Chapter 7 Rise of Popular Movements Solutions
Question - 1 : - Which of these statements are incorrect: The Chipko Movement
Answer - 1 : -
(а) was an environmental movement to prevent cutting down of trees.
(b) raised questions of ecological and economic exploitation.
(c) was a movement against alcoholism started by the women.
(d) demanded that local communities should have control over their natural resources.
Answer:
(c) was a movement against alcoholism started by the women.
Question - 2 : - Some of the statements below are incorrect. Identify the incorrect statements and rewrite those with necessary correction.
Answer - 2 : -
(а) Social movements are hampering the functioning of India’s democracy.
(b) The main strength of social movements lies in their mass base across social sections.
(c) Social movements in India emerged because there were many issues that political parties did not address.
Answer
(a) Rewritten-Social movements involve a gradual process of coming together of people with similar problems.
(c) Rewritten-Social movements in India emerged to reduce the possibility of deep social conflict and disaffection of groups from democracy.
Question - 3 : - Identify the reasons which led to the Chipko Movement in U.P. in early 1970s. What was the impact of this movement?
Answer - 3 : -
1. The Chipko movement began in two or three villages of Uttarakhand on refusal of permission to villages to fell ash trees for making agricultural tools and allotted the same land to
sports manufacturers for commercial uses.
2. The villagers protested against the practices of logging to be permitted by government.
3. Villagers used a novel tactic to hug the trees to protect them from being cut down.
Impact of movement:
1. It soon spread across many parts of Uttarakhand and larger issues of ecological and economic exploitation were also raised.
2. Government issued a ban on felling of tress in Himalayan region for fifteen years until green cover was fully restored.
3. Active participation of women was also a very novel aspect of the movement.
4. This movement was started with a single issue but became symbol of many such popular movements emerging in different parts of country during 1970s.
Question - 4 : - The Bharatiya Kisan Union is a leading organisation highlighting the plight of farmers. What were the issues addressed by it in the nineties and to what extent were they successful?
Answer - 4 : -
Bharatiya Kisan Union was one of the leading farmers’ movement to protest against the policies of process of liberalisation of Indian economy:
Issues addressed by BKU:
1. Higher government floor prices for sugarcane and wheat,
2. Guaranteed supply of electricity at reasonable rates.
3. To wave off repayments due on loan to farmers.
4. To provide government pension to farmers.
5. Abolition of restrictions on the inter¬state movement of farm produce. Highlighted the plight of farmers:
1. BKUconductedrallies, demonstrations, and Jail Bharo agilations.
2. These protests involved thousands 20 over lakhs farmers from western UPs adjoining regions.
3. BKU operated as a pressure group in politics with its strength of sheer members.
Extent of Success:
1. BKU became the most successful social movements.
2. It sustained for a longtime due to clannetworks among its members.
3. These networks mobilised funds, resources and activities of BKU.
4. An outcome of political bargaining powers by its members.
5. BKU farmers dominated regional electoral politics also.
Question - 5 : - The anti-arrack movement in Andhra Pradesh drew the attention of the country to some serious issues. What were these issues?
Answer - 5 : -
1. Anti-arrack movement was the movement of rural women in Andhra Pradesh to protest against alcoholism, mafias and government.
2. This movement had its roots in “adult literacy drive” where women complained of increased consumption of locally brewed alcohol arrack by men in their families to effect on rural economy also.
3. Women in Nellore came together in spontaneous local initiatives to protest against arrack and forced the closure of wine shop.
And this movement spread slowly all over the state
Issues relating to movements:
1. The Anti-arrack movement aimed at prohibition on the sale of arrack.
2. Its demand touched upon larger section of social, economic and political issues which had established a close nexus between crime and politics.
3. Women openly discussed the issues of domestic violence like dowry, sexual violence etc.
4. Anti-arrack movement provided a platform to discuss private issues of domestic violence.
Question - 6 : - Would you consider the anti-arrack movement as a women’s movement? Why?
Answer - 6 : -
Yes, we would consider the Anti¬arrack movement as a part of women’s movement to provide a platform for women to discuss private issues of domestic violence:
1. This movement focused on issues of sexual violence against women either within family or outside.
2. Women joined the campaign against dowry and demanded personal and property laws based on gender equality.
3. These campaigns contributed a great deal in increasing social awareness as well as shifted from legal reforms to open social confrontations.
