From Dashrath Manjhi to Bilal Ahmad Dar: Before Bittu Tabahi, Indians who showed the power of one

A BSc student from Madhya Pradesh has captured widespread attention after videos of him cleaning the trash-filled Ajnar River went viral. Surendra Singh Choudhary, popularly known as Bittu Tabahi, began removing plastic, bottles, weeds and other waste from the river in Biaora in Madhya Pradesh’s Rajgarh drict, eventually continuing the clean-up largely on his own.Bittu Tabahi’s viral river clean-up brought back stories of Indians who had created change through individual efforts.His initiative has earned widespread praise, but Choudhary is not the first Indian to step in when a problem appeared too big for one person. Over the years, several individuals have taken matters into their own hands and created a lasting impact with limited resources.Bilal Ahmad Dar: Cleaning Wular LakeBilal Ahmad Dar was only a teenager when he began collecting plastic and other waste from Jammu and Kashmir’s Wular Lake. The youngster sold the material he collected to help support his family. His work later gained wider recognition, and in 2017, the Srinagar Municipal Corporation named him its brand ambassador for cleanliness.Kalmane Kamegowda: Digging ponds for water conservationKarnataka shepherd Kalmane Kamegowda spent years digging ponds around Dasanadoddi village in Mandya drict. Without government support, he constructed more than 16 ponds, helping provide water for animals and birds while also contributing to groundwater rejuvenation. His efforts were later praised Prime Miner Narendra Modi. Kamegowda died in 2022.Jadav Payeng: Turning barren land into a forestKnown as the “Forest Man of India”, Assam’s Jadav Payeng began planting trees on a barren sandbar of the Brahmaputra decades ago. His sustained effort eventually gave rise to the Molai Forest, spread across more than 1,000 acres and home to several species of wildlife. Payeng was awarded the Padma Shri in 2015 for his environmental work.Dadarao Bilhore: Filling Mumbai’s potholesAfter losing his 16-year-old son Prakash in a pothole-related accident in Mumbai in 2015, Dadarao Bilhore decided to act. Using sand and gravel collected from construction sites, the vegetable vendor began filling potholes across the city. Within three years, he had repaired nearly 600 potholes, many of them on his own, hoping to prevent other families from suffering a similar loss.Dashrath Manjhi: Carving a road through a mountainBihar labourer Dashrath Manjhi spent 22 years carving a passage through a hillock in Gehlaur using basic hand tools. The 110-metre-long path shortened the dance between the Atri and Wazirganj blocks from around 55 km to 15 km. Known as the “Mountain Man”, Manjhi died in 2007, but his extraordinary feat remains an enduring example of what individual determination can achieve.