UGC NET Questions (Paper – 1)

Environmental justice emphasises the fair distribution of environmental benefits and burdens across all social groups. It challenges patterns in which marginalised communities bear disproportionate pollution and lack access to environmental amenities. The stem directly articulates this concern for equality and protection,so justice is the correct term.

Option A:
Efficiency focuses on maximising output or welfare with given inputs and may overlook who benefits or suffers from environmental policies. It does not address the equity and rights based issues highlighted in the question.

Option B:
Environmental justice movements seek to ensure that no group is forced to live in unsafe or degraded environments simply because of their social status. They call for inclusive decision making and legal protections. This perspective clearly corresponds to the description in the stem.

Option C:
Privatisation involves transferring ownership from public to private sectors and is a governance choice. It can affect environmental outcomes but does not itself guarantee fairness or protection for vulnerable groups. Therefore it is not appropriate here.

Option D:
Neutrality suggests lack of bias but does not capture the proactive demand for fairness and protection embedded in the environmental justice concept. It is thus not the right completion for the phrase.