4. Consequently, movement demanded equal representation to women in politics during the nineties. Hence 73rd and 74th amendments granted reservations to women in local level political offices.
5. Thus, it can be concluded to be a part of women’s movement.
Question - 7 : - Why did the Narmada Bachao Aandolan oppose the dam projects in the Narmada Valley?
Answer - 7 : -
Narmada Bachao Aandolan was a collective local organisation’s movement to save river Narmada which opposed the construction of multi-purpose dam „ “The Narmada Sagar Project” and questioned the ongoing developmental projects in country:
1. Narmada Bachao Aandolan linked its opposition to Sardar Sarovar Project with larger issues concerning the nature of ongoing developmental projects, efficiency of model of development that the country followed and about what constituted public interest in a democracy.
2. It demanded that there should be a cost benefit analysis of the major developmental projects due to construction of dam submerged around 245 villages to require two and a half lakh population to be relocated.
3. The movement demanded proper rehabilitation of all those to be effected from the construction of these projects.
4. This movement also questioned the nature of decision making process to be in framing of mega scale development projects.
5. Movement also insisted that local communities must have a say in such decision making alongwith an effective control over natural resources.
6. Hence, NBA achieved a comprehensive National Rehabilitation Policy formed by government in 2003.
Question - 8 : - Do movements and protests in a country strengthen democracy? Justify your answer with examples.
Answer - 8 : -
Yes, to some extent movements and protests in country strengthen democracy to have mixed reactions both for and against:
Arguments for:
1. Anti-arrack movement, Chipko movement, NBA etc., rectified some problems to be seen as integral part of democratic politics.
2. These movements ensured participation and representation from diverse groups to reduce possibility of deep social conflicts in democracy.
3. These movements broadened the idea of participation in Indian democrac i. e., Anti-arrack movement and Dalit Panthers. Arguments against:
1. Collective actions, rallies, strikes, disrupt the functioning of a democracy and create a delay in decision making.
2. Routine functioning of democracy did not have enough space for the voices of these social groups.
3. It is possible to ignore demand of these movements with the presentation to be represented by one section of society only.
4. Political parties do not seem to be taking up issues of marginal social groups.
5. The relationship between popular movements and political parties has grown weaker over the years creating a vacuum in politics.
Hence, we may conclude that movements are not only about collective assertions or rallies or protest, but they also involve a gradual process of coming together of people with similar problems, demand and expectations.
Question - 9 : - What issues did the Dalit Panthers address?
Answer - 9 : -
Dalit Panthers was a militant organisation of Dalit Youth to be formed in 1972 in Maharashtra:
1. These groups mainly fought against the perpetual caste based inequalities and material injustices that Dalits faced in spite of constitutional guarantees of equality and justice.
2. Dalits faced collective atrocities over minor symbolic issues of caste pride. Hence, they demanded effective implementation of reservations and other such policies of social justice.
Question - 10 : - Read the passage and answer questions below:
Answer - 10 : -
…., nearly all ‘new social movements’ have emerged as corrective to new maladies – environmental degradation, violation of the status of women, destruction of tribal cultures and the undermining of human rights – none of which are in and by themselves transformative of the social order.
They are in that way quite different from revolutionar}1- ideologies of the past. But their weakness lies in their
being so heavily fragmented
…a large part of the space occupied by the new social movements seem to be suffering from … various characteristics which have prevented them from being relevant to the truly oppressed and the poor in the form of a solid unified movement of the people. They are too fragmented, reactive, ad hocish, providing no comprehensive framework of basic social change. Their being anti-this or that (anti-West, anti-capitalist, anti-development, etc.) does not make them any more coherent, any more relevant to oppressed and peripheralized communities.
-Rajni Kothari
(a) What is the difference between new social movements and revolutionary ideologies?
(b) What according to the author are the limitations of social movements?
(c) If social movements address specific issues, would you say that they are ‘fragmented’ or that they are more focused? Give reasons for you answer by giving examples.
Answer
(a) The difference is that like revolutionary ideologies none of new social movements are in and by themselves transformative of the social order but they emerged as corrective of new malodies.
(b) According to author these movements are not any more coherent, relevant to oppressed and peripheralised communities. To some extent these are effected by party politics.
(c) If social movements address specific issues, we would say that these are fragmented which provide no comprehensive framework of social change i.e., Anti-arrack movement, Dalit Panthers etc.