Madurai: Shilpa Balakrishnan, a biker who has been creating awareness on various issues since 2004 by riding her bike and had covered more than 2.50 lakh km, was in Madurai on Wednesday as part of her latest journey to set a record by covering the four corners of India in 30 days. She is also highlighting various issues including safety first and Swachh Bharath Mission as part of her mission.
Shilpa embarked on the 30-day solo bike tour on September 22 from Mumbai mapping the four corners of India – Leh (North), Tezu or Kibithoo (East), Bhuj (West) and Kanyakumari (South).
To complete this record in time, she is riding the bike for 12 to 14 hours a day, starting as early as 4am, catching the sunrise, hustle-bustle of small towns and rest post sunset. Taking strategic time-outs also helps to cover more ground.
The India Book of Records (IBR) will ratify the record and will check if Shilpa completes the ride. Shilpa is the first biker to set off to create a record for this distance. During this journey, the aim is to promote ‘Green & Swachh Bharat on two wheels’.
During her multiple stop-overs across cities, districts and talukas she will engage with locals and promote Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s mission of Clean India. To help in her green mission, DCB Bank has agreed to plant a sapling for every km she rides.
Shilpa recently concluded an all-India ride covering 29 states and 5 Union territories in India on her Honda CBR 250R. She sticks by a certain set of rules like staying calm, keep the bike in best condition, follow riding etiquettes (never overtaking from the left), riding only as fast as one can brake among others.