement began when in 191 an ambitious plan to dam the confluence of the Nila and Mula rivers at
Mulshi Peta began. In June 1919, the farmers of Mulshi Peta, near Pune were served land acquisition
notices. Some 10000 peasants had to move out and farmers had to give up land that would be
submerged”. Rothermund (1999: 75) recounts that “when Gandhi visited Pune in 1920, the Mavals met
him and asked for his advice in their struggle. Gandhi asked them not to petition the government, but to
lie on the land which was being dug up and offer satyaagrahi.” Acting on Gandhi’s advice, the Mavals
launched Satyaagrah on April 16, 1921 under the leadership of Bapat. At the Maharashtra Provincial
Congress Committee session in May 1921, under the chairmanship Dr Munje, a resolution was passed
supporting the Mulshi satyaagrah. Malekar (2008) recollects that on June 22, 1921 Bapat and his
associates removed the rails being laid by the company as part of the project. They were arrested and
held guilty by the court and on October 19, 1921 were sentenced to six months simple imprisonment.
Sangvai (2002: 37), drawing upon Marathi language sourceii recollects “peasant leaders of Maval area
continued their opposition to the dam with novel methods. In 1924, Bapat declared Aatm SamarpaN
(Sacrificing the self) to oppose the dam”. Despite the profoundly ambivalent attitude of Gandhi towards
the continued opposition to dam, the struggle carved out a self-imagination as that of defending the
subsistence economy and opposing the efforts of government to justify the profit motives of a private
company in the name of ‘public purpose’.

We learn from Rajendra Vora’s account of Mulshi Satyagrah that large dams had not gone un-contested,
and the human impacts of large dams had come under criticism right from 1920s. Gadgil and Guha (1995:
70-71) in their book, Ecology and Equity bring to us an account of “strong protests by the peasants of
Sambalpur district who were to be ousted” by Hirakud Dam in Orissa, when the foundation stone was laid
in March 1946. They also suggest that river valley projects of 1950s met with little opposition, even when
each of these projects – the Bhakra Nangal dam in Punjab, the Tungbhadra project on the Andhra Pradesh
– Karnataka border and the Rihand dam in Uttar Pradesh – displaced tens of thousands of people. 1950s
was a decade when both the superpower nation-state believed in competing with each other in terms of
building large dams and altering the course of the rivers. If in United States, we witnessed Tennesse Valley
Authority as an exercise that marked the development planning, in Society Union it was the Leningrad
Power Station that received accolades, following Stalin’s concept of “transformation of nature into
machine for the communist state”. In some ways, independent India was walking that script when it
started to work on Damodar Valley projects2.

In 1970s, social environmental impacts of large dams had come under questions and criticism. In 1973,
Kenneth E. Boulding penned a poem titled ‘A Ballad of Ecological Awareness’ that captures the
environmental impacts caused by construction of large dams and raises relevant questions on behalf of
affected communities.

“The cost of building dams is always underestimated

There’s erosion of the delta that the river has created,
There’s fertile soil below the dam that’s likely to be looted,
And the tangled mat of forest that has got to be uprooted.
There’s the breaking up of cultures with old haunts and habits loss,
There’s the education program that just doesn’t come across,
And the wasted fruits of progress that are seldom much enjoyed
By expelled subsistence farmers who are urban unemployed.
There’s disappointing yield of fish, beyond the first explosion;
There’s silting up, and drawing down, and watershed erosion.
Above the dam the water’s lost by sheer evaporation;
Below, the river scours, and suffers dangerous alteration.
For engineers, however good, are likely to be guilty
Of quietly forgetting that a river can be silty,
While the irrigation people too are frequently forgetting
That water poured upon the land is likely to be wetting.
Then the water in the lake, and what the lake releases,

2
For an account of how large dams and multi-purpose river valley projects were being envisioned as ‘nation-
building’ projects and how Damodar Valley projects were almost a carbon copy of development planning paradigm
offered by Tennesse Valley Authority, see Klingensmith, Daniel (2007) One Valley and Thousand Dams: DVC as
India’s TVA, Oxford University Press, New Delhi.
 Is crawling with infected snails and water-borne diseases.
There’s a hideous locust breeding ground when water level’s low,
And a million ecologic facts we really do not know.

There are benefits, of course, which may be countable, but which

Have a tendency to fall into the pockets of the rich.
While the costs are apt to fall upon the shoulders of the poor.
So cost-benefit analysis is nearly always sure.
To justify the building of a solid concrete fact,
While the Ecologic Truth is left behind in the Abstract.”

However, by 1980s it was being acknowledged that “a significant percentage of water development in
United States has been a sad mistake”. Writing a foreword to Nicholas Hildyard and Edward Goldsmith’s
two volume comprehensive, Social and Ecological Effects of Large Dams3, Brent Blackwater wrote:
“America’s Tennessee Valley Authority is often held up as a model of how to make the economy of a valley
flourish. In fact, people from all over the world come to see what TVA has done. Unfortunately, the TVA
story is really a myth. The Environmental Policy Institute’s analysis of the costs and benefits experienced
by TVA’s water projects during its first 50 years showed that the flood control and navigation objectives
have yet to pay for themselves by any reasonable standard of accounting. Furthermore, areas in the
Southeastern United States which did not receive financial aid from TVA did as well as or better than the
TVA region, even though they were as poor, or poorer, to begin with.”

