RAS question
Narmada Bachao Andolan was led by:
Correct answer: (B) Medha Patkar, opposing Sardar Sarovar Dam displacement.
Narmada Bachao Andolan was led by Medha Patkar in opposition to displacement linked to the Sardar Sarovar Dam on the Narmada river.
Explanation
Narmada Bachao Andolan is associated with Medha Patkar because she was one of its founders and led protests against the Sardar Sarovar Dam project. The issue was not nuclear energy, space research or general industrial policy; it centred on the displacement of tribal and local communities by large dams on the Narmada river. Britannica notes that Patkar worked with people displaced by the Narmada Valley Development Project and spearheaded the movement against the Sardar Sarovar Dam through demonstrations and hunger strikes. The Supreme Court's 2000 verdict allowed dam construction subject to rehabilitation conditions. That is why the movement is a standard example of the development-versus-environment and displacement debate.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Nuclear energy is not the issue here because the movement concerns displacement caused by the Sardar Sarovar Dam on the Narmada river.
- (C) Space exploration is unrelated to the Narmada Bachao Andolan, which Britannica links to people affected by dam projects in the Narmada valley.
- (D) Industrial development is too broad and misses the specific focus: opposition to displacement associated with the Sardar Sarovar Dam and other large Narmada projects.
Concept
This tests environmental movements, displacement and rehabilitation, a recurring RAS theme because it connects ecology with constitutional rights, development projects and social justice. Narmada Bachao Andolan is often used to frame the tension between infrastructure-led development and affected communities.