Introduction
The aggregate of all animate beings and inanimate objects surrounding a living organism is defined as environment. The environment of a being is an important factor in its growth and development. Throughout history, all human societies have been dependent on the ecosystem for fulfilling their needs and wants. The use of nature, the working of which during the initial stages was considered capricious, has changed significantly over time. From considering himself a part of nature and using natural resources prudently to believing him to be apart from nature and conqueror of nature, man’s interaction with the environment has undergone a drastic shift.
Environmental sociology is a study of human behaviour towards nature. It focusses on the nature of interaction between man and the ecosystem. Environmental sociology has now solidified its position as an interdisciplinary study.Madhav Gadgil is an India ecologist known for his contribution towards the preservation of ecology in the country. His researches played a major role in identifying Nilgiris as the first biosphere reserve in India. In his works, he focusses on the ecological and historical aspects of man’s interaction with nature and natural resources. His works detail the role of humans in causing environmental destruction and also focusses on prudent use of natural resources by humans. He understands environmental problems through environmental history. His works study the conditions under which humans preserve or exploit natural resources. He analyses human actions that are prudent and profligate in use of natural resources.
From a sociological point of view, he presents a new framework called ‘modes of resource use’. This framework analyses how different societies interacted with nature and classifies them based on their interactions with nature and natural resources. He finds the need for this classification as the classical Marxian concept of ‘modes of production’ does not consider the realms of natural resources. He also explains the role of environmental factors in conflicts within groups and conflicts between groups. In one of his important works, he focuses on the history of resource use and abuse in post independent India. In this work, he proposes a programmatic agenda for renewal of environment. He proposes another framework on ecological consumption, which classifies human populations based on their consumption of natural resources. He retains the essence of both sociology and ecology in his works by explaining the reciprocal relationship between nature and man and nature’s influence on the relationship between humans. This paper aims to analyse the perspectives of Madhav Gadgil and the theories proposed by him in his works.
Theory of ‘Modes of Resource Use’
Understanding the shortcomings of Marx’s mode of production when trying to classify societies based on resource use and ecological context, Gadgil introduces the concept of modes of resource use. His major criticisms of Marx’s mode of production are that it ignores natural contexts within which field and factory exist, places less importance on political structures and struggles, its lack of applicability outside Europe, and its little value when interpreting religious, ideological and cultural values of various societies and differences in them. The concept introduced by Gadgil ‘modes of resource use’ includes natural resources in its domain of production.
According to Gadgil, the concept of modes of resource use helps in finding the characteristics of different modes, and estimates the environmental impact of different modes, and estimates the effects of these modes on the ecosystem and availability of natural resources.
According to the theory of modes of resource use, human societies are classified into four historical modes. These are gathering(including shifting cultivation), nomadic pastoralism, settled cultivation or agriculture, and industrial mode of society. Each historical mode of society has a set of unique characteristics with respect to the aspects of technology, economy, social organization and ideology. The nature of ecological impact varies from one historical mode to other. In the gathering mode of society, hunting wild animals and gathering of vegetable matter are the main activities for survival. The practices or characteristics of gathering is prevalent even in the time of shifting cultivation. Humans in this mode relied mostly on human muscle power and wood fuel as energy sources.
For fulling their needs and wants, they are dependent on plants, animals and stones. In this mode, man’s knowledge of nature is narrow and considers the working of nature as capricious. There are no efforts to dominate nature and believe nature to be beyond man’s control. The capacity to store food and transportation of resources during this period is also limited. The economy is constructed mostly around the resources gathered within small spaces. The range of resources that is possible to transport is limited(shells, peacock feathers and such things). The variety of species, considering restrictions of space, is high. The consumption is based on subsistence needs in this mode. These societies are vulnerable to changes in the availability of resources. Their response is fine tuned adaptations to these conditions. Their abilities to transform resources is also basic and rudimentary. The social organization is restricted to tiny social groups and territories are restricted. Relationship with people from outside these territories are rare. There is no division of labour present in this mode and when there is division of labour it is based on age and sex. Their accessibility to resources are restricted due to spatial restrictions and lack of transport. There are no ideas of personal property and nobody is in a position to dominate others. In this mode, man is considered as one of other beings in the community. There are several practices like restriction of fishing in some ponds in the name of sacred ponds that aimed at sustainable resource. The impact of human activities on environment is minimal in this period.
The next mode of society is nomadic pastoralism. In this mode, humans additionally start using animal power as a source of energy. Societies are dependent on plant and animal materiel for satisfying their material requirements. Domestic animals served as meat supply on hooves. Their ability to store resource is better than gatherers. They use domestic animals for transport purposes. Since they travel from one locality to another, their resource base is extensive. Their rate of consumption is moderate. They do hold the beliefs of gatherers and started using natural resource without the prudence of hunters and gatherers.
The mode of society slowly progressed to settled cultivation. This became possible after the development of farming or agricultural techniques and animal husbandry. In this mode, societies begin to use human and animal muscle power, fuelwood, coal and water power to certain extent. For fulfilling material requirements, they are dependent on stone, plant, animal and some metals. Their ability to store resource is high compared to previous modes. This is made possible by grains and domestic animals. Domestic animals are used for transportation purposes. Their ability to transform resources sees a shift as these societies begin involving in the practice of metal making and weaving. Their accessibility to resources is moderate and higher compared to gatherer mode of society. Some elites begin dominating others and notions of personal property start emerging during this phase. The rate of consumption by elites is higher than other. Overall consumption, however, remains moderate during this phase.
Invention of tools leads to the evolution of much advanced society called industrial mode of society. The sources of energy used is extended to fossil fuels, hydro-electricity, nuclear power, fuelwood, and human and muscle power. The reliance on human and animal power is much less compared to previous modes. There is an extensive use of resources for fulfilling material requirements. Societies use metals and synthetic materials extensively for fulfilling material requirements. The ability to store is very high as even perishable goods(like meat and fruits) are stored for longer durations. The usage of fossil fuels as an energy source makes transportation over large distances possible. The time of transporting is also drastically reduced. The ability to transform resources is extensive in this mode. There is no spatial or territorial restriction for accessibility of resources. Resources through world are transported to all parts and consumed. The rate of consumption is also high. Societies consume enormous quantities of resources. Division of labour is considerable is based on knowledge and skills. The extent of kinship and attachment to societies are also weak. Transactions, unlike previous societies, are codified with legal sanctions. The sense of personal property is high. Resources are owned by individual, states and corporates. Community ownership is delegitimized in this mode of society.
In this mode, man begins to dominate nature and is seen as apart from nature. The earlier modes of resource use followed practices, in the name of religion or customs, that were ecologically prudent. There were several social practices which guided the society towards sustainable use of resources. For example, gatherer societies and other communities followed practices like sacred groves and sacred ponds that prohibited usage of certain resources keeping in mind the sustainability of resources. There are several practices that regulated their behaviour. Man is the only who is cognitively able to exercise prudence in the use of nature and practice restraints. Old practices, studied by several anthropologists and ethnobiologist, have been proved to be beneficial in the long run. These practices involve different types of restrictions on harvesting, quantity, locality, season, and life history stages. There are also certain practices that do not contribute to sustainable resource use. These practices were guided by social beliefs and customs and may have been developed on the basis of their experience. In the modern industrial mode, such practices are not followed and practices guided by science have had several consequences. It is difficult to ascertain precise prescriptions, but simple methods could be followed to avoid resource collapse.
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