Page 6 - Lessonnote_ Social Movement

 Cutting down natural forests was a form of environmental destruction that had resulted
in devastating floods and landslides in the region.
 Their survival depended on the survival of the forest, they also valued the forest for its
own sake as a form of ecological wealth that benefits all.
 The Chipko Movement also expressed the resentment of hill villagers against a distant
government headquartered in the plains that seemed indifferent and hostile to their
concerns.
 The Government of India has recently, through the ‘Intergrated Ganga Conservation
Mission’ (Namami Gange) and Swachch Bharat Abhiyan imitiated systematic efforts to
create a balance, structure and quality in India’s ecology.

CLASS BASED MOVEMENTS

Peasant Movements

 The movements in the period between 1858 and 1914 tended to remain localised,
disjointed and confined to particular issues.

 Example - Bengal revolt of 1859-62 against the indigo plantation system and the
‘Deccan riots’ of 1857 against moneylenders.
 Some of these issues continued into the following period, and under the leadership
of Mahatma Gandhi became partially linked to the Independence movement.
 For instance, the Bardoli Satyagraha, a campaign of refusal to pay land revenue and
the Champaran Satyagraha (1917-18) directed against indigo plantations.

 Between 1920 and 1940 peasant organisations arose.
 The first organisation to be founded was the Bihar Provincial Kisan Sabha (1929) and
in 1936 the All India Kisan Sabha.
 The peasants organised by the Sabhas demanded freedom from economic
exploitation for peasants, workers and all other exploited classes.
 At the time of Independence there were two most classical cases of peasant
movements, namely the Tebhaga movement (1946-7) which was a struggle of
sharecroppers in Bengal in North Bihar for two thirds share of their produce instead
of the customary half. It was supported by Kisan Sabha and the Communist

 Party of India (CPI). The second was the Telangan movement (1946-51) which
directed against the feudal conditions in the princely state of Hyderabad and was led
by the CPI.
 Certain issues which had dominated colonial times changed after independence. For
instance land reforms, zamindari abolition, declining importance of land revenue and
public credit system. The period after 1947 was characterised by two major social

movements.