A 24,000-km ride to spread awareness on eco-conservation

The last 14 months have been quite hectic for cyclist Narpat Singh. The 34-year-old, who hails from Barmer in Rajasthan, began his cycle journey from Jammu airport on January 27, 2019 and is still on the road spreading the message of water, environment wildlife conservation.
During the last one year, he covered 13 states which includes Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Haryana, UP, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Goa, Karnataka and Kerala. Earlier this month, he reached Tamil Nadu and went to Kovilpatti, Madurai, Paramakudi, Rameshwaram, Karaikudi, Trichy, Dindigul and Palani. On Friday, he reached Coimbatore.
"It has been an adventurous journey and I met people from different parts of the country. Whereever I went, I provided seeds and pods to people and spoke about conservation of environment. My mission is to complete 24,000 km and during the journey, meet school and college students and talk to them about giving back to the nature."
When asked how did Singh develop an interest in environmental conservation, he says, "In school, I was given chocolates to plant saplings. The greed for chocolate, brought me here. Till now, I have planted 87,570 saplings and have rescued a number of animals including chinkaras, peacocks, rabbits, nilgai, eagles and owls. I started a campaign in Rajasthan that involves people gifting sapling to each other on special occasions. I did that at my sister's wedding as well when I donated 250 saplings as dowry. I work at a sweet shop in Rajasthan and draw a salary of Rs 14,000. But, I use 70 per cent for eco conservation because I think it's high time we protect the eco-system. Today, people in Rajasthan call me Greenman."
After visiting Erode, Salem,Kallakurichi, Villupuram and Chennai, Narpat will be touring Andhra Pradesh to sensitize youth about water and eco conservation.