Published in 1984, Social and Ecological Effects of Large Dams presented an indictment of follies in
development planning that relied heavily on large dams. It had appeared at a time when the
environmental movement had started to stir the consciousness. It also influenced creative writers from
global South who had started to articulate environmental consciousness by weaving new fables and fairy
tales. Here, we reproduce a short passage from Vikram Seth’s 1991 poem, The Elephant and the Tragopan
(a fiery speech by the tragopan to the Bigshot) in order to show indictment of political economy of large
dams:

You say that town is short of water

Yet at the wedding of your daughter
The whole municipal supply
Was poured on your lawns. Well, why?
And why is it that Minister’s Hill
And Babu’s Barrow drink their fill
Through every season, dry or wet,
When all the common people get
Is water on alternate days?
At least that’s what my data says,
And every figure has been checked.
So, Bigshot, wouldn’t you expect

3
Hildyard, Nicholas and Edward Goldsmith (1984) Social and Ecological Effects of Large Dams, Wadebridge
Ecological Centre, Worthyvale Manor Camelford, Cornwall.
 A radical redistribution
Would help provide a just solution?’

In 1996, Silenced Rivers: The Ecology and Politics of Large Dams authored by Patrick McCully got published
by Zed Book in association with the International Rivers Network, Berkeley. The central theme of silenced
Rivers was a further evaluation of the massive adverse impacts that large dams had left on ecology and
society and a yet another attempt to outline – with robust analysis of data that was available – that
benefits from large dams had been exaggerated and could often have been produced by other less
destructive and more equitable means.

Attempting to explain why in 1990s, the Indian villager slated to be displaced by the construction of a
large dam developed “a marked unwillingness to make way for ‘nation-building’ projects”, Gadgil and
Guha (1995: 71) states, “The resettlement of dam evacuees has uniformly been inadequate: the rates of
cash compensation have been low; the promise of land for land has very rarely been fulfilled (and where
it has, the news lands are invariably of much poorer quality); not to speak of the difficulties of making a
new home in unfamiliar, and often hostile, surroundings”. In early 1990s, environmental movements in
India were asking pertinent questions around the large dams, ranging from Silent Valley in Kerala to Tehri
in Garhwal Himalayas, on the banks of Subarnarekha river in Bihar and on the banks of Narmada in
Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat.

Narmada Bachao Andolan had petitioned the World Bank to constitute an independent review of the
ambitious Sardar Sarovar Dam and on September 01, 1991, two experts began the independent review
that till date remains an example of a comprehensive assessment of the human and environmental
impacts of a proposed large dam. These two experts were, Bradford Morse, a former Under-Secretary-
General of the United Nations for ten years (1976-86) and former head of UNDP and Thomas R Berger,
who had conducted Mackenzie Valley Pipiline Inquiry (1974-77) and the Alaska Native Review Commission
(1983-85).

As per the World Commission on Dams4 report, large dams have forced 40 to 80 million people from their
lands in the past six decades. While displacement due to submergence of habitat is the most visible
impact, many more have lost land to the canals, irrigation schemes, power lines and ancillary
developments that accompany large dams and hydropower projects. Those living downstream of large
dams and hydropower projects have suffered due to unprecedented hydrological changes in river eco-
system5.

In terms of economic impacts, in earlier times, large dams were promoted as providing “cheap”
hydropower and water supply, but increasing amount of data and research started showing the truth
behind the public relations façade. It was argued that large dams mostly end up experiencing cost and

4
World Commission on Dams was a global multi-stake holder body initiated in 1997 by the World Bank and the
World Conservation Union (IUCN) in response to growing opposition to large dam projects. For the final report of
the commission see, http://www.internationalrivers.org/files/attached-
files/world_commission_on_dams_final_report.pdf
5
For a scientific study that takes an in-depth look at downstream impacts of large dams, see Brian D. Richter,
Sandra Postel, Carmen Revenga, Thayer Scudder, Bernhard Lehner, Allegra Churchill, Morgan Chow (2010) ‘Lost in
development's shadow: The downstream human consequences of dams’, Water Alternatives 3(2), June 2010: pp.
14-42. For a summary of the findings of this research paper see,
http://www.internationalrivers.org/blogs/227/the-forgotten-downstream-victims-of-large-dams
time overruns. The World Commission on Dams found that “on an average, large dams have been at best
only marginally economically viable. The average cost overruns of the dam is 56%. A new research study
by four researchers from Oxford University came across “overwhelming evidence that budgets are
systematically biased below actual costs of large hydropower dams — excluding inflation, substantial debt
servicing, environmental, and social costs”6. Over four years, the authors of the new study – Atif Ansar,
Bent Flyvbjerg, Alexander Budzier and Daniel Lunn – analyzed all large dams which were built between
1934 and 2007 for which reliable costs and schedule figures are available. Their database includes 245
projects in 65 countries with a total cost of US$353 billion (in 2010 prices). We reproduce below two main
findings of this study:

 Large dams suffered average cost overruns of 96%. The degree of cost overruns tended to
increase with the size of projects. Even without considering social and environmental costs,
large dams on average don’t make economic sense.
 Project implementation suffered an average delay of 44%. The implementation schedule does
not include the lengthy lead time required to prepare projects.

The environmental consequences of large dams and hydropower projects are numerous and varied. On
the upstream side, it transforms a free-flowing river ecosystem into an artificial slack-water reservoir. This
may also lead to adverse impacts for aquatic plants and animal species that evolved with a given river eco-
system habitat, since chemical composition, changes in temperature, dissolved oxygen levels of a
reservoir may no longer prove tolerable to these native species. Research by biological scientists has
shown that reservoir often attract non-native and invasive species.

