CG teacher sets Guinness World Record cycling 6,000 km along golden quadrilateral in 24 days

Raipur: A govt primary school teacher from Chhattisgarh turned India's most iconic highway network into a platform for social change, cycling nearly 6,000 km along the Golden Quadrilateral to spread messages of clean air, addiction-free living, and better public health. What began as a personal choice evolved into a nationwide awareness campaign, powered by a single bicycle and an unyielding sense of purpose. The story revolves around 43-year-old Santosh Gupta, a teacher posted at govt primary school, Sulpha, in Mungeli district since 2011. In the classroom, Gupta teaches science and social studies. On the road, his lessons are about climate responsibility, discipline, and healthy living. Wearing a helmet and riding with a small tricolour attached to his handlebar, he has become a familiar and striking sight on highways—an ordinary citizen demonstrating extraordinary resolve.Over the past few years, Gupta quietly transformed himself from an everyday educator into an ultra-cyclist and grassroots campaigner, proving that impactful movements need not begin in corridors of power.His latest mission traces the Golden Quadrilateral, approximately 6,000-km highway network connecting Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and Kolkata. Starting from central India, Gupta rode through multiple states, often covering over 200 km a day, battling intense summer heat, heavy traffic near major cities, and long, desolate highway stretches where trucks were his only companions after sunset. The journey demanded both physical endurance and mental resilience. Unlike organised endurance events, Gupta's ride was entirely self-supported. He carried basic essentials on his cycle and relied on roadside dhabas, fuel stations, and small eateries to rest, eat, and refill water. Each halt doubled as an outreach point. Curious onlookers—truck drivers, daily wage labourers, policemen, and children—would gather, and Gupta would use those moments to talk about pollution, substance abuse, and the simple but powerful benefits of cycling."Looking at rising pollution, lifestyle diseases, and the growing number of road accidents, I decided in 2021 to make cycling an integral part of my life," Gupta told TOI. "I resolved to use a bicycle as my main mode of transport and to use it as a tool to create awareness."In 2024, Gupta cycled from Jammu to Leh–Ladakh, including the treacherous ascent to Khardung La, the world's highest motorable pass, carrying messages of "Save Nature" and a drug-free India to some of the country's most remote regions."In 2025, I completed the Golden Quadrilateral in just over 24 days, setting a Guinness World Record and surpassing the previous mark of 27 days," he said.