Sreeman Narayanan
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
In the previous 10 years, Sreeman Narayanan, a resort proprietor from Muppathadam, Aluva, has distributed over one lakh water feeders for birds. He would get earthen pots constituted of potters in Keezhmadu in Aluva and Thathapilly in Paravur and distribute them to homes and establishments close by. Every yr, he would distribute at the very least 10,000 such water feeders to numerous elements of Ernakulam district.
On March 27, 2022, within the 87th episode of Mann Ki Baat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s radio present talked about Narayanan’s work and shortly he was flooded with calls. “People and institutions from around the country called me, some gave orders for feeders, some institutions adopted the concept and have implemented it since,” says Narayanan.

Sreeman Narayanan
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
Seventy-three-year-old Narayanan is the recipient of the twenty sixth PV Thampy Memorial Endowment Award, which he obtained on November 15. Instituted by journalist and environmentalist PV Thampy, the award honours peculiar individuals who have executed extraordinary work in environmental conservation. “For the past 25 years, we have been able to identify and acknowledge the efforts of people who have contributed greatly to the environment in their own ways,” says Ranjith Thampy, a socio-environmental activist and the son of P V Thampy. “Narayanan’s ongoing work has been inspirational,” he provides.
Though the feeders are distributed a bit forward of the summer season months, Narayanan’s marketing campaign, ‘An earthen pot for life giving water’, helped create consciousness on the necessity to shield chicken life in and across the metropolis. He will get orders for these feeders often. “I have people contacting me to order 300 to 400 pots. When water sources dry up in summer, birds have to fly long distances in search of water. All we need to do is to put out a pot of water to help a bird survive.”
Since 2013, he has been concerned in a number of greening initiatives in and round Muppathadam. He launched a tree yajna seven years in the past and began amassing fruit tree saplings and distributing them yearly on June 5 to mark World Environment Day. So far, he has distributed 4 lakh saplings to particular person homes and residential associations. In addition to this, he has distributed 10,000 fruit tree saplings to homes in Muppathadam. “We gave mango and jackfruit tree saplings, which if maintained well, can bear fruit up to 200 years,” says Narayanan.

Sreeman Narayanan
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
He ensured that the saplings have been planted in these households and had a group of people that would test on their progress. “If more than one tree was planted in a plot, we request the members of the family to leave the fruits of one tree untouched for the birds and squirrels to feed on. If it is just one tree, we ask them to leave the fruits on one branch ,” Narayanan provides. “We named these trees ‘Gandhi trees’ and some of them are bearing fruit,” he provides. Narayanan doesn’t settle for sponsorships and buys the saplings to be distributed himself.
As a part of the eighth tree yajna, Narayanan goals to distribute one lakh neem bushes to at least one lakh households in Ernakulam district. On June 5 this yr, the primary section of the marketing campaign was launched. “Neem trees have medicinal properties and these trees are the need of the hour. They would help bring down air pollution levels. It is said that one neem tree equals 50 trees,” he provides.
His resort, Dwaraka, has a bit studying nook, which he calls the ‘news desk’, the place one can discover each Malayalam newspaper and two English newspapers. “Those who come here to relish tea, snacks or have a meal, should be able to nourish their minds too,” he says.
Source: www.thehindu.com