India: How NGOs hit a veritable goldmine!

How cash-flush NGOs are often in cahoots with global giants is sharply illustrated in this exclusive extract on the mining sector from the recently published book Neta, Babu and Subsidy by Sandip Sen (Tehelka)

Over 10,000 NGOs, both Indian and foreign-backed, are active in the mining sector, each with the stated objective of stopping or slowing down mining projects in India. Some of these are working against aluminum and bauxite mining, a few are against iron ore mining and several are pitted against coal mining and thermal energy. Most of these organisations are fighting industrial development to preserve the environment, some to preserve the tribal community lifestyle and some to assert the right of the forest dweller as the hunter-gatherer. There are some very large foreign NGOs backed by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and USAID working hand-in-hand with multinational mining giants who are active in their opposition to local mining in India.