PANAJI: Driven by passion and a battery-operated wheelchair, Hasan Imam gets right of way as he rides on Goa's NH 4-A. The 25-year-old Delhi resident is creating awareness across India with his campaign-Where There Are Stairs, There Must Be A Ramp.
"Being handicapped, I can't reach places normal people can. For example, I have been in Goa for the last four days but haven't been able to go to the shore. The sand is a bottleneck for me. I can clearly see the water, but can't touch it," says Imam, a graduate in geography from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.
However, his awareness efforts are slowly bearing fruit. "In Kochi and Bengaluru, I suggested laying ramps to private shops and hotels. A few of them understood our problem and made changes," says Imam.
He found his calling during the second lockdown in 2021 when he travelled on a battery-operated wheelchair from Delhi to Kolkata. "There was no public or private transport and I had to go to Kolkata. Covid disrupted my education, and I was forced to travel on my own," says Imam.
After his successful cross-country journey, the seeds of an India trip were sown. Hasan started his campaign from Kanyakumari during Christmas last year.
"Goa is my fourth state. So far, I have travelled from Tamil Nadu to Kerala, Karnataka and now Goa. I took the coastal route and went to Bengaluru as well," says Imam.
He will continue his ride to Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Delhi, Haryana and go all the way to Siachen.
"I intend to go to the border and wave the Indian flag. I will take permission from the Army or from New Delhi. If I get it, it will be great. But if I fail to do so, I will go till the point civilians are allowed to," he says.
The youngest of five siblings, Hasan has found he needs very little on his journey-people's empathy and bare necessities. "I have never slept hungry and always found support from people when it came to boarding. I carry my sleeping bag, yoga mattress. India is a changed place. People have shown enough support to me. If I go to a restaurant, they don't take money from me," says Imam.
His body stays fuelled by people's generosity and so does his battery unit. "I am running on only one battery. An NGO has sponsored 50% of the vehicle. When I go to eat or rest, people happily allow me to plug my unit so that I can charge it," says Imam.
He has now set his sights on Russia. He hopes to collect enough money by way of donations or sponsorships. "We have a very good relationship with Russia and the Russian language appeals to me. I have already made enquiries and if everything goes as per plan, I will go to Russia and stay there for two years," says Imam.
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