When T.V.D. Das, D. Sudharamesh, D.S.B.G. Tilak, K. Suresh, Srinivas and Muralikrishna Sharma set off on a 15-day motorcycle expedition from the City of Destiny to create awareness on rainwater harvesting pits, little did they know that they would soon be igniting a spark in thousands of minds.
The expedition team, flagged off by Hima Humanitarian Association (HHA) in collaboration with Simhadri TMT, was able to reach out to over 4,000 people across dozens of hamlets, covering 1400-km.
The sunny days did not prevent the team from travelling to Payakaraopeta, Tuni, Pithapuram, Kakinada, Rajamahendravaram, Yeluru, Vijayawada, Khammam and Nalgonda before wrapping up the expedition at Ramoji Film City, Hyderabad. “Though we organised a couple of expeditions to build awareness about AIDS earlier, this is the first time we ventured into a journey to educate people on building percolation pits. Despite the hot weather conditions, we were able to march forward by sticking to vegetarian meals and drinking plenty of fluids, particularly buttermilk, tender coconut and litres of water,” said Mr. Das, founder-general secretary of HHA, adding that 50,000 pamphlets have been distributed while riding bikes that had placards attached to them.
Mimicry artiste Srinivas, who was also part of the team, said he adopted interesting techniques of teaching such as mimicry and ventriloquism to grab the attention of people. In Vijayawada, the volunteers had an opportunity to meet Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu who appreciated the endeavour and encouraged the team to take up similar projects across the State.
The journey that concluded on June 2 appeared to be a great stress-buster for Muralikrishna Sharma who works at a call centre. “The tour helped us develop a sense of responsibility and do our bit to society. What made a difference is how we were able to reach out to 40 villages and bring a change in the mindset of people,” he added.
The next bike expedition will be held in December where the team plans to educate students on the ill-effects of substance abuse.
