With an aim to do his bit to keep the environment green, young upcoming poet and mechanical engineering student, Sanath Bharne has decided to celebrate his birthday in a unique way in the company of nature
NT KURIOCITY
Everyone has different ideas to celebrate their birthdays. And to make his 21st birthday special and a memorable one, Panaji-based young poet, entrepreneur and a student of mechanical engineering; Sanath Bharne is all set to celebrate his birthday with a difference.
“I have a natural connection with the monsoons as I was born in the month of July. And as we know, the first week of July is celebrated as Van Mahotsav which translates as ‘forest festival’ which I rather interpret as festival with the forest,” he says.
And thus, on his special day (July 2), he will be riding continuously for 50 kilometres through the lush green mountains of the Western Ghats from Quepem to Shigao to Tambdi Surla. He will pass through the iconic Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife Sanctuary in Mollem and finally come to halt at the Shiva temple as Tambdi Surla. He will also be planting 50 saplings of indigenous plants at Usgao at a site provided by the Forest Department, and guided by Range Forest Officer (RFO) Dharajit Naik. “I’m extremely grateful to the Forest Department as they are helping me do this.”
The whole idea, he reveals, came about after reading disturbing articles in the newspaper on World Environment Day (June 5).
“My mornings usually start with a glance at the headlines and on June 5, I came across articles on carbon footprint, rising temperatures, ice caps melting, pollution and lack of clean air and whatnot,” he says. The facts that he learned stayed with him and he began to ponder what he could do to change things.
“I could hear my conscience constantly nagging at me, asking what I had done about it? What have I given and done for the nature that I am so connected to? And I know that the best time is now,” he says.
The youngster will also be making a video of his cycle journey and releasing it online so as to motivate others to take similar steps to save nature.
“We the youth are the power banks. We should take up the responsibility to do things like beach cleaning, tree plantation, practice environmentally healthy deeds and make ignorant people aware about the importance of clean air, clear surroundings, and clean water,” he says.