Four youths walk over 4 lakh kms to spread awareness on conserving environment

NAVI MUMBAI: Four youths have reached Alibag on Saturday by walking over 4.48 lakh kms as part of a Yatra to spread the message of 'protect the environment, plant trees, save the earth, save the rivers, save girls - educate girls, road safety, Swachh Bharat mission'. The group members – Jitendra Pratap, Mahendra Pratap, Govinda Nand and Nischil Maurya met the Raigad collector Kisan Jawale and briefed him about their targets.

The group numbers have reached 20. The team members walk across various parts of Maharashtra. They arrived from Gujarat via Palghar, Thane and met CM Devendra Fadnavis in Mumbai. They have a target to cover a distance of 5.50 lakh kms.

They led a traffic awareness event and administered an oath to the police and people on a Mumbai-Goa highway stretch in Pen. They turned up at Alibag beach, joining a cleanliness drive to inspire and educate people on the environment. They will visit the Raigad Fort before leaving for Pune.

The Yatra has covered 11 countries since its launch in 1980 by their guru Avadh Bihari, Lakhimpur Kheri, Uttar Pradesh. Bihari had survived the 1980 severe floods by clutching on a banyan tree branch. Since then their Guru started the tree plantation drive to save the environment. During the Yatra 14.50 crore trees have been planted at 600 districts across India since then.

Jitendra Pratap said, “Based on complaints of the tourists we requested the Alibag civic body to penalize the shopkeepers littering the beach. The shopkeepers were requested to use dust bins and dissuade tourists littering the beaches. We will have a similar session atop the Raigad Fort with the visitors.”