Why even critics admire Medha Patkar's deeply sincere, tireless efforts for social justice

By Bharat Dogra

A very important component of the progress of a country consists of democratic and peaceful social movements which seek to correct various distortions and flawed decisions, as seen from a perspective which is different from that of decision-making powerful authorities. This perspective is often based on considerations of justice and environment protection, reflected in trying to prevent avoidable displacement of a large number of people including farmers, and preventing many kinds of avoidable ecological disruptions.

Technological and development changes have taken place at a very hurried pace during the last century or so, resulting at times in highly distorted and flawed projects which may appear to be very attractive when seen from a relatively narrow vision, but when a longer-term and holistic view is taken, several serious problems appear. Hence a democracy must have the strength and space to ask for reconsideration so that the possibility of serious and possibly, at a practical level, irreversible disruptions can be avoided.

It is a strength of India’s democracy that several such important initiatives have been seen in India. One of the more important of such initiatives was the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA or Save the Narmada Movement) which questioned the construction of a chain of large dam projects on the Narmada river and its tributaries, and the various disruptions resulting from this. While this was seen as an obstruction of development by some powerful authorities, for those who have the sensitivity to understand the importance of the issues it raised, NBA was a very important part of worldwide efforts to understand development in different ways. Apart from leading the struggles for better rehabilitation and for reconsidering the development path based on damming the river system in a huge way, the NBA was involved in several constructive activities relating to water harvesting, water conservation, alternative energy and educational work in the communities threatened by displacement.

While several deeply committed social activists were highly involved in these struggles and efforts, Medha Patkar in particular attracted widespread acclaim and appreciation because of her tireless efforts and exceptionally deep, lifelong commitment to the causes she took up and never gave up. Even her critics—and there have been quite a few—will be hard put to deny the great and tireless efforts she put into her campaigns and work, often for long periods having no time for anything other than her work and her cause. She went on long fasts to seek support for her causes, embarked on difficult foot-marches and kept up relentless work schedules even in the middle of falling health.

Medha Patkar was born in a family known for its commitment to justice and related work. She did her masters in social work at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences. It was around this time that she came in contact with problems of the large number of people likely to be displaced by Narmada projects, particularly in the context of the Sardar Sarovar Project. This commitment soon beyond academic concerns as Medha Patkar became more and more deeply involved in these issues. Subsequently she was one of the founders of the NBA.

However there were several other similar issues and struggles emerging in India which were involved with re-defining and understanding development in new ways and at the same time trying to replace what appeared to be destructive and disruptive projects and policies with other ways of using better defined development objectives. As several such struggles and movements came closer to each other, it was time to launch the National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM) in India, a network of people, organizations and movements from all over India devoted to improving understanding of development and carrying out efforts and campaigns for this in non-violent, peaceful and democratic ways. Medha Patkar played an important role in forming this alliance and was one of the founder members.

Whether it was a struggle for protecting the housing rights of the poorest slum-dwellers or protecting the rights of hawkers facing eviction at another place, Madha Patkar could be often seen moving fast from one struggle to another, while at the same time remaining associated with many constructive work initiatives as well and retaining her biggest commitment to NBA related issues .

Of course Medha Patkar has achieved worldwide fame and received national and international awards as well, but what is most important is that countless people know and admire her for the deep sincerity and tireless efforts she has put into many struggles all her life for helping them in various social movements and struggles.

---

The writer is Honorary Convener, Campaign to Save Earth Now. His recent books include Protecting Earth for Children, Planet in Peril, Man over Machine, and A Day in 2071

Comments

Plastic burning in homes threatens food, water and air across Global South: Study

By Jag Jivan In a groundbreaking study spanning 26 countries across the Global South , researchers have uncovered the widespread and concerning practice of households burning plastic waste as a fuel for cooking, heating, and other domestic needs. The research, published in Nature Communications , reveals that this hazardous method of managing both waste and energy poverty is driven by systemic failures in municipal services and the unaffordability of clean alternatives, posing severe risks to human health and the environment.

From protest to proof: Why civil society must rethink environmental resistance

By Shankar Sharma* As concerned environmentalists and informed citizens, many of us share deep unease about the way environmental governance in our country is being managed—or mismanaged. Our complaints range across sectors and regions, and most of them are legitimate. Yet a hard question confronts us: are complaints, by themselves, effective? Experience suggests they are not.

