Pedalling for preservation

BENGALURU: Cycling has gained a lot of prominence during the pandemic, with many taking to it both as a fitness and recreational activity. But Sunil Thorat, a 22-year-old farmer from Aurangabad, Maharashtra, is on a cycling mission across the length and breadth of India to spread awareness on India’s cultural and historical heritage sites. So far, he has covered 3,285 km with plans to cover 8,000 km more. In Bengaluru over the last week, Thorat says, “This mission is called Bharat Bhraman, and I am doing it to promote and conserve our cultural and historical sites.

Their importance has been fading away in the recent years.” Thorat will be covering 80 cities across 15 states, and has so far visited heritage and cultural monuments in Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu to spread awareness about its historical importance through various social media channels. 

Thorat started with a limited pocket balance of ` 4,500 from Maharashtra, and is now crowdfunding to keep his ride going. He started his journey on Dec. 20, with his first stop being Pattadakal in Bagalkot, which was followed by Hampi– both of which are UNESCO World Heritage sites.

Further, he pedalled towards Sabrimala and Padhmanabhaswamy temple in Kerala and then pushed towards Tamil Nadu to visit Swami Vivekananda Rock Memorial (Kanyakumari), Rameswaram, Meenakshi Amman Temple (Madurai) and finally made his 50th day stop at Bengaluru. “The Bangalore Palace and ISKCON are some of the spots I covered,” he says. 

Besides throwing light on the cultural and historical monuments, Thorat is also keen on promoting eco-friendly measures of commuting. In Bengaluru, he cycled to Lalbagh Botanical Garden and Cubbon Park to spread the message of environmental conservation. “The pollution in many cities is alarming. It is important to use cycling or other non-polluting modes of transportation that can keep the environment and people’s life healthy and fit.” 

Thorat, who is heading to Hyderabad, interacted with locals in the city about the importance of ecological and cultural conservation and the need to take initiatives for better living conditions. “I interact with 
locals on topics of historical cultural and environmental importance,” he says.