M.C.Mehta The Taj Mahal and Ganga Pollution Cases Mahesh Chandra Mehta visited the Taj Mahal for the first time in early 1984 and was shocked to see that the monument’s marble had turned yellow and was pitted as a result of pollutants from nearby industries. Being a lawyer, he filed an environmental case in the…
Category: Movement
031. Elisabeth Mann Borgese: The Mother of the Ocean
Elisabeth Mann Borgese She trained as a concert pianist, became a professor of political science, but spent the greater part of her life working for the peaceful and sustainable use of the ocean. Elisabeth Mann Borgese was born in Munich in 1918 as the fifth of six children. Her father was Thomas Mann, the great…
029. Rashida Bee and Champa Devi Shukla: Fighting together for justice
(Photo by Terry Allan) The two women first met as employees at a stationery factory in 1986 where they founded an independent union to fight for better labour conditions and wages (traditionally male-dominated unions would not accept them). In 1989, they led a 750 km march to New Delhi, presented a petition to the Prime…
027. Nammalvar: Crusader for organic farming
Nammalvar On December 30, 2013, Govindasamy Nammalvar died at the age of 75. He was then on a peaceful march in Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu, India. He was leading a campaign against the methane exploration project for which the State government had granted a licence to an American multinational company. Not many in India…
024. Lois Marie Gibbs: Homemaker turned renowned activist
Lois Marie Gibbs Toxic dump under homes In 1978, she was a 27-year-old homemaker with two children, living near Love Canal, Niagara Falls, New York. She had no experience in environmental or social work – until she became concerned when her children began experiencing unexplained illnesses. She began investigating the cause, became an activist and…
023. Chipko: Hug the trees, save the forest
Gaura Devi who led the women in Renni Village Women prevent the felling of trees On March 26, 1974, a group of men arrived stealthily in the forest next to Renni Village in the Garhwal District of Himalayas in India. They had been sent by a contractor to begin cutting down 2500 trees in the…