Sundarlal Bahuguna
Encyclopedia
Sunderlal Bahuguna is a noted Garhwali
environmentalist, Chipko movement
leader and a follower of Mahatma Gandhi
's philosophy of Non-violence and Satyagraha
. His actual family name is Bandyopadhyay a common family name for Bengali Brahmin. About 800 years ago, three men from a Bandyopadhyay family in Bengal travelled to the Himalayas. There, they came across the king of the Garhwals who was ill. These men had knowledge of medicinal herbs and managed to cure the king. In return, the latter gifted them a village called Buguna. Thus their title became Bahuguna link. For years he has been fighting for the preservation of forests in the Himalayas
, first as a member of the Chipko movement
in 1970s, and later spearheaded the Anti-Tehri Dam
movement starting 1980s, to early 2004. He was one of the early environmentalists of India, and later he and people associated with the Chipko movement later started taking up environmental issues, like against large dams, mining and deforestation, across the country.
He was awarded the Padma Vibhushan
, India's second highest civilian honour, on January 26, 2009 and padma award on April 14, 2009.
. Early on, he fought against untouchability
and later started organizing hill women in his anti-liquor drive from 1965 to 1970.
later became famous as Appiko in Karnataka
. One of Bahuguna's notable contributions to that cause, and to environmentalism in general, was his creation of the Chipko's slogan "Ecology is permanent economy." He helped bring the movement to prominence through a 5,000-kilometer trans-Himalaya march conducted from 1981 to 1983, travelling from village to village, gathering support for the movement and meeting with the then Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi
. That meeting is credited with resulting in Ms. Gandhi's subsequent 15-year ban on felling of green trees in 1980. He was also closely associated with Gaura Devi, one of the pioneers of the movement.
He has remained behind the anti-Tehri Dam
protests for decades, he used the Satyagraha
methods, and repeatedly went on hunger strike
s at the banks of Bhagirathi as a mark of his protest. In 1995, he called off a 45-day-long fast following an assurance from the then Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao of the appointment of a review committee on the ecological impacts of the dam, thereafter he went on another long fast another fast which lasted for 74 days at Gandhi Samadhi, Raj Ghat, during the tenure of Prime Minister, H.D. Deve Gowda, he gave personal undertaking of project review. However despite a court case which ran in the Supreme Court for over a decade, work resumed at the Tehri dam in 2001, following which he was arrested on April 20, 2001.
Eventually, the dam reservoir started filling up in 2004, and on July 31, 2004 he was finally evacuated to a new accommodation at Koti, a little hillock, along the Bhagirathi where he lives today, continues his environment work.
Sunderlal Bahuguna has been a passionate defender of the Himalaya people, working for temperance, the plight of the hill people (especially working women). He has also struggled to defend India's rivers.
Garhwali
The Garhwali language is a Central Pahari language belonging to the Northern Zone of Indo-Aryan languages. It is primarily spoken by the Garhwali people who are from the north-western Garhwal Division of the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand in the Indian Himalayas.The Central Pahari...
environmentalist, Chipko movement
Chipko movement
The Chipko movement or Chipko Andolan is a social-ecological movement that practised the Gandhian methods of satyagraha and non-violent resistance, through the act of hugging trees to protect them from being felled...
leader and a follower of Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi , pronounced . 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement...
's philosophy of Non-violence and Satyagraha
Satyagraha
Satyagraha , loosely translated as "insistence on truth satya agraha soul force" or "truth force" is a particular philosophy and practice within the broader overall category generally known as nonviolent resistance or civil resistance. The term "satyagraha" was conceived and developed by Mahatma...
. His actual family name is Bandyopadhyay a common family name for Bengali Brahmin. About 800 years ago, three men from a Bandyopadhyay family in Bengal travelled to the Himalayas. There, they came across the king of the Garhwals who was ill. These men had knowledge of medicinal herbs and managed to cure the king. In return, the latter gifted them a village called Buguna. Thus their title became Bahuguna link. For years he has been fighting for the preservation of forests in the Himalayas
Himalayas
The Himalaya Range or Himalaya Mountains Sanskrit: Devanagari: हिमालय, literally "abode of snow"), usually called the Himalayas or Himalaya for short, is a mountain range in Asia, separating the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau...
, first as a member of the Chipko movement
Chipko movement
The Chipko movement or Chipko Andolan is a social-ecological movement that practised the Gandhian methods of satyagraha and non-violent resistance, through the act of hugging trees to protect them from being felled...
in 1970s, and later spearheaded the Anti-Tehri Dam
Tehri dam
The Tehri Dam is a multi-purpose rock and earth-fill embankment dam on the Bhagirathi River near Tehri in Uttarakhand, India. It is the primary dam of the Tehri Hydro Development Corporation Ltd. and the Tehri hydroelectric complex...
movement starting 1980s, to early 2004. He was one of the early environmentalists of India, and later he and people associated with the Chipko movement later started taking up environmental issues, like against large dams, mining and deforestation, across the country.
He was awarded the Padma Vibhushan
Padma Vibhushan
The Padma Vibhushan is the second highest civilian award in the Republic of India. It consists of a medal and a citation and is awarded by the President of India. It was established on 2 January 1954. It ranks behind the Bharat Ratna and comes before the Padma Bhushan...
