Saalumarada Thimmakka, Who planted 4 Kilometers with Banyan Tree on the Highway : - an environmentalist, is one of the well-known personalities of Karnataka. She has earned recognition due to her untiring efforts in planting and tending to 284 banyan trees along the highway covering a distance of four kilometers. Her persistent work has earned her several national and international awards.
She has been honored with the prestigious National Citizen's Award of India for her selfless works in the field of environment. She also has a U.S. environmental organization called Thimmakka's Resources for Environmental Education named after her.
Saalumarada Thimmakka-A Brief History
Saalumarada Thimmakka was born in a village named Hulikal that falls under the Magadi taluk of Bangalore Rural district. She was known as Thimmakka then. She did not go to school or get any formal education.
From an early age she worked as a laborer in a quarry near her home. She was married off to Chikkaiah, a cattle herder. The couple wanted children but were unable to get any even after 25 years of their married life.
One day the husband-wife duo decided to plant trees to overcome the sadness and empty feeling of their lives. That was around 50 years ago. From there started a journey of untiring love and selfless service of an ordinary couple towards an extra ordinary mission: a mission to raise as many trees as possible with love and care and as their own children.
Her journey to become Saalumarada Thimmakka
Thimmakka and her husband decided to plant trees along the roadside and they selected the road to the next village, Kudur to fulfill their plans. This particular road was one that did not have a single tree and caused immense hardship to the travelers on the dry and hot days.
They started grafting saplings from Ficus (banyan) trees as there were plenty of Ficus trees near her village. They grafted ten saplings in the first year and planted them along a stretch of 4 kilometers on the road that led to Kudur. They increased the number to 15 in the next year. They continued with their efforts and increased the number of saplings with each passing year.
They not only planted the saplings, but also tended to the young saplings. Each morning they started from their home with four pots filled with water and watered the saplings. When the pots emptied out they refilled them from the nearby ponds and wells and continued watering the saplings while covering the whole stretch on feet and returned home doing the same thing.
Ravi