Cernea (1997: 04) talks about following downstream impacts of large dams and hydropower projects:

 Drying up of river in non-monsoon months, leading to drying of water source for the people
living on the banks of the river.
 Stoppage of groundwater recharge in the downstream regions.
 Salinity ingress due to stoppage of fresh water flow.
 Such salinity ingress can destroy the existing groundwater in the region and also affect the
lands on the banks of the river.
 Pollution concentration in the downstream region.
 Destruction of mangroves in the downstream areas.
 Destruction of riverine and estuarine fisheries and displacement of people thereby. This is
contributed both by the stoppage of freshwater flow and also by the stoppage of silt in the
reservoir behind the dam.
 Flashfloods in the downstream area are generally more destructive than the floods without
dams.
 The stoppage of downstream flow can also affect use of river for navigation for the people on
the banks of the river.
 Geomorphological impacts are also important ones to be mentioned. Þ The people in the
downstream that depend on the river for bringing water for diversion agriculture in the

6
For a summary of the findings of this research study, see http://www.internationalrivers.org/blogs/227/large-
dams-are-uneconomic-scientific-study-finds
 floodplains also get deprived of this when dam is built in the upstream area. This can bring
lower harvests, drops in productivity and impoverishment.

In a revised version of Silenced Rivers, McCully (2001: xvii) states that “The great hope for the hydropower
industry is that global warming will come to its rescue – that hydropower will be recognized as ‘climate-
friendly’ technology and receive carbon credits as part of the international emissions trading mechanism
under the Kyoto Protocol. But science is not doing the hydropower industry any favours here – studies
show that reservoirs in the tropical countries most likely to be at the technology-receiving end of any
North-South emissions trading schemes can emit greenhouse gases at levels higher than even fosil-fuel-
fires power plants”.

As an effort to ensure the protection of healthy river ecosystems, McCully (2001: 312) urges society to
move from the dams to the watershed thinking. He states that “The key to protecting and restoring rivers
lies in treating with care and respect their entire watershed. Thinking on the watershed level means seeing
rivers as integral parts of a complex and dynamic system of land and water and biota. Disrupting any part
of the system will eventually affect all the other parts. Looking after rivers thus means looking after water,
soils, ecosystems and the air. Watershed thinking means dropping the language and accompanying
concepts of ‘controlling’ and ‘enslaving’ ‘wild’, ‘unruly’ and ‘wasted’ rivers. One cannot control a
watershed. It requires recognizing and respecting the complexity of the interactions between land, water
and atomsphere. It means adapting to this complexity rather than making counter-productive efforts to
control and simplify it. It also means respecting the diversity of different watershed and the natural and
human communities that live within them”.

To sum up, let’s recall the advice that elephant gives to the Bigshot in Vikarm Seth’s poem, The Elephant
and the Tragopan (1991):

I do not see the reason why

You do not use what lies to hand
Before you try to dam our land…
Your pipes cry out for renovation.
Your storage tanks corrode and leak;
The valves are loose, the washers weak.
I’ve seen the water gushing out
From every reservoir and spout.
Repair them it will cost far less
Than driving us to homelessness….
But that’s just one of many things:
Plant trees, revive your wells and springs.
Guide from your roofs the monsoon rain
Into great tanks to use again.
Reduce your runoff and your waste
Rather than with unholy haste
Destroying beauty which, once gone,
The world will never look upon.”
References

Ansar, Atif; Bent Flyvbjerg, Alexander Budzier and Damniel Lunn (2014) ‘Should we build more large
dams? The actual costs of hydropower megaproject development’, Energy Policy, March 2014, pp. 01-
14. http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2406852

Boulding, Kenneth (1973) A Ballad of Ecological Awareness

Guha, Ramchandra (2008) ‘The World’s First Anti-Dam Movement,’ in Magazine, The Hindu dated July
06, 2008. http://www.hindu.com/mag/2008/07/06/stories/2008070650110300.htm

Malekar, Ashutosh 2008 ‘The Mavals of Mulshi: Displacement’s Earliest Victims’, Infochange India
Feature, July 2008 Available online at http://infochangeindia.org/agenda/migration-a-displacement/the-
mavlas-of-mulshi-displacements-earliest-victims.html

Morse, Bradford and Thomas Berges (1992) Sardar Sarovar: The Report of the Independent Review,
Resource Futures International, Ottawa, Canada.

Seth, Vikram (1991) The Elephant and the Tragopan

Sangvai, Sanjay 2002 The River and Life: People’s Struggle in the Narmada Valley, Earthcare Books,
Calcutta

Vora, Rajendra 2009 World’s First Anti Dam Movement, Permanent Black, New Delhi.

i
Translated literally it means ‘an act to assert the Truth’, this term was popularized Gandhi during the course of
anti colonial struggle to denote the non-violent protest acts.
ii
Sangvai cites the source as Vora, Rajendra 1994 Mulshi Satyagrah, Pratibha Prakashan, Pune.
 Details of Module and its Structure

Module Detail

Subject Name Sociology

Paper Name Ecology and Society

Module Name/Title Ecological thinkers: Murray Bookchin

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords Anarchism, harmony, individualism, libertarianism, municipalism, balance,

decentralism

Structure of Module / Syllabus of a module (Define Topic / Sub-topic of module)

Summary Bookchin’s work can be located in the tradition of anarchism or libertarian

socialism. In extension of the principles of minimal and humane social
relations, Bookchin advocates a restoration of man’s symbiotic relationship
with nature by reducing the scale of industrial operation and exploitation of
natural resources by capitalism.

Role Name Affiliation

Principal Investigator Prof Sujata Patel University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator Himanshu Upadhyaya Azim Premji University

Content Writer/Author Shalini Sharma

(CW)
Content Reviewer (CR)
Language Editor (LE)

1
1, Introduction
2, Biography
3, Anarchism and Ecology
4, Key Issues and Strategies
5, Ecological Social Movements

1. INTRODUCTION
The political tradition of anarchism marked a strong critique of western modernity that is driven by

industrial capitalism. Anarchism advocates a return to modes of living where the ruler and ruled have

direct contact, and there is active participation of members of a polity in management of resources.

