Jadav Payeng single-handedly planted trees and created a forest over 550-hectares of land in his 40-years long selfless journey towards the environment. He turned out the whole sandbar of the river Brahmaputra in Jorhat area of Assam, into a forest reserve with his extraordinary passion and commitment. The forest is now home to many wild-lives; Bengal Tigers, Elephants, Rhinos, Deers and many more animals are inhabitant to this ‘Molai Forest‘.
This extraordinary story of ‘The Forest Man of India’, Jadav ‘Molai’ Payeng will be taught to students of sixth grade in Bristol Connecticut School in the US. A teacher at Greene Hills school in Bristol Connecticut shared that students will learn about Jadav Payeng as a part of their ecology lesson.
Inclusion of this lesson about ‘The Forest Man of India’ is to inspire the future generations of the country about how single man standing can change the world to a better place with the right approach and determination towards a greater cause.
However, Jadav wasn’t aware of the good news coming his way. Chief Minister of Assam, Sarbananda Sonowal took Twitter to congratulate Jadav Payeng on his achievement.
Padma Shree, Shri @FPayeng's love for the environment and bond with nature have inspired people across the world.
Inclusion of the 'Forest Man of India' in the curriculum of an American educational institution reflects his global reputation. pic.twitter.com/7RzEnNYSDI
— Sarbananda Sonowal (@sarbanandsonwal) October 30, 2020
Born in 1963, in Miris tribe of Assam, Jadav worked as a dairy farmer for livelihood. He has cattle and buffalo on his farm and sells milk for income.
Jadav Payeng has been honoured by leading universities in India such as Jawahar Lal University (JNU) and Indian Institute of Forest Management.
Former JNU vice-chancellor Sudhir Kumar Sopory first called him ‘The Forest Man of India’. Jadav has also received honorary doctorates from Assam Agriculture University and Kaziranga University for his contributions. He is also honoured with Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award in India in 2015 by the President of India.
Jadav Payeng stood out to prove that when you are determined to do something for a greater cause even the most simple of steps ages to become a remarkable leap for human existence.
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