Five bikers from across India toured Calcutta on Tuesday with a mission to convince young voters to vote. The group, named Vande Maatram, set off on a 15,000km rally from Mumbai on March 15 and plans to visit the capitals of all 29 states by April 26.

They reached Calcutta on Monday and will leave for Assam on Wednesday morning.The bikes — four Royal Enfield Bullets and a Hero Honda Karizma — displayed slogans such as ‘Every one should vote’, ‘Just Vote or Don’t Quote’ (left) and ‘Bad politicians are not born, they are created’. The youths interacted with people outside Victoria Memorial and South City Mall and with students of Jadavpur University.

The campaign is an initiative of Bharadwaj Dayala, who has toured 16 countries in five continents on his Hero Honda Karizma. “Our aim is to make young voters understand the importance of their participation in elections,” said Christopher Nadar (the pillion rider on his bike is a local guide).