At 112 years old, Saalumarada Thimmakka’s health is declining, yet her contributions to India’s environment endure. This inspirational woman devoted her life to planting trees, transforming barren lands into lush forests. Although rumors circulated that Thimmakka passed away, her adopted son confirms she still clings to life. While her fate remains uncertain, Thimmakka’s legacy is evergreen.
Born in 1910, Thimmakka overcame poverty and the inability to bear children by nurturing thousands of trees as her own offspring. Alongside her husband, she transported water over 4 kilometers daily to nourish her beloved saplings. Through eight decades of steadfast commitment, Thimmakka cultivated 385 banyan trees and over 8,000 other species, gifting verdant green canopies that provide clean air, shade and beauty for generations to enjoy.
Who is Saalumarada Thimmakka?
Thimmakka’s early years contained no hint of the importance she would attain. Born in the Kingdom of Mysore under British colonial rule, she received no formal education. After marrying Chikkaiah, Thimmakka labored carrying rocks at a quarry in her village of Hulikal.
The couple dreamed of children, but remained childless. Seeking solace, Thimmakka and Chikkaiah began nurturing banyan tree saplings as their own offspring. Transporting water in pots hanging from Shoulder poles, they tenderly nourished the baby trees, protecting them from cattle with thorn fences.
As the trees flourished, row upon row, Thimmakka earned the nickname “Saalumarada,” meaning “a row of trees” in Kannada. Devoting decades to her mission of afforestation, Thimmakka transformed barren wastelands into shaded groves and inspired massive reforestation efforts across India.
Saalumarada Thimmakka is still Alive Now or Not in 2023?
In recent years, Saalumarada Thimmakka’s health has steadily declined. She was hospitalized for severe breathing difficulties two months ago. Although rumors circulated on social media that Thimmakka passed away, her adopted son Umesh confirmed she is still alive and responding to treatment.
Now 112 years old, India’s legendary “Tree Mother” remains under close observation in the ICU as doctors manage her respiratory issues. Her advanced age limits medical interventions, posing challenges in stabilizing her condition. Yet Thimmakka continues clinging to life, matching the perseverance of the trees she nurtured.
While her fate hangs in the balance, one fact is certain – Saalumarada Thimmakka’s legacy as India’s pioneering eco-feminist crusader will endure far beyond her mortal lifespan. The forests she birthed continue sheltering travelers and nurturing ecosystems, representing her timeless gifts to the nation.
How Has Thimmakka’s Environmental Work Been Recognized?
Despite lacking formal education or resources, Saalumarada Thimmakka’s grassroots conservation efforts attracted enormous national and international acclaim.
In 1995, Thimmakka was honored with the prestigious National Citizen’s Award of India, recognizing her service to the environment. Government forest agencies assumed responsibility for maintaining the trees Thimmakka planted across over 45 kilometers of highway.
India bestowed its highest civilian award, the Padma Shri, upon Thimmakka in 2019, when she was 108 years old. Her work inspired the California based non-profit Thimmakka’s Resources for Environmental Education. BBC named her among 2016’s 100 most influential global women.
As Thimmakka approached her 111th birthday in June 2022, environmentalists lobbied for her stretch of highway to be designated a conservation reserve. The Karnataka government gifted Thimmakka land where her legacy would be commemorated.
Through these honors, India expresses deep gratitude towards Thimmakka for beautifying landscapes and spearheading eco-feminism by tenaciously nurturing trees as living symbols of the value of girls and women.
What Does Thimmakka Represent for Women and the Environment?
In rural India, social norms considered women incomplete without children and denied girls access to education. By nurturing trees as her children and “green friends,” Thimmakka subverted gender expectations. Her quiet dedication to nurturing new life through planting trees ascribes dignity and purpose to childless women.
Thimmakka pioneered eco-feminism, drawing intimate connections between human flourishing, gender equity and environmental protection. She exemplified how impoverished, uneducated girls possess enormous potential to better their communities and planet when afforded agency over their lives and bodies.
Despite the labor-intensive challenges of hauling water across kilometers daily, Thimmakka persisted in her mission through eight decades, inspired by love for the saplings she considered her children. Her light-hearted spirit won admiration across social barriers.
While India grapples with development compromising ecological sustainability, Thimmakka modeled harmonious coexistence between human needs and nature’s limits. Her simple, small-scale grassroots activism, sustained through grit and love, catalyzed enormous positive change. Thimmakka represents the power within every girl to make her world greener.
What Is Thimmakka’s Lasting Legacy?
While Saalumarada Thimmakka’s life may soon end, her legacy persists as a shining inspiration. The towering trees Thimmakka nurtured continue providing ecological services and aesthetic beauty to communities she transformed. Less tangible, but equally enduring, is the inspiration she breathed into India’s environmental consciousness.
Thimmakka proved that humble roots need not limit horizons or dampen dreams of changing the world for the better. Her vision to turn barren wastelands into shaded, fruit-bearing orchards manifested through steady, simple work completed with loving care. She desired no money, fame or recognition. Her reward was joy and fulfillment.
Thimmakka expanded India’s imagination of who could be an environmental crusader. Like the fruits borne by the trees she cultivated, her model of eco-feminism seeds hope in the hearts of girls and women seeking purpose. By simply doing small acts of nurturing with great love daily, Thimmakka achieved monumental feats.
When the time comes for India’s beloved Tree Mother to return to the earth that nurtured her, Saalumarada Thimmakka’s enduring legacy will continue spreading roots and soaring upwards, gracing future generations with the verdant canopy of her life’s work. Thetrees she planted across mother India amount to an ever-regenerating living monument to the power within every girl to change the world through small acts of love.
Saalumarada Thimmakka Death News Rumors – FAQs
1. What is Saalumarada Thimmakka’s current age?
Saalumarada Thimmakka is reportedly around 112 years old as of 2023. She was born in 1910 in the Kingdom of Mysore region of India.
2. Has Saalumarada Thimmakka passed away?
No, recent rumors that Saalumarada Thimmakka has died are false. As of October 2023, she is still alive and hospitalized but recovering.
3. Why did rumors spread about Thimmakka’s death?
Due to Thimmakka’s very advanced age and hospitalization for breathing issues, some social media posts spread the inaccurate news that she had died. Her son clarified she is still alive.
4. Where is Thimmakka hospitalized currently?
As of October 2023, 112-year-old Saalumarada Thimmakka is hospitalized in Bengaluru, India where she is receiving treatment and recovering.
5. Is Thimmakka alive Now?
Yes, as of October 2023, Saalumarada Thimmakka is still alive at the estimated age of 112 years old. She is currently hospitalized but recovering and responding to treatment.
6. What is Thimmakka’s son Umesh saying about her health status?
Her adopted son Umesh has clarified that contrary to rumors, Saalumarada Thimmakka is alive and responding to treatment currently as she recovers in the hospital.