Economic superpower’s social failure? Inequality, malnutrition and crisis of India's democracy

By Vikas Meshram India may be celebrated as one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, but a closer look at who benefits from that growth tells a starkly different story. The recently released World Inequality Report 2026 lays bare a country sharply divided by wealth, privilege and power. According to the report, nearly 65 percent of India’s total wealth is owned by the richest 10 percent of its population, while the bottom half of the country controls barely 6.4 percent. The top one percent—around 14 million people—holds more than 40 percent, the highest concentration since 1961. Meanwhile, the female labour force participation rate is a dismal 15.7 percent.

Kolkata event marks 100 years since first Communist conference in India

By Harsh Thakor* A public assembly was held in Kolkata on December 24, 2025, to mark the centenary of the First Communist Conference in India , originally convened in Kanpur from December 26 to 28, 1925. The programme was organised by CPI (ML) New Democracy at Subodh Mallik Square on Lenin Sarani. According to the organisers, around 2,000 people attended the assembly.

From colonial mercantilism to Hindutva: New book on the making of power in Gujarat

By Rajiv Shah Professor Ghanshyam Shah ’s latest book, “ Caste-Class Hegemony and State Power: A Study of Gujarat Politics ”, published by Routledge , is penned by one of Gujarat ’s most respected chroniclers, drawing on decades of fieldwork in the state. It seeks to dissect how caste and class factors overlap to perpetuate the hegemony of upper strata in an ostensibly democratic polity. The book probes the dominance of two main political parties in Gujarat—the Indian National Congress and the BJP—arguing that both have sustained capitalist growth while reinforcing Brahmanic hierarchies.

Urgent need to study cause of large number of natural deaths in Gulf countries

By Venkatesh Nayak* According to data tabled in Parliament in April 2018, there are 87.76 lakh (8.77 million) Indians in six Gulf countries, namely Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). While replying to an Unstarred Question (#6091) raised in the Lok Sabha, the Union Minister of State for External Affairs said, during the first half of this financial year alone (between April-September 2018), blue-collared Indian workers in these countries had remitted USD 33.47 Billion back home. Not much is known about the human cost of such earnings which swell up the country’s forex reserves quietly. My recent RTI intervention and research of proceedings in Parliament has revealed that between 2012 and mid-2018 more than 24,570 Indian Workers died in these Gulf countries. This works out to an average of more than 10 deaths per day. For every US$ 1 Billion they remitted to India during the same period there were at least 117 deaths of Indian Workers in Gulf ...

The greatest threat to our food system: The aggressive push for GM crops

By Bharat Dogra Thanks to the courageous resistance of several leading scientists who continue to speak the truth despite increasing pressures from the powerful GM crop and GM food lobby , the many-sided and in some contexts irreversible environmental and health impacts of GM foods and crops, as well as the highly disruptive effects of this technology on farmers, are widely known today.

History, culture and literature of Fatehpur, UP, from where Maulana Hasrat Mohani hailed

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* Maulana Hasrat Mohani was a member of the Constituent Assembly and an extremely important leader of our freedom movement. Born in Unnao district of Uttar Pradesh, Hasrat Mohani's relationship with nearby district of Fatehpur is interesting and not explored much by biographers and historians. Dr Mohammad Ismail Azad Fatehpuri has written a book on Maulana Hasrat Mohani and Fatehpur. The book is in Urdu. He has just come out with another important book, 'Hindi kee Pratham Rachna: Chandayan' authored by Mulla Daud Dalmai.' During my recent visit to Fatehpur town, I had an opportunity to meet Dr Mohammad Ismail Azad Fatehpuri and recorded a conversation with him on issues of history, culture and literature of Fatehpur. Sharing this conversation here with you. Kindly click this link. --- *Human rights defender. Facebook https://www.facebook.com/vbrawat , X @freetohumanity, Skype @vbrawat

Transgender Bill testimony of Govt of India's ‘contempt’ for marginalized community

Counterview Desk India’s civil society network, National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM)* has said that the controversial transgender Bill, passed in the Rajya Sabha on November 26, which happened to be the 70th anniversary of the Indian Constitution, is a reflection on the way the Government of India looks at the marginalized community with utter contempt.

Search This Blog