An unfortunate trend of modern times relates to the decline of commitment and passion with which most people approach issues which they consider to be important. The tendency to be more self-centered and less concerned with even urgent social issues is of course also quite widely prevalent, but even to the extent that people get involved in social concerns, somehow the passion and the fire appear to be missing most of the time (although there are exceptions).
When we study several episodes and experiences of the freedom movement days, to take up just one comparison, the very deep commitment seen then and the willingness to endure almost any hardship for the sake of the cause (particularly freedom of India from colonial rule) has become comparatively rare now.
Given the wide prevalence of this phenomenon of indifference in our present times, many have looked in awe and admiration at the several protests against ecological ruin launched by the Matri Sadan, a small but widely reputed ashram located in Haridwar district of Uttarakhand state. These struggles have drawn attention most of all for the sense of complete, total devotion and commitment to the cause they have taken up. Almost all these struggles have been for the protection of Ganga river, although specific contexts/priorities have varied from opposing badly planned dams/hydro projects to resisting harmful, excessive mining/ quarrying/stone-crushing to reducing pollution.
The Haridwar-Rishikesh stretch is the area where the Ganga emerges from its long journey in the Garhwal Himalayas to enter the plains. Hence this is a very important area of pilgrimage (apart from tourism) and many reputed ashrams have been established here. Some of these have contributed much to spiritual pursuits, while others have got caught up more in materialist pursuits, the same mayajaal against which they have been warning their disciples, and at least one of them aspires now to building one of the biggest business empires!
On the other hand, Matri Sadan, established in 1997, has remained consistently true to its declared objective of protecting the environment and in particular the Ganga river. These efforts started at a very early stage of the establishment of the Ashram, with the founder Swami Shivanand opposing destructive mining. Since then the Matri Sadan has emerged as a hub of saints and activists undertaking satyagraha to protect Ganga river.
So far three saints associated with Matri Sadan have died here for the cause of protection of Ganga, while some other saints have fasted for extended periods. One saint of this ashram is reported to have been killed by the mining mafia for raising his voice against destructive mining activities.
Despite many projects and plans for protection of the river, the threats to both Ganga and its tributaries are increasing in several ways. Consider the most crucial stretch of the river system in its Himalayan catchment areas; even in this critical stretch and the adjoining area below where the river emerges from the hills onto the plains, there is great concern over the threats caused by hydro projects as well as destructive mining practices. Many local politically powerful persons are alleged to be involved in cohort with local mining mafias.
It has also been noted that while there are many saints in the area who have been concerned about the river, they did not come forward to oppose powerful forces and mining mafias who are behind the ecological ruin. It was against this background that saints of Matri Sadan started observing long protest fasts for protection of Ganga river and this ashram became most known as the abode of saints who are very deeply devoted to the protection of Ganga river.
On June 13, 2011 Swami Nigmanand Saraswati died after fasting for 114 days over several demands to keep the Ganga river free of environmental damage and spoliation. This was the background and the context that elevated Matri Sadan seven years later as the site of the most famous fast; the fast of a famous scientist and former senior pollution-control official who had chosen the path of a saint to try to achieve what he could not as a scientist and an official. This was the fast of Swami Sanand.
It is interesting that instead of choosing Delhi, he chose Matri Sadan as the site of his fast. This also testifies to the great reputation Matri Sadan had acquired by now. Swami Sanand selected this ashram for starting his long fast against indiscriminate dam construction and other aspects of ecological ruin, a fast which attracted attention all over the country in 2018.
On October 11 2018 Swami Sanand, earlier known as Prof. G.D. Aggarwal, passed away on the 111th day of his fast at Rishikesh, after having been moved away from Matri Sadan forcibly by the authorities. He was widely regarded as a leading authority on the steps that need to be taken for protection of Ganga river.
He had earlier made an important contribution as Member Secretary of the Central Pollution Control Board. He had obtained doctorate from University of California Berkeley and had taught at IIT Kanpur.
