Chennai man blends passion with sport for green cause

Chennai: Taking a three-month sabbatical from his corporate job, M Kumaran is paddling in the Ganges to create awareness about the sport and reaching out to people against the pollution of the river body.

“My group of stand up paddlers in the white rapids from Devaprayag on October 15. Since then we have been promoting this sport of stand-up paddling, and talking to villagers in the settlements near the river banks every day about the need for a cleaner river,” he told Deccan Chronicle.

The group, which is now in Farrukhabad, which is 500 km away from Haridwar, after paddling about 40 km per day, aims to reach Gangasagar – 2525 km from their starting point in three months. “It is a really fulfilling experience and Ganga has never been covered by anyone doing stand-up paddling. The initial three days from Devaprayag were difficult due to rapids,” Kumaran said.

Speaking about their camping at night which goes from one village to another, he added that their policy is very clear – no trash. The group doesn’t leave any evidence of having camped at a place.

The group collects water samples on their way to various destinations, interacting with villagers and discussing how the Prime Minister’s Ganga cleaning campaign has been doing.

“The villagers have mixed reactions to his campaign but most are of the opinion that efforts are being taken to clean the river. The villagers have started using toilets and are more aware of open-defecation harm,” he continued.

“The village people are mostly fishing communities and are highly organic in their ways but the pollution from the cities is what flows into the river. Single use plastics should be banned. Highly civilised people are the ones who dump and burn waste leading to the unsafe state of air and water,” he lamented.

On Sunday, the group was elated after having spotted a dolphin in the waters. “This shows that water is still healthy for living organisms. Also, there is a variety of fauna and flora around,” he said adding, that he wants to spread more awareness on the need to change our ways of living so as to reduce the waste produced and to stop harming the environment.

Talking about the sport, the stand-up paddler for over three years now, said: “There are a plenty of places in Chennai where one can just take a board and start paddling. Similarly, this is a sport that can be embraced by anyone looking for excitement and relaxation.”