This year, my travel miles are fast building up, sans carbon emitting flights, via mass public transport (bus and train) and car pooling with friends. We are in February and I’ve already visited the forests of Devrukh, Marleshwar and Malvan in Maharashtra, the white desert of Kutch, and recently the dense forests of Dangs, in Gujarat.

During these excursions and local journeys, my eyes are glued to the landscape, scanning every feature within them. I observe the conditions of the rivers and lakes, bus stands, vegetable and cloth markets, school or residential campuses and the extent and type of garbage that is scattered around. My eyes are especially drawn to the level of greenery and hygiene of the region. I look for colony gardens and what people are growing in their balconies and even the semi-rural plantations around towns.