/ The President

He chucked a cushy career in the corporate world to follow his heart. He went to work in the Himalayas, his native place, now called Uttarakhand.

For twenty years he travelled through the formidable terrain of the Himalayan region initiating, assisting and guiding hundreds of development and social projects and campaigns. He networked thousands of experts, officials and locals.

He saw and studied first - hand how corruption and inefficiency was destroying the pristine beauty of the Himalayas: a treasure not only of India but a world heritage.

Thus began a long drawn fight. A fight against a corrupt system. A fight against a well camouflaged mafia. A fight that required courage, perseverance, persistence and above all knowledge.

Started a struggle to save the environment of this Himalayan region. J.P Dabral started by lodging complaints at local offices and then followed these persistently at the higher levels. He drew the attention of the authorities to the specific locations where trees were being recklessly felled, sometimes on the pretext of development projects. What followed is a familiar story in this part of the world. He was sent from office to office. When he doggedly pursued each complaint, pressures and threats increased.

Uttarakhand became an state in 2002.Earlier it was a part of the largest state of India , Uttar Pradesh. After 2002 started work on a number of development projects. But these construction activities are being used to plunder the forests of the Himalayas.

For the construction of a single transmission line the bureaucrats had sanctioned the felling of 120000 trees. Dabral challenged this.

The mafia used every crooked means to stop him and intimidate him. They threatened to eliminate him. Dabral gathered local support and mobilised public protests. Many campaigns were organised. But the movement was weakened with threats and bribes. For the strong timber mafia it was not difficult to wean away the poor, needy locals. They had their compulsions and insecurities.

Dabral then decided to fight it all alone. He spent months studying the issue to its roots and then he approached the Supreme Court. The timber mafia flexed its muscles at every stage. Every move was made difficult for Dabral. He overcame each and then personally argued his case against a battery of senior advocates from various government departments, both from the Centre and from the State. It was a long, difficult and at times lonely journey.

Years of persistence and hard work finally paid. He won the case and 90000 trees that were officially sanctioned? to be felled were saved.

The fight continues. On many fronts.

A fight that takes knowledge to the grassroots and also draws from there.