Ecological idealism has found its way into the anarchist ways of thinking through the desire for simple

social forms that rely sensitively on surrounding environments. Murray Bookchin, an American

anarchist theorist is known for his work of integrating the ecological perspective into the anarchist

philosophy of social change and revolution. This section has six sub-sections: (1) Introduction, (2)

Biography, (3) Anarchism and Ecology, (4) Key Issues and Strategies, (5) Ecological Social Movements

and (6) Concluding comments.

2. BIOGRAPHY

Murray Bookchin (1921-2006) was born and brought up in New York. There was a tradition of
Socialist politics in his family, including his grandmother. He was raised by parents, who before
immigrating to New York, had participated in the Russian revolutionary movement. In Bronx, his
grandmother who was a socialist revolutionary had a deep impact on him. He thus imbibed a culture
of challenging class oppression fairly early on. Later, his family, having suffered under the Tsars, joined
the Bolshevik movement in 1917, while he entered politics. As a nine year old he joined the communist
youth movement in 1930, and got involved in organising activities around the Spanish Civil War and
the fight against European fascism. He turned briefly to Trotskyism after the executions of the
Bolshevik leaders by Stalin. Although this led to his expulsion from the communist party in 1939, he
joined Socialist Workers Party and remained active in left politics.

2
After High school he worked in northern New Jersey for four years in a foundry, as a shop steward

for the United Electrical Workers as well as a recruiter for the Socialist Workers’ Party. He went on

to found the New York Federation for Anarchists.

During the world war in mid-1940s he joined the US Army. After returning he started working as an
auto worker, and became involved in the United Auto Workers Union which was known to be highly
libertarian1. In 1948 he participated in the great General Motors Strike. Disillusioned by authoritarian
character of both Stalinist communism as well as Bolshevist Trotksyism, he explored possibilities for
a libertarian communism. By now he had become highly critical of capitalism and its exploitation of
workers. He parted from the labour movement, which he felt wasn’t radical enough, and started
thinking about more radical approach to social change.

During 1950s Bookchin, proclaiming to be a libertarian socialist, worked closely with International
Kommunisten Deutschlands (IKD), a group of dissident German Marxists in New York and wrote
for group’s German and English periodicals under several pen names - Lewis Herber, M.S.Shiloh,
Robert Keller, and Harry Ludd. During 1950s and 1960s he wrote early influential works such as, ‘The
Problem of Chemicals in Food’ in 1952 (for Contemporary Issues, IKD’s English periodical), Our Synthetic
Environment (pseud. Lewis Herber) in 1962, and Crisis in our Cities in 1965 exploring environmental
problem such as impacts of pesticides and environmental contamination on human health, and their
socio-economic origins, much ahead of Rachel Carlson’s seminal book Silent Spring. While he declared
himself an anarchist in late fifties, by the mid sixties, he not only joined the Congress of Racial Equality
but also introduced ecology as a concept in radical politics through his essay, “Ecology and
Revolution”. Clearly, by now he was interpreting ecological and social issues as interlinked, not
independent.

In the 1960s Bookchin was deeply involved in counter-cultural and New Left movements. By this
time Bookchin, already questioning ideas of centralised power, hegemony and hierarchy, turned to
Peter Kropotkin – a prominent Russian anarchist and scholar. Bookchin found Kropotkin’s ideas on
decentralisation, voluntary cooperation, and his critique of capitalism, resonating with his own anti-

1
Bookchin insisted on appreciating ‘Libertarianism’, a political philosophy that emphasises on ideas of liberty and
free will, as different from its current appropriation by the right wing; he insisted on acknowledging the traditional
libertarianism as an anarchist philosophy with a rich history. See, Bookchin explaining this in a video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cnj3dObd6do

3
hierarchical, anti-capitalism, libertarian and ecological ideas. While Kropotkin added an evolutionary
dimension to anarchism, Bookchin gave it an ecological perspective. Bookchin criticised Marxism for
its anti-ecological premise and highlighted several points of convergence between anarchism and
ecology. For instance, in his pioneering essay, “Ecology and Revolutionary Thought” (1964),
Bookchin explained how both ecologists and anarchist view unity as a measure of differentiation,
differentiation as a measure of progress, and diversity as a measure of unity and stability. Expanding
these initial ideas, he produced several influential essays — “Towards a Libratory Technology” (1965),
“Listen, Marxist!” (1969), “A Note on Affinity Groups” (1970) — later published into an anthology
Post-Scarcity Anarchism (1971; republished 1977 & 2004).

In the 1970s Bookchin joined the antinuclear movement with the Clamshell Alliance, opposing the
Seabrook nuclear reactor in New Hampshire. During 1970s he wrote extensively on urban issues and
radical social thought, providing elaborate critiques of new ecology movements. These include his
book The Limits of the City (1974) and a series of essays that were anthologised in Towards an Ecological
Society (1981).

In late 1960s Bookchin started teaching at the Alternative University in New York, one of the largest
‘free universities’ in the USA, and then at City University of New York in Staten Island. In 1973 he
was hired by Goddard College in Vermont to lecture on technology which eventually led him to
cofound the Institute for Social Ecology a year later. The Institute soon became internationally
renowned for advanced courses in social theory, ecophilosophy and alternative technologies. From
1974 he also taught at Ramapo College of New Jersey where he became a full professor of social
theory and retired in 1983 to an emiratus status. As an educator, Bookchin aimed to prepare a cadre
trained in his philosophy of social ecology and libertarian muncipalism; many of his former students
later became strong proponents of social ecology.

