Indian man single-handedly plants a 1,360-acre forest
A little more than 30 years ago, a teenager named Jadav “Molai” Payeng began burying seeds along a barren sandbar near his birthplace in northern India’s Assam region to grow a refuge for wildlife. Not long after, he decided to dedicate his life to this endeavor, so he moved to the site so he could work full-time creating a lush new forest ecosystem. Incredibly, the spot today hosts a sprawling 1,360 acres of jungle that Payeng planted — single-handedly.
The Times of India caught up with Payeng in his remote forest lodge to learn more about how he came to leave such an indelible mark on the landscape. It all started way back in 1979, when floods washed a large number of snakes ashore on the sandbar. One day, after the waters had rec… Continue Reading