Philosophy of Environmental Activism in India

Environmental issues and environmentalism are major topics of discourse all over the world. An environmental movement is a systematically organized activity in which the base of the society, i.e. common people, plays an important role. It calls for sustainable use of natural resources and to check environmentally destructive activities. Such movements take birth not to increase luxuries but to ensure the basic facilities, which include food, shelter, water, and also a viable environment. This paper is an attempt to unravel the philosophical standpoints of environmental activism in India, with particular focus to the concepts of development and sustainability. The recent environmental movements in India not only raise the issues that emerged as a result of human exploitation of nature, but also work as catalysts in adopting our inherent values which give pivotal significance to nature. These environmental movements are aimed to equip people to follow our philosophical tradition of preservation of nature.