Bhubaneswar: A travel enthusiast has taken up a cycle expedition covering over 2,000km with a view to strengthening the emotional bond between Odisha and Maharashtra.

A doctor by profession, Ramchandra Chavan, completed the journey from Malvan to Konark in 20 days.

Reahcing his final destination on Thursday, Chavan was ecstatic. "I entered Odisha from Sohela in Bargarh. Thereby, I crossed a number of places, including Sambalpur, Angul and Bhubaneswar. The state is really beautiful, and I was mesmerised by its natural beauty," said the 41-year-old cyclist. The journey was challenging, he admitted. "Whenever there was a problem you had to solve it by yourself. But, I am really thankful to the Odisha government, which helped me a lot during the journey," he said.

He said: "When I go back to my state, I am going to touch the feet of the elders instead of just folding hands and doing namaskar. People here give a lot of respect to the elders, and it is really heart warming."

The cyclist also has plans to take up an expedition from Singapore to New Delhi, along with his friends, to pay tribute to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. The state government is taking a number of initiatives to promote bonding between the two states as a part of the Centre's scheme "Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat" scheme, where Odisha have been paired with Maharashtra.

"The aim is to enhance understanding and bonding between each other, thereby strengthening the unity and integrity of India. We have plans to host more such events this year under the joint aegis of both the states," said tourism director Nitin Jawale.

The state government will also host the Odisha Festival in Maharashtra in near future. "We have translated few books from Marathi to Odia to promote literature of both the states," said Jawale.

A group of 16 cyclists had come all the way from Maharashtra to experience the culture, traditions and practices of Odisha last year. As a part of the exchange programme, cyclists from Odisha have plans to travel to the partner state in October.

A folk festival to promote art forms of both the states had been hosted in Bhubaneswar in March last year.

Tree-cutter held

Police on Thursday arrested a man on the charge of trespassing into Bhitarkanika National Park to fell mangrove trees. The accused, Baburam Sarakar, a native of Bagapatia village, was arrested when he was cutting down trees in the Sunerupei forested area.