A government plan in India is currently working towards carrying out three infrastructure projects – expanding a high-way, double-tracking a railway and setting up a power line – all through a protected wildlife reserve in south Goa – Mollem National Park. This has led to backlash from many people. They advocate for the value and conservation of the park’s natural amenities, including the fact that it was deemed by Unesco as one of eight “hottest hotspots” of biodiversity around the world. The park consists of 60,000 trees, is home to 128 endemic species and is a means of survival for locals depending on the area for food, medicine, and income from industries like tourism.
The movement - #SaveMollem
Activists, scientists, artists, lawyers and students have all come together to protest against these developments using a wide range of strategies. These include overnight vigils, petitions, railway blockages, and social media to gather awareness for their movement, garnering support from all over the world. This strength in numbers and diversity of those involved has enabled the movement to go up against not just the government but corporations such as JWS Steel and Vedanta that would benefit from these projects. The government is being forced to address these issues and answer the peoples’ questions, and we can only hope that #SaveMollem will succeed in its goals.
Protested have harnessed social media to get their word out (Source: Twitter)
#SaveMollem is an exciting and hopeful example of how activism works to draw attention to issues and how social media can be used as a tool to harness the power of the people. No matter where we are in the world, we have the ability to support people far away and their fight to protect their home!
Young protesters are fighting to save their home and culture (Source: BBC)
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