Mangalore Bicycle Club Celebrates ‘Vanamahotsava 2018’
Mangaluru : The Mangalore Bicycle Club has been celebrating Vanamahotsava since 2016, the year which marked 5th year anniversary celebration of our club. In 2016, the Club and its members had decided to celebrate Vanamahotsava every year with the onset of Monsoon an ideal time to plant trees. The first of this was done in 2016 with planting of 50 Saplings at a enterprise in Baikampady. In Year 2017 we did seed bombing on the stretch of Tannirbhavi.
July 1, 2018 saw the 3rd year of Vanamahotsava celebration by our club and as part of our club’s 7th anniversary we decided to visit seven households in the city and planting around 10 saplings creating awareness on preventing global warming and reducing pollution by planting more trees. Saplings which were picked for planting had medicinal properties, fruit bearing nature and also included the ones which produces high levels of oxygen. Choice of plant was given to the owners of households depending on the size and availability of area. Special thanks to Radhesh Bhat from Tapovan, Kinnigoli, who is an NITK Graduate and a passionate environmentalist for sponsoring us the saplings from his organic farm.
Vanamahotsava Celebration of this year started with around 20+ members of our club assembling at City Corporation, our usual starting point on July 1st at 6.00 AM despite heavy fall of rain. We pedalled around the city for around 30 kms covering seven different locations that we had identified for planting the saplings. Our first point was Kadri mallikkatte where we planted Bilva Patra (Bell Tree) which is known for spreading positive vibes around and after which we reached Chilimbi and planted Red Sandalwood which is used in herbal medicines and at Matadakani we planted Averrhoa Bilimbi locally called Bimbuli used for skin related disorders and traditional cooking as a souring agent.
Next stop was at K.C. Alva’s house, where we planted 3 saplings which included Putranjiva, It’s leaves, fruits and seeds are all used for medicinal purpose, 2nd plant was almond which is known for its nutritional value and 3rd was Jack fruit tree which require no explanation as it is one of the most savoured fruit. Next we planted Ramphal at BGS Institution. This fruit bearing plant is also known for it’s use in the treatment of incurable diseases like cancer. At Padavinangady we planted Almond and Starfruit known for its antioxidants properties. The last stop was at IGP Bungalow, Maryhill, Helipad where we planted a Teak Sapling.
Thanks to Dr. Pritham Sharma, Consultant Urologist at A.J. Hospital’s, Subraya Nayak, a retired Banker, Lakshman Kamath, a merchant, Arun Chakravarthy (IGP), BGS Institution Mangalore, K.C. Alva, Land developer, Joel G. Fernandes, Interior designer, for agreeing to give us space at their property and their assurance to nurture the plants. The interest expressed by them in joining hands with the club for this initiative is acknowledged with utmost gratitude and their willingness to take care of the saplings and spread this awareness do deserve a mention. Saplings were taken and area for planting was prepared in advance to ensure smooth flow of events and they were all eagerly waiting for our troupe to arrive in the morning.
As a club with many environment friendly members, we continue to educate and do our bit to the environment through green environment initiatives. Vanamahotsava celebration is a tradition we as a club will continue forever to inspire and create awareness for the generations to come.