By Taniya Naorem

Surpassing the expectations of women on many occasions, Gerinda Loitongbam a 25 year old young woman from Lalambung Makhong Takhellambam Leikai has claimed the title of the first woman in North East to reach Umlingla on her motorbike.

Speaking to this reporter, Gerinda shared that she started on September 5 and reached Umlingla on September 22 establishing the fact that women are equal to men and has proved it time and again.

Mentioning that her mother and family have always extended moral, emotional, and financial support to any initiative she has taken in her life, she gave the credit for her achievement to her family and the Manager of Jawa Showroom Kunan.

Sharing that her journey had included a long and treacherous journey of around 5000km during the monsoon season, Gerinda said that she felt near death experiences as the road was very dangerous.

Gerinda expressed her excitement and happiness when she completed her journey as she had fulfilled her dream to reach Umlingla as a biker. She crossed multiple states including Manipur, Nagaland, Assam, West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Punjab, Srinagar, Leh, Umingla.

Lamenting that her journey included all types of roads from muddy, rocky to big asphalt highways to steep and hairpins to many small n big river crossings. She did have difficulty riding through all these terrains specially at heights when the air was thin and at night when visibility was low. Yet she managed to reach her destination safely and sound. Fortunately, her two wheeler too didn’t have any major issues and carried her all the way.

It can be mentioned that her long journey is not new to her and has already completed a solo drive from Imphal to Delhi on a four wheeler.

Gerinda expressed that Manipur being a patriarchal society, she had studied all the circumstances before the start of her journey however with her sheer determination and willpower to fulfill her dreams, she has chosen to look on the bright side rather than to let her be affected by the negative comments people have thrown on her.

Lastly, she advised the youths to follow their dreams and not to give up no matter the consequences and also appealed to the parents to support their children in following their dreams. She said that nowadays there is no difference between a girl and a boy and there is nothing which a girl cannot achieve.

The mother of Gerinda, Loitongbam Somi expressed her happiness and her contempt for the success of her daughter. She shared that her daughter is a confident woman with a zeal to fulfill her dream. She stated that she would support any initiative and dreams of her daughter. She conveyed that daughters must not be considered a burden and that they are equal as a man and hoped that parents will support their children’s dreams.

It can be mentioned that Gerinda is the second of three siblings and on January 28, 2019, she embarked on her solo journey armed with a Mobile operated GPS on her car driving alone from Imphal to Delhi at a car at a distance of almost 2,400 km. She had no idea about the challenging terrain she would be encountering on the way.

She took a total of six days to reach the capital and spread awareness at schools along the way on “Crime Against Women” to focus more on gender equality and not really aimed at suggesting gender superiority. Gerinda was conferred the National Women Excellence Award by the National Academy for Art Education, a group based in Pune, Maharashtra.

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