Save girl child: Four bikers embark on 12,200 km campaign

Visakhapatnam: Bumpy roads, humid weather conditions, long travel hours, indigestion or fatigue hardly seem to deter these four bikers as they decided to cover 400-km a day all for a cause.

Armed with protective gear, Rabi Moktan, Prashant Joshi, Karma and Ram Krishna Prajapati began their journey 'K to K' (Kathmandu to Kanyakumari) on November 3 in a bid to spread awareness on 'Save girl child and stop violence against women.'

Moved by the growing incidents of violence against girls, women and even months old babies, the 'four-some' had set out on the 12,200-km expedition from Kathmandu riding their sturdy motorbikes.

Stopping at busy junctions, the Kathmandu-based bikers explain their objective to the curious onlookers and urge them to extend support to their endeavour that underlines the need to stop violence against women.

Bidding adieu to his restaurant business, 51-year-old Rabi says that he now looks forward to teaming up for such expeditions in future as well. "With the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women observed on November 25 and the theme focusing on 'Orange the world: Generation equality stands against rape', we wanted to take a step forward and show our solidarity to the women. It also makes us witness a slice of diverse Indian culture," says the biker.

Reaching Visakhapatnam as part of their itinerary, the bikers say that it is one of the best cities they have come across. "People over here are always ready to help whenever we ask for directions. Though language was a barrier, they would earnestly try to explain either in Hindi or English to us until we follow," shares the team.

The bikers, associated with Friends of Royal Enfield Club, say that they settle for local cuisine available on the highway. "Except the green leaf saag that we relish quite often in Nepal, we are savouring the local cuisines in each city we step into. 'Idli' and 'masala-dosa' in Visakhapatnam taste heavenly. This is the first time I am devouring them," says Rabi.

Bewitched by the beauty of Visakhapatnam, Karma, a theatre artiste and an actor, draws comparison to the City of Destiny with Barcelona in Spain.

From Vizag, the team is next heading to Chennai passing through Rajamahendravaram and Ongole. "Unlike our 400-km a day, we wanted to cut short to 300-km a day now as it is bit tedious. We are planning to wrap up our expedition either on December 31 or January 1," adds Rabi.

Though the team has not come across any major challenges during their journey so far, the bikers say that wearing thick protective gear often makes them feel little suffocated in the hot sun.