Down the narrow by-lanes of Nathuwala in Dehradun lives a retired biology lecturer Kalyan Singh Rawat. Kalyan ji as he is fondly called, is a simple man with humble beginnings. Like most of the youth from Garhwal, he too migrated to the plains in search of a better and brighter future and joined as a biology lecturer in Nathuwala. Got married, had children and made Dehradun his home.
Reminiscing about the days of the past, Kalyani ji adds, ‘my annual visit to my home in the hills left me troubled. The depleting green cover of the mountains where I wandered, pained me.’ He set about thinking of how as an individual he could involve the village community in preserving and protecting their environment, for he was well aware that alone he stood little chance of making any positive impact.
In 1995, on a visit to Gwaldham, for his niece’s wedding, Kalyan ji came up with a unique idea of making the bride’s parting from her paternal home more special. ‘After the wedding celebrations were over, I asked my niece to plant a tender sapling in her Mait, or mother’s yard as a symbol of her love for her parents and theirs for her.’ His logic was simple, ‘When a bride leaves her parent’s home for her in-laws home and plants a sapling, the bride’s mother will definitely look after this parting gift from her daughter and the family will nurture and protect the tree from any harm and by doing so they will bring back greenery.’
This symbolic ritual then spread like forest fire. More so amongst the women folk who found an immediate emotional connect to the idea. Hence, the seed of ‘Maiti movement’ was sown. The word ‘Maiti’ is actually derived from the Garhwali/ Kumaoni word Mait which means a bride’s paternal home.
This innovative afforestation drive has touched a cord not only in its birth state of Uttarakhand but crossed over inter-state borders and taken wings in foreign shores of Nepal, Dubai, Indonesia and Canada as well.
Based purely on emotions the ‘Maiti’ tradition today has grown in leaps and bounds without any monetary aid or help from any co-operate house or the State Government at large. What started as a one-man mission has in turn turned into a mass movement with close to two lakh trees being planted in Uttarakhand alone and the lines of poet Robert Frost, ‘and miles to go before I sleep, and miles to go before I sleep,’ ring true for Kalyan Singh Rawat’s Maiti Movement.
