Resource Exploitation and Conflict — Definition

Definition

Resource exploitation and conflict concerns the conditions under which extraction or control of land, forests, water and minerals generates disputes, exclusion or violence. The resource itself does not automatically cause conflict.

The important questions are who holds lawful rights, who bears environmental and livelihood costs, who receives benefits, and how disputes are resolved. In India's internal-security context, unresolved grievances may be exploited by armed actors, but affected residents must not be equated with those actors.

A useful analysis connects accountable resource governance with lawful security, participation and credible remedies rather than treating economic development and local rights as mutually exclusive goals.