The ongoing protests by farmers in Delhi are unlike anything that the country has seen so far.
As the hundreds of thousands of farmers, mostly from Punjab and Haryana continue their protests which are nearing two months now, they continue to get support from across the country.
While many are traveling from across the lengths and breadths of the country to Delhi to become a part of the protests, others are extending their support in whichever ways they can.
Jibin George, a student from Kerala is one of them. The 22-year-old native of Shankhumukham in the Kerala capital is on a one-of-its-kind initiative in solidarity with the farmers.
Jibin is on a marathon cycle trip from his hometown to Kashmir, through which he hopes to create awareness about the farm laws and farmers’ issues.
He started his journey on January 7 from his hometown, Thiruvananthapuram, and reached the city of Kozhikode in Northern Kerala on Thursday.
“I started the road trip on January 7 and will continue till Maharashtra through the highway. From there I plan to explore more into the interiors and reach Delhi after covering Gujarat and Rajasthan. After meeting the farmers in the national capital, I will continue the trip to Kashmir. It will take over two months to reach Kashmir,” Jibin told Indiatimes.
The second-year student at Rajadhani Institute of Hotel Management and Catering Technology, Attingal said that he came to know about the farmers’ protests during a recent cycle trip throughout South India.
“Last month I was on a long-distance cycle trip covering across South India and though I came to know about the protests, I got to know about the magnitude of it only once I reached home. I learned more about the protests from the news and felt that I should also do something. As a rider, a cycle trip to Kashmir was my long-held dream and I thought ‘why not use that as an opportunity to create awareness?” Jibin said.
Though not a stager to such cycle trips, Jibin said that this is the first time he has undertaken one with a theme and the longest so far.
When asked about the support from his family for his endeavor, Jibin said they have become used to his craze for cycling and long trips in the last two years.
Jibin however is not the first to cycle long distances to take part in the protests.
In December, Satyadev Manjhi, a 60-year-old man from Bihar’s Siwan had reached Tikri at Delhi-Haryana border to support the protesters after completing a journey of nearly 1,000 kilometres in 11 days on a bicycle.
“It took me 11 days to reach here from Siwan, my home district. I urge the government to take back the three farm laws. I will be here until the movement is not over,” Manjhi had then said.
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