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A crusader for world peace

Special Correspondent

Anilkumar Chakravarty has cycled across 11 countries to spread his message

ON A MISSION: Anilkumar Chakravarty

Thiruvananthapuram: It is 10 years since Anilkumar Chakravarty set out on his mission from Ranchi, capital of Jharkhand.

He has covered more than two lakh kilometres on his bicycle across 11 countries, championing world peace.

"I had always nursed this ambition to go out and see the world instead of spending my whole life in one place," says Mr. Chakravarty, a bachelor who took voluntary retirement from the State Bank of India.

With assistance from the bank, he set out from Ranchi to propagate his message.

His first destination was Malaysia, from where the cycle tour started. Covering Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Indonesia, Australia, the Fiji islands and Honolulu, he landed in Los Angeles in 1993. For the next nine years, he devoted his time to studies, securing a degree in health consultation and a Ph.D. in naturopathy.

By 2002, he was back home in Ranchi, only to find that the travel bug had not left him.

So it was back to the road again on his metal steed.

Having covered 20 States, he is now in Thiruvananthapuram.

Now 51, Mr. Chakravarty spends eight to nine hours a day on his bicycle. He stays at lodges for the night and prefers to cook his own food on the kerosene stove he carries with him.

"Everywhere, I have received assistance from police officials. The only unpleasant episode during my tour was in Tamil Nadu when a group of anti-social elements tried to rough me up. I escaped unhurt," he says, a smile lighting up his bearded face.

Lectures

Wherever possible, Mr. Chakravarty mobilises an audience for a lecture on world peace.

He hopes to wind up his tour by the end of the year, but only to take up a dream project he had been nursing in his mind for long.

"By early next year, I hope to establish a sports ashram in West Bengal to mould young athletes," he says.

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