Man on ‘Mission Mango’ reaches out to city schools to save environment
Times of India | 29 July 2024
Kolkata: When schools reopened after the summer holidays people were greeted with the sight of innumerable mango seed bundles on the premises. Instead of being relegated to the garbage bin as is the case, students had brought mango seeds to school to donate to the mango seed drive started by Jasmit Singh Arora. Popularly known as the 'Mango Gutli Man, Arora has spearheaded the ‘Aam ki Gutli collection revolution’, so that he can empower farmers by giving them mango saplings for a greener environment.
Started on a small scale two years ago, Arora has gone full throttle this year since April, with the mango project running in over 20 city schools like Shri Shikshayatan, Loreto schools, Don Bosco Park Circus, HM School Uttarpara, Lakshmipat Singhania Academy, Calcutta International School and BDMI to name a few. He has also been getting positive response from schools, colleges, NGOs, social clubs, old age homes and citizens across India thanks to his video which has gone viral on WhatsApp.
A social entrepreneur and motivational speaker, Arora goes to schools and requests them to collect mango seeds clean them with water, sun-dry them for two to three days, pack them and send them across to his Lansdowne Terrace address.“We collect the seeds and germinate them, grafting them with local mango breeds like himsagar and gulabkhas at our five-acre farm in Amtala. We donate the saplings free of cost to the paddy farmers in Bankura, Purulia, Birbhum and parts of the Sundarbans where the trees grow and bear fruit in 5 to 6 years,” he said.
Sunita Arora, principal of DPS Howrah said, “That someone has come forward and is thinking of helping the poor farmers is a noble initiative and we are proud to be part it.”
Arora is keen to catch them young. “My motivation is to help my fellow humans. I want to inculcate love for nature in these young minds,” he said.
The Army too has responded to his war cry. The Tololing Battalion also called the 2nd Rajputana Rifles along with two Sikh regiments based at Barrackpore Cantonment recently gifted 7,500 seeds to Arora.
Arora has already collected over two lakh seeds from city schools and another lakh from schools across India till now.
And why mangoes? “Mango trees are evergreen and help in cross pollination. The shady branches are a great invitation for insects and birds to nest,” Arora added.