Saalumarada Thimmakka : Environmentalist

Reporter: Bindu N Doddahatti

Saalumarada Thimmakka is an Indian environmentalist from the state of Karnataka, noted for her work in planting and tending to 284 banyan trees along a four-kilometre stretch of highway. Her work has been honoured with the National Citizen's Award of India and many other national and international awards. A U.S. environmental organisation called Thimmakka's Resources for Environmental Education is named after her. 

She used her own meager resources for planting these trees along with her husband.  The couple used to carry four pails of water for a distance of four kilometres to water the saplings. They were also protected from grazing cattle by fencing them with thorny shrubs.

Thimmakka has also been involved in other social activity like constructing a tank to store rain water for the annual fair held in her village. She also has a dream of constructing a hospital in her village and a trust has been set up for this purpose. 

NEWS NOT MAKING NEWS salutes the noble passion