For Gyanendra Singh from Kashipur in Uttarakhand, a major part of the past decade was spent cycling on the road. He has set forth again, for the fourth time since 2002, to criss-cross the country with an intention to spread his messages to a wider audience.
Having started from Rameshwaram on April 29, the 42-year-old reached Kozhikode on Sunday morning after covering 1,770 kilometres.
More than 14,700 kilometres remain in his journey.
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This time around, he is cycling to spread a message against the rising crime rate in the country.
“I have been a witness to many instances of crime in my own village. Some of these affected me and my close relatives. I thought this is the right time to embark on this trip,” says Mr. Singh.
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Though he calls himself an activist now, he dons many roles when he is not cycling. He has been a farmer as well as an English teacher in a public school in Uttarakhand. The first of his cycling trips was in 2002, to spread a message of peace after the Gujarat riots.
3,000 km
“I cycled from Kashipur to Lucknow to speak at a conference on women empowerment. After the conference, I decided to extend it and ended up cycling for the next three months. I covered around 3,000 kilometres then,” he says.
No strict schedule
He does not follow a strict schedule and hence covers varying distances each day.
“I end up spending more time at some places and so am not sure when I will finish this. Also, some days I cover 150 kilometres while on other days it is less than 100 kilometres,” he says.