2015 · GS Paper 2 · Q10 · 12 marks
How can the role of NGOs be strengthened in India for development works relating to protection of the environment? Discuss throwing light on the major constraints.
In short
NGOs can play a larger environmental role if they gain stable domestic funding, legal access, formal partnerships and self-regulated credibility, while constraints such as FCRA curbs, trust deficits and shrinking public consultation are eased. Greenpeace India's FCRA cancellation in 2015 shows how funding curbs can silence environmental advocacy.
Model answer
Ghissu Editorial · Verified 4 Oct 2026 · 280 words
Funding curbs
Greenpeace India lost its FCRA registration in 2015, after a 2014 Intelligence Bureau report cast foreign-funded green groups as a drag on growth.
Credibility gaps
A 2015 CBI report to the Supreme Court found only about one in ten NGOs filed financial statements, feeding suspicion of the sector.
Shrinking consultation
The draft EIA Notification 2020 proposed shorter public-hearing notice and exemptions from public consultation, narrowing the NGOs' main forum.
Legal access
The NGT Act 2010 lets environmental organisations approach the tribunal; more regional benches and firm enforcement would make this access real.
Stable funding
Schedule VII of the Companies Act 2013 lists environmental sustainability as a CSR activity, which can fund credible NGOs registered on NGO Darpan.
Formal partnership
NGOs can help prepare People's Biodiversity Registers under the Biological Diversity Act 2002 and help gram sabhas claim community forest rights.
Self-regulation
Accreditation, audited accounts and disclosure, as the National Policy on the Voluntary Sector (2007) envisaged, would rebuild trust.
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Question from the official UPSC Civil Services (Main) Examination 2015 paper. Answer written by Ghissu's engine and checked against our editorial standards. Found an error? Tell us and we correct it within 48 hours.