Caste in Nature: Rethinking Environmental Justice in India

On 26th July 2025, the Department of Sociology at CHRIST (Deemed to be University) hosted a thought-provoking session of its Doctoral Seminar Series, where Ms. D. Sindhu, research scholar at CHRIST (Deemed to be University) presented on the theme “Caste in Nature: The Politics of Environmental Justice.” The seminar drew participation from students and scholars along with  faculty members, and generated deep reflections on the neglected intersections of caste and environment in India.

The session began by challenging mainstream discourses of environmentalism—whether forest protection, waste management, or urban reforms—for their tendency to ignore caste realities. Policies often speak of “saving nature” but rarely ask the more pressing question: “Who suffers, and at what cost?”

Drawing from fieldwork, Moses highlighted the lived experiences of Dalit and Adivasi communities in North Chennai, who are systematically displaced to the city’s polluted peripheries. These communities live next to garbage dumps, breathe industrial smoke, and endure toxic air on a daily basis.

This condition was aptly described as “environmental apartheid”—a stark reminder that marginalized groups bear the heaviest burdens of ecological degradation.

The presentation reframed B. R. Ambedkar’s struggles for water access, land rights, and equitable resources as early articulations of environmental justice. This stood in sharp contrast to Gandhi’s romanticized vision of the village. For Ambedkar, the village was not a space of harmony with nature but a “cesspool of casteism”, where access to land and water was deeply stratified.

One of the central arguments of the seminar was that in India, nature is not neutral. Access to land, water, and clean air is mediated by caste hierarchies. Environmental spaces are therefore entangled with social exclusion, dispossession, and power. Without addressing caste, environmental justice remains incomplete.

The seminar concluded with actionable insights:

• Reading & Reflection: Engage with Dalit environmental thought, Ambedkar’s writings on land/water, and works on “environmental apartheid.”

• Field Engagement: Visit or interact with affected communities such as North Chennai residents and waste-pickers.

• Policy Critique: Re-examine policies like Swachh Bharat, CAMPA funds, or river-cleaning missions through a caste lens.

• Interdisciplinary Dialogue: Host follow-up seminars/workshops linking environmental studies with caste studies, including voices from marginalized groups.

The discussion also connected with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):

• SDG 4 – Quality Education: Integrating caste-environment linkages into curricula on environmental studies and urban planning.

• SDG 10 – Reduced Inequalities: Ensuring equity in environmental policies to reduce caste-based vulnerabilities.

• SDG 11 – Sustainable Cities and Communities: Building inclusive urban spaces that prioritize clean, safe environments for marginalized groups instead of pushing them to polluted margins.

The seminar reminded participants that environmental justice in India cannot be understood without social justice. As Moses emphasized:

“Without social justice, there can be no environmental justice.”

This powerful statement left participants with a renewed commitment to interrogate environmental policies through the lens of caste and to ensure that the struggles for sustainability are also struggles for equality.