Significance Of Chipko Movement

Chipko's movement started 50 years ago to save the forests and save trees from being cut has been recorded in history. The Chipko movement started in 1970 by the people of Uttarakhand for the protection of the forest. In this, a person embraced became a symbol of between nature and the human being and was given the name of "Chipko". This was a big step taken by the citizens towards the protection of the forest. In the year 1970, a large number of trees were being cut in India, which was affecting the lives of the people. To protest this, the people of Chamoli village of Uttarakhand started clinging to the trees so that they could save them from being cut down. Most of the women took part in his movement. Gaura Devi, Sudesh Devi is said to be the mother of this movement was started. First of all, these two women had started a movement to save the forests. She said considered it appropriate to stand by clinging to the trees to be cut. Seeing these, a large number of women followed them and they also started agitating by clinging to the trees. Gradually this movement took a big form and registered its name in history.

It started in protest against a government order. The order was passed by the government to give the forest land to a sports company. After this order, the company was going to cut down all the trees coming from that part of the forest, against which the villagers started this protest. The patience of the villagers was broken when in January 1974 the government announced the auction of two and half thousand trees coming in the forest above Alaknanda. When villagers saw the actions of government officers in the forest, they informed all the villagers. After this, hundreds of villagers, including a large number of women, came out of their homes towards the forest and stood clinging to the trees. In this way, they were protesting peacefully against the cutting of trees. The main achievement of this movement was that it made the environment an intensive issue in the agenda of central politics. According to Dr. Shekhar Pathak, a participant of Chipko and professor of Kumaon University, "the forest conservation act of 1980 in India and even the central government the formation of the environment ministry was also possible only because of Chipko. This movement was started by Sunderlal Bahuguna of Gandhi's ideology. He again appealed to Prime Minister Indira Gandhi not to cut these trees and to protect the forest. His appeal was accepted and as a result, a 15-year ban was imposed for cutting these trees.

By: - Srishti Rathod