By OUR STAFF REPORTER
DEHRADUN, 25 Sep: Extending support to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Fit India Movement’, University of Petroleum and Energy Sciences organised the ‘Marathon 2019’ for its students and faculty. The 8 kilometre run was organised by the School of Business (SOB), UPES, between the Kandoli & Bidholi Campuses of the University on 22 September. The Chief Operations Officer of ‘Waste Warriors’, Avinash Pratap Singh was the ‘Chief Guest’. Dr Githa Heggde – Dean, SOB, UPES, flagged off the Marathon that saw enthusiastic participation by over 250 students and faculty members of the University. The ‘Marathon 2019’ was the outcome of the ‘Fit India Movement’ launched on National Sports Day on 29 August. The ‘Say No to Plastic’ theme was added additionally to support the Prime Minister’s ‘Swacch Bharat Abhiyan’. A team of 42 members including Student Volunteers and Staff assisted the event coordinated by SOB faculty members Dr Atul Razdan, Dr Ratna Banerjee and Dr Vipul Sharma. Dr Atul Razdan is an ‘Ultra Marathon’ runner who recently represented India in the ‘Comrades 2018’ marathon in South Africa winning a Bronze Medal by completing the 91 km run in 11 hours. “The activity focused on sensitising the local community on their responsibilities towards development of a sustainable environment as well as to motivate the youth to adopt physical fitness exercises in their daily routine for their overall well being,” stated Dr Githa Heggde. All participants were administered an oath by Dr Razdan whereby they pledged to work to keep themselves fit and to contribute towards a plastic free India. The youngest participant was aged 12 while the eldest was 55 years old. The marathon was planned especially on a Sunday morning to ensure that the participants were exposed to a minimum of traffic obstructions on the route. Six ‘Aid Stations’ were set up along the marathon route to provide water, glucose and medical aid to the participants. Later, Chief Guest Avinash Pratap Singh, Dr Githa Heggde and Arun Dhand jointly presented Medals & Certificates to the winners at the ‘Prize Distribution Ceremony’ held soon after the completion of the run. The winners in the ‘Students Category – Male’ were Aryan Singh Tawar; Nivedhan Nirendiran; Deepak Bisht; Mehtab Singh Dhaliwal and Saksham Choudhary, while Arya Verma; Ritu Rawat; Parul Dwivedi; Payal Singh and Tina Dhanush Kumar claimed podium finishes amongst the ‘Students Category – Female’. Amongst the ‘Faculty & Staff Category’, Dr Vipul Sharma; Dr Upananda Pani and Ashutosh Tripathi were the winners, while the Staff – Male medals were won by Rahul Kumar; Nirbhay Kumar; Ankit; Ritik Singh and Sunny, while the Staff – Female medals went to Kala Gusain; Dr Veena Krishnan and Poonam. Special Prizes for the ‘Youngest Participants’ went to Arnav Banerjee in the ‘Male’ category and Adya Dwivedi in the ‘Female’ category.
