A long time ago, there was an area that used to be a forest, but it turned into a barren land. This happened naturally. One day, a man found injured reptiles in this area, and it sparked an idea in his mind.
The place was by a river, and due to erosion, the island started falling apart. In 1980, the government of India started a program, and this man joined in. He spent many years working on this program, planting lots of trees.
Even after the government’s project was done, the man stayed on the island. He decided to keep planting trees and protecting the forest. The island now has a lot of bamboo trees, and many animals, like birds and rhinos, live there. There are thousands of different plants and trees.
When poachers tried to hunt the animals, the man told the authorities, and the poachers were punished. Before all this, nobody knew about this area.
In 2008, some people visited the forest and were amazed at its beauty. They learned about the man and told the authorities. In 2012, they invited him and gave him an award. After that, he became famous worldwide, and in 2015, he got a State Award for his achievements. They even made a great movie about him and named the island after him.
Now, the forest covers 550 hectares. The man plans to plant more trees on another empty riverbank. He doesn’t get money for doing this. He lives in a simple hut in the same forest with his family.
His only income comes from the buffaloes he raises. He sells their milk and meat, using the rest for his family’s food.
