Conflicts over the Coastal Sand Dune Region in Southern India: Unveiling the 'identity Politics' Underlying Environmental Narratives

This paper focuses on the conflicting narratives between the coastal Hindu non-fishing community and the Christian fishing community, both seeking control over the coastal sand dune space and resources in one of the southern regions of India. While the Christian fishing community advocates for harbour development along the sand dune area, citing livelihood opportunities, the Hindu non-fishing community opposes it in the name of conservation of sand dunes and protection of Olive Ridley turtles. Media reports have often framed the issue as a simple narrative of “good guys” those opposing the harbour in the name of conservation, versus “bad guys” those advocating for the harbour and the potential destruction of the sand dunes. A clear dichotomy is being established between the population of Hindu non-fishers and Christian fishers. This form of portrayal largely ignores the latent interests or the complex representation of the reality that these conflicts are deeply intertwined with cultural identities and historical events like riots alongside economic interests.

I have widened the political ecology lens to appreciate how conflicts over resources are also means of cultural conquest (e.g. identity) and not just political-economic assertion, which is demonstrated through this ethnographic study. This paper shifts the way we understand everyday life in the coastal sand dune region by highlighting how environmental issues are used as tools to assert cultural identities, particularly between the Hindu Nadar non-fishing and Christian fishing communities.

I draw on Stuart Hall’s concepts of articulation and positioning to analyse how the Hindu non-fishing communities of Kanyakumari, India, construct environmental narratives that appear legitimate, garnering solidarity from environmentalists and other stakeholders from local to national level. These narratives, while seemingly focused on environmental concerns, also carry latent interests that intertwine with cultural identity. This analysis demonstrates how environmental politics is increasingly shaped by cultural politics.