Ehsan Fazili/Srinagar

While big companies are bound by law to spend a certain amount of their profits for the public welfare as the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), a Srinagar resident aims to plant one million trees in the next 10 years through what he calls the idea of Common Man’s Social Responsibility.

Abdul Hameed Bhat, owner of an automobile workshop has already planted 2.25 lakh trees as part of the responsibility that he has thrust upon himself.

His calling came in 2009 when on his way to Srinagar airport he saw pine trees planted by the government looking unhealthy. Apparently, nobody was taking care of these after planting and they were likely to die soon.

The same year he planted 25,000 plants.

Abdul Hameed Bhat with school children during the plantation drive

“I have a lot of love for the environment and Nature,” said Abdul Hameed Bhat, as he spoke to Awaz-the voice in his office at Rahim Motors. A High School dropout Abdul Hameed is from a family of farmers. He has been a nature lover since his childhood. Though he started his automobile workshop on the land owned by his family at Hyderpora, his heart was always in Nature.

Beginning his career as a motor mechanic, today, Abdul Hameed heads three major units---Rahim Motors, dealing with automotive services, Rahim Engineering Works, dealing in generator supplies and, Rahim Automobiles, dealing in the sale of two-wheelers.

Since 2009, each year he has been planting at least 25,000 plants during February-March.

Bhat told Awaz-the voice, “This year we are going to plant additional 25,000 trees during November-December so that we are able to touch 50,000 mark this year,” he said.

This, according to Bhat, is aimed at “achieving the target of planting one million trees during the next 10 years.” He is gradually targeting planting one lakh trees every year by involving students from schools, colleges and universities and also seeking approvals and support  from the government departments.

The poster of his talk in Cambridge University

He plants trees on the public land, educational institutions, villages and  around religious places including mosques, temples and Gurdwaras.

“No funds from outside are accepted for the plantation drives,” Abdul Hameed Bhat says emphatically. He has named his movement Rahim Greens, after his father.

How does he raise funds for such a massive plantation drive?

He explains, “Instead of investing money in advertising my business through the distribution of annual diaries and calendars, I spend the money in planting trees.”

In Kashmir's hills with college students on a plantation drive

He says that planting a tree costs much less than producing a diary; the cost of planting 10 trees is equal to one diary.

Bhat is also focused his voluntary work in health sector since eruption of the Covid-19 last year. During its second wave in April-May, he provided oxygen concentrators to NGOs for distrubution among the needy.

He has also donated one ambulance that ferries people free of cost. “Under the normal situation, the ambulance service is provided for my area (Batamaloo in Srinagar), but it is also available for people in other areas,” he said.

He launched a free ambulance service five years ago after his mother’s death.

For creating awareness about environmental protection, Rahim Greens is engaged in cycling expeditions, promoting cycling as a substitute to vehicular culture. “My target is that people should go to the office on their bicycles”, says Bhat.

“It is the best exercise for healthcare”, he said. He has cycled long distances to Achchabal in South Kashmir and Uri in North Kashmir on the last two Sundays.

The longest was 172 km to and from Uri. “We are planning to reach far off places, Gurez in Bandipore and Tangdhar in Kupwara in north Kashmir in the weeks ahead.” he said.

Abdul Hameed Bhat attending an international conference on environment

“It also serves our purpose of the campaign against drug addiction and suicides and, creating environmental awareness among the people”, he added.

Bhat’s work has been recognized at the national and international levels. He has been the guest speaker in five different universities and attended conferences in South Korea, Malaysia and the USA. He has received  fellowhip from United World College, USA; has been invited for lecture in Cambridge University while the Warton Business school has done a study on his campaign.

In the erstwhile J&K State, he has been attending environmental meets at the University of Kashmir, Islamic University of Science & Technology, NIT, Srinagar and IMPA. He is also a member of the committees on the environment in the IUST, Awantipora and SKIMS, Soura, Srinagar.