Bittu Tabahi, who recently went viral for cleaning MP's polluted Ajnar River, has taken his cleanliness mission to Bengaluru. He led a 100-member team in removing waste from Turahalli Forest near Kanakapura Road. The team used gloves, masks, spades and a JCB, while a recycling truck carried away rubbish. Bengaluru residents supported the drive.
Bittu Tabahi, the 20-year-old cleanliness campaigner who recently drew widespread attention for cleaning the heavily polluted Ajnar River in Madhya Pradesh, has now taken his mission to Karnataka's Bengaluru. The young campaigner, whose real name is Surendra Singh Choudhry, led a team of around 100 people in a clean-up drive at Turahalli Forest, located about 20 km from Bengaluru off Kanakapura Road.
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100 people help Bittu Tabahi in Turahalli Forest clean-up
Bittu documented the clean-up in an Instagram video, showing members of his team working through areas filled with discarded waste.
Wearing gloves and masks, the volunteers collected all the garbage and packed it into sacks. Some members used spades to dig into the ground and remove waste that had accumulated below the surface.
A JCB was also brought in to clear sections where garbage had gone deeper into the soil. Once collected, the waste was loaded onto a recycling truck and taken away from the forest.
Bittu said his aim was not limited to cleaning one location. He has been travelling to different states to spread awareness about keeping public spaces clean.
“I have been travelling to different states to spread awareness about my cleanliness drive,” Bittu said in the video.
Bengaluru residents join Bittu's mission
Bittu said people in Bengaluru supported his latest cleanliness drive and joined him in clearing waste from the forest.
The effort also received encouraging reactions on social media. The Instagram account 4cleanindia commented, “We got this together! It was lovely meeting you bhai.”
The Indian Garage also thanked Bittu for joining its 500K clean-up drive at Turahalli Forest, describing his participation as something that made the milestone memorable.
Other users praised his work with comments such as 'Clean India', 'Respect bro', 'Thanks from Bangalore' and 'Bahut achcha kam kar rahe ho bhai' (you are doing a good job).
From Ajnar River to a wider clean-up mission
Bittu became widely known online after spending months cleaning the Ajnar River. He repeatedly removed plastic, discarded waste and other rubbish from the river and shared videos and before-and-after pictures of the transformation.
His work was largely carried out on his own rather than as part of a large government campaign or formal environmental programme. He also funded basic supplies himself and repeatedly returned to the river to continue the clean-up.
His efforts later attracted the attention of The Ocean Cleanup, founded by Dutch environmentalist Boyan Slat, which offered him a job.
After receiving the offer, Bittu shared another video thanking people for supporting his journey. He also asked his followers to suggest which state he should visit next as he continued his cleanliness mission.