In the later years of his life he became a sage or a sanyasi and devoted himself fully to the protection of Ganga river. His fasts reflected protest backed by scientific evidence and he often quoted scientifically conducted studies in his critique of the way the river was being treated. His main demand related to the implementation of a report on Ganga protection which had been prepared by an officially constituted committee (constituted by the present union government).
His other demand for a reconsideration of some highly dubious hydel projects in the Himalayan region was based on careful study and reasoning. Again he did not ask for anything arbitrary but only for more evidence-based debate on these dubious projects and a cessation of construction till such debates had cleared the air.
In this context, he wanted people sincerely involved in Ganga protection to be given a consultative role. Broadly these are the demands he raised in a letter to the Prime minister on February 24, 2018, adding that if these are not met then he would start a fast about four months later on June 22, 2018. Given his stature and grasp of this issue, it should have been possible to resolve these issues in consultation with him and others within the stipulated period of four months but his demands were neglected. On June 22, he began his fast.
After this some ministers came and went. Messages were exchanged with the Union government representatives. But clearly matters were not resolved to his satisfaction and this was the reason why his fast continued. It is extremely sad that while the government says that Ganga protection is a top priority for the government, a sage scientist with the highest level of commitment to river protection had to die after a 111-day fast, neglected by officialdom.
A sincere and deep commitment to protection of all rivers with the involvement of people and communities living near these rivers is badly needed. Whenever and wherever such sincere and dedicated efforts are made, Swami Sanand will be remembered with great respect.
What is not so well-known is that even after Swami Sanand died, the issues continued to be taken up with equal dedication by other saints of Matra Sadan. They continued to fast for long periods to draw attention to the various threats to the Ganga river. These efforts and sacrifices continue to this day. These efforts should get much more attention and support at a much wider level.
A fast by Swami Gopal Das started after Swami Sanand died, and then came the fast of Swami Atmabodhanand. He is a young monk from Kerala, in his late-twenties. He started his career as a successful computer engineer, then gave it all up and came to Matri Sadan to devote his life to the protection of Ganga river.
The fast of Swami Atmabodhanand also attracted widespread attention, with several senior persons issuing statements of solidarity. This fast ended after 194 days on May 6, 2019, when authorities of the National Mission to Clean Ganga assured Swami Shivanand of action on these demands relating to destructive mining and dam projects.
This fast of the young swami took place under the guidance of Swami Shivanand, the most senior saint here who also happens to be a post graduate in Chemistry. Swami Shivanand is known to have been involved in about 17 such social protest fasts himself.
The demands of these sages have been based on scientific facts, even though they speak about the river in devotional terms.
These demands focus mainly on stopping construction of dams and hydel projects in the Himalayan reach of the Ganga river and its tributaries and a halt to destructive mining and related stone crushing activities in and around the rivers. Demands of an unbiased inquiry into the death of some sages and their mistreatment as well as speedy disposal of certain judicial processes have also been raised. These demands are in continuation of the demands raised by Swami Sanand.
At the time of another fast by Swami Atmabodhanand, Medha Patkar, leading activist of Narmada Bachao Aandolan, had extended strong support to the demands voiced by the young sage and his colleagues, adding that the demands were rooted firmly in scientific facts.
In the course of the fast of this sage, about 60 experts and eminent citizens wrote to the government, protesting against its decision to re-start some hydro projects on the Ganga river and its tributaries in its Himalayan reach in Uttarakhand. These had been stopped earlier on the recommendations of a committee of experts constituted at the direction of the Supreme Court of India.
Subsequently there was another fast by a woman saint Sadhwi Padmawati. This fast ended only after she was forcibly moved to a hospital in Dehradun, her protests ignored.
Hence it is that this ashram has become widely known as the abode of saints who are very deeply devoted to the protection of Ganga river and the local environment. Most significantly, the issues raised by these sages and their social-protest fasts are grounded in sound scientific studies on the highly destructive impacts of hydel projects and sand and gravel mining on these rivers that are already in the public domain. The sages of Matri Sadan should get wide support so that they also feel that they have succeeded in raising the conscience of society on the dangers posed to the mighty river and the Himalayas, both ecologically and spiritually vital to the entire nation, if not South Asia.
(The writer is a journalist and author.)