The early 1980s saw Bookchin’s two prominent books. The first was The Ecology of Freedom: the Emergence
and Dissolution of Hierarchy (1982; republished in 1991 & 2005). In this he provided an interdisciplinary
critique of ecology and social hierarchy; and explored the notion of dominating nature and traced its
historical emergence to the social domination of human by human. The second major work was the
Rise of Urbanization and the Decline of Citizenship (1986)2. In this he traced the history of civic self-
management, direct democracy, and confederalism in the Western democratic tradition, and

2
This was later republished as Urbanization without Cities (1992) & From Urbanization to Cities (1995).

4
introduced the idea of libertarian muncipalism – a new non-hierarchal politics oriented towards
establishing direct-democratic popular assemblies at neighbourhood levels which would confiderate
over larger regions and challenge the centralised nation-state and corporate capitalist system of
ownership and management. This magna opus was later republished as Urbanization without Cities
(1992) and From Urbanization to Cities (1995). The essays included in The Modern Crisis(1986) further
developed these ideas.

The mid-1980s saw Bookchin, convinced about linking green political thought to electoral politics,
work actively for the emergence of the international Green political movement. He had a strong
influence on the rise of the Greens in Germany and United States. In his keynote at the first Green
gathering in Amherst, Massachusetts he triggered a debate within the ecology movement by attacking
central ideas of Deep Ecology that prioritised nature over human interests, spiritualism and mysticism.
In fact, expanding his critique further, Bookchin criticised deep ecology’s tendency to blame humans
for ecological crisis but ignored role of corporations.3 He advocated for a radical green movement
that sought twin-fold objectives- public education in ecological solutions and local democracy in
accordance with libertarian muncipalism. He opposed the idea of creating a Green Party that aimed
to field candidates for state and national office. In late 1980s, as a member of Greens in Burlington,
Vermont, Bookchin participated in several local political campaigns that aimed to build environmental
consciousness and democratisation of local political institutions. In 1988 he co-founded the Left
Green Network. He retired from active political life in 1990, but continued to teach and write at the
Institute for Social Ecology as director emiratus.

From 1992-2003 he produced an impressive body of work such as Re-enchanting Humanity: A Defense of
the Human Spirit Against Anti-humanism, Misanthropy, Mysticism, and Primitivism(1996), The Philosophy of
Social Ecology (1990, revised 1994) where he developed his concept of dialectical naturalism, The Third
Revolution (1992)4 discussing the early and nineteenth century American, French, Russian, the Central
European and Spanish revolutions. In the meantime he also co-authored forty issues of the theoretical
newsletter Green Perspectives (renamed later as Left Green Perspectives) with Janel Biehl, his partner
and fellow social theorist.

3
For Bookchin’s critique of deep ecology see Bookchin(1986). Bookchin clarifies his position further in a debate
with Dave Foreman, a prominent deep ecologist, see Bookchin (1991b).
4
This was published by Cassell In 1992 and by Continuum between 1996 and 2003.

5
However, he also grew apprehensive about his earlier choice of anarchism, which he saw as
fundamentally embedded into individualism, as an over-arching political framework to house his ideas;
consequently in 1999 he publicly discarded anarchism.5 His growing disenchantment with anarchism
reflected in his writings - “The Ghost of Anarcho-Syndicalism” (1992) that presented his critique of
anarchism, Social Anarchism or Lifestyle Anarchism: An Unbridgeable Chasm (1995) which called anarchists
to reject individualistic, “lifestyle anarchism” for a “communal anarchism” rooted in the lived realities
of ordinary people and social movements, and “The Communalist Project” (2002) that rejected
anarchism all together in favour of communalism because he felt that anarchists failed to accept social
liberation over individual liberation.

Murray Bookchin, author, educator, activist and one of the most compelling thinkers from anti-

authoritarian Left, died of a cardiac arrest on July 30, 2006. In his lifetime, Bookchin challenged

prevailing ideas about nature, about human relationship with nature, but most importantly, he left us

with tools to rethink the kind of society we want to have for a harmonious, not oppositional,

relationship with our natural environment. His main contribution to Green political thought is

discussed in next section.

3. Anarchism and Ecology

Alexander Berkman, the early twentieth century anarchist, writes:

Anarchism means that you should be free; that no one should enslave
you, boss you, rob you, or impose upon you.
It means that you should be free to do the things you want to do;
and that you should not be compelled to do what you don't want to do.
It means that you should have a chance to choose the kind of a life
you want to live, and live it without anybody interfering.
It means that the next fellow should have the same freedom as you,
that every one should have the same rights and liberties.
It means that all men are brothers, and that they should live like
brothers, in peace and harmony.
That is to say, that there should be no war, no violence used by one
set of men against another, no monopoly and no poverty, no oppression,
no taking advantage of your fellow man.

5
Janet Biehl provides a lucid account of the reasons compelling Bookchin to part away from anarchism. See,
Biehl(2007)

6
 In short, Anarchism means a condition or society where all men and
women are free, and where all enj oy equally the benefits of an ordered
and sensible life.

Anarchism takes issue fundamentally with the social organization that ensures form capitalist form of

production and wage-labor. In this respect, it is on the same track as communism or socialism. But it

envisages a loosely governed, flexible, harmonious society, unlike communism which envisages a

centralized, strong party-state controlling economy and governance. Anarchists believe that labour

that produces goods must be applied socially, through coordination, hence, all wealth is social.

Anarchist proposes means of social life that ensures harmony and freedom while ensuring no one

overly abuses the fruits of social production.