, India's second highest civilian honour, on January 26, 2009 and padma award on April 14, 2009.
Early life
Sunderlal Bahuguna was born in village Maroda, near TehriTehri
Tehri is a city and a municipal board in Tehri Garhwal District in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is the administrative seat of Tehri Garhwal District.-History:...
. Early on, he fought against untouchability
Untouchability
Untouchability is the social practice of ostracizing a minority group by segregating them from the mainstream by social custom or legal mandate. The excluded group could be one that did not accept the norms of the excluding group and historically included foreigners, nomadic tribes, law-breakers...
and later started organizing hill women in his anti-liquor drive from 1965 to 1970.
Chipko movement
In Hindi, "Chipko" literally means "to stick". Chipko movementChipko movement
The Chipko movement or Chipko Andolan is a social-ecological movement that practised the Gandhian methods of satyagraha and non-violent resistance, through the act of hugging trees to protect them from being felled...
later became famous as Appiko in Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
. One of Bahuguna's notable contributions to that cause, and to environmentalism in general, was his creation of the Chipko's slogan "Ecology is permanent economy." He helped bring the movement to prominence through a 5,000-kilometer trans-Himalaya march conducted from 1981 to 1983, travelling from village to village, gathering support for the movement and meeting with the then Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi
Indira Gandhi
Indira Priyadarshini Gandhara was an Indian politician who served as the third Prime Minister of India for three consecutive terms and a fourth term . She was assassinated by Sikh extremists...
. That meeting is credited with resulting in Ms. Gandhi's subsequent 15-year ban on felling of green trees in 1980. He was also closely associated with Gaura Devi, one of the pioneers of the movement.
Anti Tehri Dam protests
Tehri dam
The Tehri Dam is a multi-purpose rock and earth-fill embankment dam on the Bhagirathi River near Tehri in Uttarakhand, India. It is the primary dam of the Tehri Hydro Development Corporation Ltd. and the Tehri hydroelectric complex...
protests for decades, he used the Satyagraha
Satyagraha
Satyagraha , loosely translated as "insistence on truth satya agraha soul force" or "truth force" is a particular philosophy and practice within the broader overall category generally known as nonviolent resistance or civil resistance. The term "satyagraha" was conceived and developed by Mahatma...
methods, and repeatedly went on hunger strike
Hunger strike
A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance or pressure in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke feelings of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most hunger strikers will take liquids but not...
s at the banks of Bhagirathi as a mark of his protest. In 1995, he called off a 45-day-long fast following an assurance from the then Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao of the appointment of a review committee on the ecological impacts of the dam, thereafter he went on another long fast another fast which lasted for 74 days at Gandhi Samadhi, Raj Ghat, during the tenure of Prime Minister, H.D. Deve Gowda, he gave personal undertaking of project review. However despite a court case which ran in the Supreme Court for over a decade, work resumed at the Tehri dam in 2001, following which he was arrested on April 20, 2001.
Eventually, the dam reservoir started filling up in 2004, and on July 31, 2004 he was finally evacuated to a new accommodation at Koti, a little hillock, along the Bhagirathi where he lives today, continues his environment work.
Sunderlal Bahuguna has been a passionate defender of the Himalaya people, working for temperance, the plight of the hill people (especially working women). He has also struggled to defend India's rivers.
Awards
- 1981 Padm Shree by govt of India,but he politely refused saying that "I do not deserve it till flesh and blood(top soil) of India was flowing down to the sea."
- 1987: Right Livelihood AwardRight Livelihood AwardThe Right Livelihood Award, also referred to as the "Alternative Nobel Prize", is a prestigious international award to honour those "working on practical and exemplary solutions to the most urgent challenges facing the world today". The prize was established in 1980 by Jakob von Uexkull, and is...
(Chipko MovementChipko movementThe Chipko movement or Chipko Andolan is a social-ecological movement that practised the Gandhian methods of satyagraha and non-violent resistance, through the act of hugging trees to protect them from being felled...
)
- 1986 Jamnalal Bajaj award for constructive work.
- 1989 Honorary Degree of Doctor of Social Sciences was conferred by IIT Roorkee
- 2009: Padma VibhushanPadma VibhushanThe Padma Vibhushan is the second highest civilian award in the Republic of India. It consists of a medal and a citation and is awarded by the President of India. It was established on 2 January 1954. It ranks behind the Bharat Ratna and comes before the Padma Bhushan...
Quotations
- "The rulers should know that the Himalayas are for water and not for revenue."
- "We in Himalaya are facing a crisis of survival due to the suicidal activities being carried out in the name of development... The monstrous Tehri dam is a symbol of this... There is need for a new and long-term policy to protect the dying Himalaya. I do not want to see the death of the most sacred river of the world - the Ganga - for short-term economic gains."
- "The issue, is not development vs. environment. It is extinction vs. survival." (On Tehri Dam protests)
- Philosophy: the three As is what he’s guided by—Austerity (‘‘we should consume less’’), Alternatives (‘‘every problem has a solution and it’s near you. So fulfill basic needs from your surroundings’’) and of course, Afforestation (‘‘tree farming will solve many problems’’)
- "I treasure Awards of Ridicule, Neglect, Isolation and Insult, which Every social activist is proud of”.