Vidyadharan Tree
Sub-Inspector V Vidyadharan – he is different!
As a Police Sub-Inspector, one would have
would have expected to see the officer with his pistol, handcuffs and baton.
But Vidyadharan is different!
Vidyadharan loves
trees so much that he always carries saplings, shovels and fertilizers in his
vehicle and not the usual baton, handcuffs or pistol that police officials are
seen with.
The green sojourn that began at a very young age as a passion soon became an obsession. An inspector with Kerala police,
A resident of Alappuzha
District, Vidyadharan is not content to merely plant saplings and then forget
it. He forges a parent-child kind of bonding with each sapling that he plants. After
planting a sapling, he nurtures them till they can stand on their own. The
go-green messiah feels that a sapling needs at least 20 days of care and
nurturing for a healthy growth. Vidyadharan spends at least Rs 6000 per month
from his meagre salary for the cause dear to his heart. The less-educated
cattle farmers who realize the futuristic value of Vidyadharan’s mission have
given him cow dung, which is an organic fertilizer, free of cost. There have
been times when the state has reeled under severe drought. Vidyadharan has had
to fetch water from faraway places. On the verge retirement now, he even
travels miles in search of a suitable place to plant his beloved saplings. Difficulties
have only steeled his resolve. No pressure; no diamonds!
Vidyadharan feels that
even a small creeper carries enough life and people can experience God in it. One
is reminded of American transcendentalist Ralph Waldo Emerson who said that “the creation of a thousand forests is in one
acorn.” The greatest joy for this genial police officer is when he
sees people resting under the shade of “his trees” and children plucking fruits
from his trees. This altruistic satisfaction is all that he expects in return
for his green obsession. Vidyadharan has lost the count of the saplings he has
planted but says it must have crossed the one lakh mark. One might imagine that
he uses his duty hours for this green-mission. In fact, Vidyadharan uses his
free time to add the touch of green to his city ensuring that it never clashes
with his duty hours
Vidyadharan rues that that
human beings never learn any lessons from devastating natural disasters and
trees are felled in the name of developing an area. Counting the ways that
trees help humans, the police inspector even claims they can even bring down
the rate of crime to an extent. He observes that “when you come under their
shade, trees provide you with a soothing effect.” He cites many experiments in
the west that have demonstrated the soothing effect of the shade of trees helps
lower blood pressure and thereby crime tendencies. He even point out to the
fact that all our gurus such as Lord Buddha got enlightenment under trees.
Such is his bonding
with his plants that he can identify, what he calls, his “child” easily among
thick foliage. Though he loves all his “children” equally, Vidyadharan prefers
shady and fruit trees such as jackfruit, mango and berry. Besides planting
trees he also installs boards at vantage points in the city that talk about how
to preserve and conserve trees. “My life is cut out for a cause. I love to do
it. I feel without trees there is no existence of mankind. They give us
something to look up to,” he observes. Legendary playback singer KJ Yesudas, referring
to the Inspector’s unique passion said that people like Vidyadharan give
mankind enough hope that the next generation won’t have to live in deserts.
One of the earliest to
recognize quiet endeavour was CH Nagaraju who was the Superintendent of Police
of Alappuzha District and also a senior CBI Officer. Nagaraju wanted others to
learn from this committed nature-lover. When Vidyadharan got an award on World
Earth Day 6 years ago, the SP ordered all police stations in the district to
plant at least 5 saplings and name them after him. Many schools and NGOs have
also named saplings after him. Many government schools in districts like
Alappuzha and Idukki also have plants named after him. So many police stations
in Alappuzha, Ernakulam and Idukki districts have trees that bear the same name
– Vidyadharan Tree!
The Bishnois of Jodhpur in
Rajasthan are a unique tribe. Their love for trees has no parallel in world
history. Rajasthan legend, indeed Indian legend, narrates the story of Amrita
Devi and her tribe sacrificing their lives for the sake of a tree. No wonder then that the motto of the Bishnoi
tribe is that “chopped head is still easier to replace than a chopped tree.”
Love of trees can also be seen in individuals who devote their entire life-span
for nurturing trees. There is the remarkable story of a former IIT Professor
(teacher of former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan) called Alok Daya Sagar, who
resigned his job and lives with the tribals of Hoshangabad in Bhopal. He has
been credited with having planted and nurtured more than 50, 000 fruit bearing
trees in Betul and Hoshangabad areas of Bhopal. Add to this list Sub-inspector
Vidyadharan. It is indeed incredible that society keeps producing such
visionaries time and again who sacrifice their lives for conservation of
forest.
Vidyadharan has two
children. An “irreligious person” he called his daughter by a non-Hindu name
Theresa and son Ashique. When his daughter Teresa got married 2 years ago, he
gave a different gift to all invitees - 20,000 saplings.
As we said in the beginning – Sub-Inspector
Vidyadharan is different!
(Main Theme: Arive Guru)
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