Mikhail Bakunin, Pierre-Joseph Proudhon and others were the early proponents of anarchism in the

nineteenth century. Bakunin was subject to exile and persecution in France and other countries for

his staunchly anti-authoritarian views. He accepted Marx’s class analysis but did not accept the

component of authoritarian socialist revolution – strongly rejecting the concept of ‘dictatorship of

proletariat’. He also supported the active participation of peasants and the lumpenproletariat (small

farmers, unemployed persons, etc.) whereas Marx was for complete proletarianisation of the

workforce. He rejected hierarchical and statist notions of rule on all levels. Moving away from

organized religion, he propounded ‘political theology’ – an investigation of theological concepts that

underlie political institutions. He supported syndicalism as a valid mode of worker organisation.

Anarchists of the twentieth century have taken these principal ideas forward in many directions.

Murray Bookchin’s contribution has been to see ‘ecology’ and especially, ecological decentralism a key

way through which realise anarchist ideals of a society lived in freedom and harmony. He held a dream

of a ‘democratic ecological’ society. The anthropologist James C. Scott takes the questions of agrarian

livelihoods to an anarchist lens. In the book Moral Economy of the Peasant (1977), he shows the various

7
micro-level risk-calculations made by peasants to protect himself from the power structures that

surround the agrarian economy (debt, taxes, etc.) and how these moral economies break as market

forces are introduced. In this way, anarchists are interested in driving home the point that strategies

may be evolved on social, political, economic and ecological way in individuals can live in optimal

freedom and harmony while avoiding the bigger structures of capitalist modernity.

In Murray Bookchin’s work, we find a visitation of anarchism through the ‘ecological viewpoint’. But

renouncing heavily mechanized and synthetic material lives that modernity offers, and accepting our

embeddedness in the nature’s fold, he advocates anarchism may be practiced. He sees the ‘ecological

viewpoint’ as the conservative viewpoint of relationships between man and nature. In the next section,

we will see the key issues and strategies he detailed and advocated for executing the anarchist

programme through embracing ecology.

4. KEY ISSUES AND STRATEGIES

Bookchin’s main contribution to green politics has been the development and promotion of ‘social

ecology’, a revolutionary and radical form of green political theory and action. Social ecology is a

distinctive philosophy of human relationship with nature; a radical critique of existing anti-ecological

ideas; a school of interdisciplinary inquiry into socio-ecological issues; and a call for innovative,

decentralised political strategy called ‘libertarian muncipalism’. While advocating an embrace of the

ecological viewpoint, Bookchin did not advocate a deep ecology point of view – that nature is a sacred

and untouched system of its own, separate from human society. The social and the natural permeate

each other, he argued, in socially encasing the natural behaviours of human beings. Human fissures

and conflicts are the root of all ecological problems. Accepting that nature’s use is an essential feature

of human life, he advocated an individualised and sensitive approach to use of nature – moving away

from the exploitative, synthetic and mechanized form of material life that was practiced (especially in

8
the US) under the influence of industrial capitalism. He argued for a critical social ecology, not the

ecology that is reduced to ‘biological technocracy’. He saw the ‘ecological viewpoint’ as a conservative

viewpoint about man’s relationship with nature. This viewpoint was to be actualized by the Left Green

movements who would carry with them a ‘general interest’. He believed identity-based movements

are narrow and parochial and should be avoided for greater social change. Thus, he was furthering the

mandate of the New Left wherein ‘utopian’ qualities of equal and equitable social frameworks were

given the mantle of the left.

He saw modern industry as turning man into a parasitic and exploitative creature. His preference was

not for renunciation of modern industry, but its scaling to down to a level that would restore man’s

sensitivity. He criticized mechanized, large-scale agriculture too, advocating individualised agriculture

where a man cultivated a small patch of land with his own hands, populating it with a variety of species.

He disagreed with the anarchist traditions that asked people to retreat to communes, shun all things

relating to modern states. He believed decentralized and humane forms of government could be

worked out, while retaining a spiritual individualism of man. In this way, his dream was for an

ecological decentralism through which anarchism would flourish.

The structural and strategic changes he advocated were along the following lines:

- Division of towns and cities in the form of confederations of self-governing municipal entities.

These would implement self-sufficiency and some element of interdependence in production

and consumption. (This is enshrined in his essay ‘Libertarian Municipalism: An Overview’,

1991.)

- Decreased use of synthetic and produced foods.

- Resurrection of human health through enough physical labour and avoidance of processed

food.

9
- Organic agriculture on the principle of one man cultivating a variety of species in the patch of

land, groups of people cultivating for their community or neighborhood.

- Reduction in scale of industrial operation; reliance on local raw materials.

Social ecology argues that human domination over nature stems from human domination over
other humans, and not the opposite. Social issues and ecological issues are inseparable. This is
because the structures of power and hierarchy existing within human society shape human
behaviour and attitudes towards nature. The historical emergence of hierarchies, classes, states,
and finally the market economy and capitalism itself are the social forces that led to ecological
destruction. The social hierarchy leads to hierarchical attitude towards the non-human nature
ultimately resulting into an idea that natural world is human property. Such attitudes reduce nature
to a mere pool of resources that have no intrinsic worth but which are evaluated depending on
what human interests they serve. Bookchin saw hierarchy beyond class. According to him
(Bookchin 1993):

“Social ecology is based on the conviction that nearly all of our present ecological
problems originate in deep-seated social problems. It follows, from this view, that these
ecological problems cannot be understood, let alone solved, without a careful
understanding of our existing society and the irrationalities that dominate it. To make
this point more concrete: economic, ethnic, cultural, and gender conflicts, among many
others, lie at the core of the most serious ecological dislocations we face today—apart,
to be sure, from those that are produced by natural catastrophes.”

