Kalyan Singh Rawat felicitated with Uttarakhand Garhwal Gaurav Award

Padma Shree Awardee Kalyan Singh Rawat who dedicated his entire life for planting myriad saplings and trees in Uttarakhand, helping the poor and needy and mobilizing the students, youths and newly wedded couple to plant more and more trees to save the environment of the Himalayas was today evening felicitated with Uttarakhand Garhwal Gaurav Award by the biggest representative organization of Garhwalies and Uttarakhand in Delhi called Garhwal Hiteshini Sabha.

A citation, shawl, and a trophy was presented to Padma Shree Kalyan Singh Rawat by the Pauri Garhwal member of parliament Sh. Tirath Singh Rawat at Garhwal Bhawan Panchquin Road, New Delhi. Extremely active in the save forests movement of Uttarakhand in 1974 known as Chipko Andolan, renowned social activist of Garhwal, Uttarakhand running an NGO, Maitee, Padam Shree Kalyan Singh Rawat has dedicated his entire life for planting lakhs of trees protecting the Uttarakhand forests and thus saving the environment of the Himalayan state for the last 40 years or so.

Addressing the audience at Garhwal Bhawan today after receiving the Garhwal, Himalaya Gaurav award at the hands of the Pauri Garhwal MP Tirath Singh Rawat, humbled Kalyan Singh Rawat of Maiti extended his immense gratitude to the Garhwal Hiteshini Sabha and it’s office bearers for recognizing his contribution of making the Himalayan state green and environmentally friendly and highlighted the benefits of planting more and more trees in the hills of Uttarakhand which is the source of oxygen for the entire country and the Asian subcontinent for the survival of entire civilization. Padam Shree Kalyan Singh Rawat said the need of the hour is to maintain the greenery of the Himalayan state and involving one and all to protect the hills’ environment by planting as much as trees we can. Rawat has during the last four to five decades encouraged and mobilized an unlimited number of students, youths, newly wedded couples and their parents towards planting saplings in great quantity in order to make the hills of Uttarakhand full of green trees emanating oxygen for our healthy lives and survival.

He devised a strategy that when a girl of Uttarakhand is married she should plant a tree at her parental house before departing for her in-law’s house and ensure that her parents should nurse that tree/plant in her absence as a token of their love and adoration for their married daughter. This practice has resulted in a massive plantation in the Uttarakhand hills and the practice is being followed by countries like Canada and the United Kingdom etc as well. To date Padam Shree Kalyan Singh Rawat has grown lakhs of plants in nurseries that had been further planted in various villages of Garhwal and Kumaon Uttarakhand. He had also contributed tremendously in discouraging the tradition of animal sacrifices in Uttarakhand which was earlier the order of the day to please the family deities by the people suffering from orthodox traditions.

Padam Shree Kalyan Singh Rawat’ s contribution in making the forests of Uttarakhand hills more cohesive and green through the planting of lakhs of trees has been phenomenal apart from his incessant contribution in discouraging animal sacrifices and mobilizing the youths, students and women towards environment protection and against social evils as well. Kalyan Singh says if the hills of Uttarakhand, which are the lungs of the country releasing fresh oxygen for our survival and a permanent credible source of water, quenching the thirst of countrymen and irrigating the farmlands at the pan India level become devoid of these two major resources, the survival of the civilization will be at stake. Keeping in view these two key principles and important natural ingredients in mind, Rawat dedicated his entire life in planting saplings/plants/trees in entire Uttarakhand and he finally proved himself successful in his destined aim for which the government of India recognized his undaunted and unparalleled contribution to the society by selecting him as one of the pivotal recipients of coveted Padam Shree Award to be presented to him at the hands of the President of India Ram Nath Kovind in the near future. A good number of youths, women and the members of Garhwal Hiteshini Sabha participated in this felicitation function. Several other dignitaries were also felicitated on this occasion viz entrepreneur and activist Trepen Singh Bhandari, former ACP Satish Nautiyal, ACP Gauniyal, RCS Bhandari, MP Tirath Singh Rawat, Mahavir Singh Kemwal, professor Harendra Aswal, former president of Sanskrit Academy Acharya Semwal, Sri Kirat Singh Rawat, B. S. Negi, Shashi Bhushan Naithani, president of GHS Mohabbat Singh Rana, Murli Singh Negi, and others.

The function was ably anchored by the general secretary of Garhwal Hiteshini Sabha Pawan Maithani.