A true hero

You sometimes come across the most inspiring stories which reinstate our belief in humanity and shows how the human being, if he sets on mind of doing good, he can indeed transform the world.

This the incredible story of this man, Jadav Payeng in north east India, Assam who single-handedly planted a 1,360-acre forest.  A little more than 30 years ago, a teenager named Jadav "Molai" Payeng began burying seeds along a barren sandbar near his birthplace in northern India's Assam region to grow a refuge for wildlife. Not long after, he decided to dedicate his life to this endeavor, so he moved to the site so he could work full-time creating a lush new forest ecosystem. Incredibly, the spot today hosts a sprawling 1,360 acres of jungle that Payeng planted — single-handedly.

It started in 1979 when the region was inundated with floods and once the water receded, innumerable number of reptiles lay dead. The forest department put its hands up and was of no use and Jadav decided to step in. Not just plating trees, he also tried to maintain a balance in the eco system by transplanting pests and even ants. He brought in a sense of natural harmony, making it into a self-functioning environment, with birds, deer, rhinos, tigers and elephants.

What is shocking is that despite such a huge land transformed into forest, the forest department came to know of it only in 2008! Though the forest department now respects Jadav’s efforts, there is nothing from the Govt. He is a bigger hero and yes, in the developed world, he would have become a star, here, he remains in anonymity. It’s a shame we have such day-to-day hero’s and the one’s the media celebrates are so hollow. A shallow world we live in today….