The long-term consequences of such attitudes governing human domination of nature have
culminated into ecological issues such as global warming, resource scarcity, pollution, mass
extinction, deforestation, and soil degradation. This present ecological crisis has come to threaten
the very survival of human species. But can capitalism be blamed for it? It is the nature of society,
Bookchin argued, that ultimately determines the nature of our ecological problems. He stressed
that capitalism (including bureaucratic state capitalism), which pervades most societies, is
inherently anti-ecological (Bookchin 1986:18-19):

Any attempt to solve the ecological crisis within a bourgeois framework must be
dismissed as chimeral. Capitalism is inherently anti-ecological. Competition and
accumulation constitute its very law of life, a law...summarised in the phrase, ‘production
10
 for the sake of production.’ Anything, however hallowed or rare, ‘has its price’ and is fair
game for the marketplace. In a society of this kind, nature is necessarily treated as a mere
resource to be plundered and exploited. The destruction of the natural world, far being
the result of mere hubristic blunders, follows inexorably from the very logic of capitalist
production.”

According to Bookchin capitalism not only confirms pre-existing notions of the domination of
nature by man but it also establish the plunder of nature into society's law of life (Bookchin 1991a).
He considered capitalism as anti-ecological not only in terms of production at the cost of ecology,
but also in terms of its role in breaking the ties between the communities, ever increasing
commodification of life, and a phenomenon he called, ‘fetishization of needs’. He explains
(1986:45)

In dissolving most of the cultural, traditional, and ideological ties that kept needs under
a measure of control, the market system has created a phenomenon that never existed
in precapitalist or traditional society as a whole: a fetishization of needs, not only Marx's
celebrated "fetishization of commodities." As I indicate in The Ecology of Freedom: "Needs,
in effect, become a productive force, not a subjective force. They become blind in the
same sense that the production of commodities becomes blind... To break the grip of
the 'fetishization of needs,' to dispel it, is to recover the freedom of choice, a project that
is tied to the freedom of the self to choose.'' Post-scarcity is a ' 'precondition" under
capitalism for exorcising the hold of the economy over society, for creating a sufficiency
in goods that permits the individual to choose what he or she really needs or wants.

He rejected both green capitalism and environmentalism. Both do nothing to cast away the very
basis of ecological problems, and infact might help to advance them. He preferred to emphasise
on ecology and the manner in which nature maintains its unity and stability to conceptualise a
society that works on ‘ecological lines’. Social ecology, therefore, argues that solutions towards
ecological problems would come through humans opting for radical social change, which will
involve establishing a non-hierarchal society through decentralised, community-based, directly
democratic means of organisation. Only a genuinely egalitarian society, that function on ecological
lines, can lead to sustainable balance between human and non human worlds. Bookchin advocated
social ecology as one that brings together lessons and insights from both primitive and modern
societies. He proposed a libertarian society incorporating a decentralised structure (an element of

11
 primitive societies) along with a focus on reason, science, and technology (elements of a modern
society). He writes (1990:204):

“Social ecology advances a message that calls not only for a society free of hierarchy and
hierarchical sensibilities, but for an ethics that places humanity in the natural world as an
agent for rendering evolution—social and natural— fully self-conscious and as free as
possible…We stand at a cross-roads of conflicting pathways: either we will surrender to
a mindless irrationalism that mystifies social evolution…or we will regain the activism,
that is denigrated today, and turn the world into an ever-broader domain of freedom and
rationality. This entails a new form of rationality, a new technology, a new science, a new
sensibility and self—and above all, a truly libertarian society.”

This libertarian/ecological society will result by connecting social development with biological

development, human communities with eco communities, and ecotechnics with existing

technologies. Such a society will be rational and ecological: it will provide the technological basis

for post-scarcity, allowing human to manage their societies (i.e. second nature) along rational lines

while also restoring and nurturing the first nature. In such a society, human beings could be, what

Bookchin referred as, nature rendered self-conscious. According to Bookchin human capacities

to reason and interpret natural processes enable them to establish such societies and resolve

ecological crisis. For this purpose, social ecology recommends strongly for an ecological sensibility,

an ethic of complimentarity, a moral economy and engaging in socio-political activity.

5. ECOLOGICAL SOCIAL MOVEMENTS

The values and strategies advocated by Murray Bookchin found expression not way beyond the United

States of America which was the ambit of his work – in countries in Latin America and Asia. The

campaigns carried out by indigenous communities for sovereignty and ethical control over natural

resources in their traditional habitats and their use by the state or industry. These campaigns have

12
ranged from issues of mining and control over minerals to be unearthed from land occupied by such

communities to growth of non-genetically modified seeds and plant varieties, use of pesticides and

deforestation. The Zapatista movement in Mexico gave expression to anti-globalisation sentiments of

the indigenous peoples of the Chiapas and aligned itself to anarchist thought. They followed the

tradition of liberation theology (Christian doctrinal approaches towards gaining justice for the

marginalized) and provided armed resistance in condemnation of the NAFTA (North American Free

Trade Agreement). Some such movements put forward an emotional and spiritual relationship with

nature as their ethical basis. Some aligned with the inclusion of women as their primary participants.

Indigenous people’s federative rights to sovereignty and the claim for environmental justice often

combine in this political realm.

