The man who moved a mountian

Dashrath Manjhi, famously known as the ‘Mountain Man of India’, was born in 1934. He grew up in Gehlor village, Bihar.

Manjhi spent every hour working as an impoverished day laborer. But his life changed in 1959, when his wife fell to her death off a cliff. With the nearest clinic 70km away, Manjhi was forced to watch her die.

For decades, this dangerous terrain had also divided local settlements from essential services, so Manjhi took matters into his own hands. He decided to cut down the mountain himself.

People laughed at him when he started the work, but he continued with his work for 22 years, using only a chisel and a hammer. And in 1982, the 360-foot path was finally finished. It allowed for car transportation, reduced commutes by kilometers, and ultimately made the hills a safer place to live.

While working to make a way between mountains, he developed cancer in his gall bladder, which led to his death at AIIMS Delhi. He died on 17 August 2007, and received a state funeral from the Government of Bihar.