There are two movements in India worth mentioning in this discussion - the Narmada Bachao

Andolan which protested the state-capture of land for the Sardar Sarover Dam project under the

leadership of Medha Patkar, and the Chipko movement on forest conservation in the Garhwal

Himalayas. Both of these can be seen as responses to India’s foray into a liberalized and growth-driven

economic agenda. While the Narmada movement sought the support of the World Bank and the

Supreme Court of India to rally political and legal support for their anti-dam perspective, the Chipko

movement featured villagers especially women protesting the order of government favouring a

company trying to acquire ash trees for lumbering, by hugging the trees (‘chipko’ in Hindi means to

stick to). The Chipko movement came to known as a hallmark of ecosocialism and ecofeminism in the

global environmentalist discourse. The wedding of the ecological viewpoint with an affinity for

decentralized democratic procedures has governed the indigenous environmental responses similar to

Chipko. In India, there is also an ecological perspective of the violent nature – in the Red Corridor

(primarily, the states of Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh) – where the far left political outfits led by the

Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) sought, among other things, resource and land

13
sovereignty by resorting to violent resistance to the Indian state. These outfits claim to be aligned to

the ideology of Maoism. Most of these political responses were put forth by connecting the concern

for environment with those of traditional and subsistence livelihood patterns of indigenous and

marginalized communities. Though Bookchin did not envisage the ecological decentralism of other

cultural and socio-political milieus, his ideas seem to have found expression in various parts.

Bookchin’s critique was mostly based on Western experience of capitalist modernity.

6. CONCLUDING COMMENTS

We find in Murray Bookchin a figure who marries socialist alignments with the ecological viewpoint.

His views on politics and social change call for radical alteration of political and economic

arrangements that are involved in capitalist modernity. He critiques the overall adverse impact of large-

scale industrial organisation including in realms of health and ecology. He calls for an ecological

decentralism to restore man’s relationship with nature. He differs from deep ecologists in that he does

not see merit in treating nature as a completely removed and sacrosanct preserve. Rather he sees that

nature is intimately linked to human society and man’s natural role being socially encased. His critique

of industrial modernity is largely based on the western experience. But we find instances of ecological

decentralism in struggles of indigenous communities the world over to restore livelihoods that are

closely related to nature. In the west, drives of urban farming and movements for organic food

consumption could be seen as carrying forward Bookchin’s mandate.

Further Readings
Biehl, J. A Short Biography of Murray Bookchin, n.d.
http://dwardmac.pitzer.edu/Anarchist_Archives/bookchin/bio1.html

Biehl, J. The Politics of Social Ecology: Libertarian Municipalism, Montreal: Black Rose Books,
1998
Biehl, J.& Bookchin, Murray Bookchin Reader, Canada, USA, England: Black Rose Books, 1999

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Biehl, J.& Bookchin, M. Theses on Social Ecology and Deep Ecology, 1995
Bookchin, M. Our Synthetic Environment, pseud. Lewis Herber, New York: Harper & Row, 1971
Bookchin, M. The Spanish Anarchists, New York: Harper & Row, 1977
Bookchin, M. Towards an Ecological Society, Montreal/Buffalo: Black Rose Books, 1980
Bookchin, M. Post-scarcity Anarchism, 2nd end with a new introduction, Montreal-Buffalo: Black
Rose Books, 1986
Bookchin, M. The Modern Crisis, Philadelphia, PA: New Society Publishers, 1986
Bookchin, M. Freedom and Necessity in Nature,
http://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/murray-bookchin-freedom-and-necessity-in-nature-a-
problem-in-ecological-ethics.pdf
Bookchin, M. Yes!—Whither Earth First, Green Perspectives, no. 10, 1987
http://dwardmac.pitzer.edu/Anarchist_Archives/bookchin/gp/perspectives10.html
Bookchin, M. Remaking Society, Montreal and New York: Black Rose Books, 1990
Bookchin, M. The Ecology of Freedom: the Emergence and Dissolution of Hierarchy, rev. edn,
Montreal and New York: Black Rose Books, 1991a
Bookchin, M. “Where I stand now”, Steve Chase (ed.), Defending the Earth: A Dialogue between
Murray Bookchin and Dave Foreman, Boston, MA: South End Press, 1991b, pp.121-134
Bookchin, M. Urbanization without Cities: The Rise and Decline of Citizenship, Montreal: Black
Rose Books, 1992a
Bookchin, M. Libertarian Muncipalism: An Overview. Society and Nature, 1(1), 1992b
http://www.democracynature.org/vol1/bookchin_libertarian.htm#_edn1

Bookchin, M. “What is Social Ecology” in M.E Zimmerman eds Environmental Philosophy: From
Animal Rights to Radical Ecology, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1993, Retrieved from:
http://dwardmac.pitzer.edu/Anarchist_Archives/bookchin/socecol.html

Bookchin, M. What is communalism? The Democratic Dimension of Anarchism, 1994a.

http://dwardmac.pitzer.edu/anarchist_archives/bookchin/CMMNL2.MCW.html

Bookchin, M. The Philosophy of Social Ecology, rev. edn, Montreal/Buffalo: Black Rose Books,
1994b
Bookchin, M. Re-Enchanting Humanity: A Defence of the Human Spirit against Antihumanism,
Misanthropy, Mysticism and Primitivism, London: Cassell, 1995
Barry, J. “Murray Bookchin”, in Joy A. Palmer eds. 50 Key Thinkers on the Environment, London,
New York: Routledge, 2001, pp. 241-245

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Brian, T. “On Bookchin’s Social Ecology and Its Contribution to Social Movements,” Capitalism
Nature Socialism, 19(1): 2008,
http://www.skidmore.edu/~rscarce/Soc-Th-Env/Env%20Theory%20PDFs/Tokar--
Bookchin.pdf
Also available at: http://social-ecology.org/wp/2008/03/on-bookchins-social-ecology-and-
its-contributions-to-social-movements/

LOOK UP:

Rights of Mother Earth https://pwccc.wordpress.com/programa/

UN Declaration on Rights of Indigenous Peoples
http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii/documents/DRIPS_en.pdf
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change http://www.ipcc.ch/
Zapatista Images http://photobucket.com/images/zapatista?page=1
Zapatista: A Big Noise Film https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBqIowBEL60

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