Run On

This Sunday,as part of the Nurses Week celebrations,Fortis Hospital organised Fortis Nurses Marathon,which was flagged off from Sukhna Lake at 6 am and ended at the Rock Garden. A part of a series of events,the run,in which around 100 nurses participated,was dedicated to the marathon fight against diseases. “This marathon is a message to people to avoid diseases by refraining from smoking and remaining fit through regular exercise like walking and jogging,” says Col Harinder Singh Chehal,director of the Hospital.

Prayaas,an NGO of Infosys Technologies,also got the city on the move this Sunday with iRUN 2010 at Sukhna Lake. The idea was to create awareness on environmental issues. The four-km-run,says Abhishek Goyal,was meant to create public awareness about saving our earth,water,air and run for a better world. “A marathon is a tried and tested way to create a buzz and reach a wider audience,” he says.

Rahul Verghese of Running and Living,who organises marathons on his own as well as in collaboration with the Chandigarh administration, feels Chandigarh is one of the best places to run. He encourages others to be a part of fun marathons,which are also good for health. At Running and Living,the goal is to get 200 million people running for good health. The number of people suffering from cardiac,diabetic and hypertensive ailments is high in India,and Verghese believes running is a simple,egalitarian way to help. “We try and make our runs fun,so that people would like to come back again. We also get hospitals to associate with us and have their doctors provide information on the health benefits of running,” he adds. “Where else would you get to start from a Rock Garden and run via beautiful gardens,flat wide roads,past the Rose Garden and a lake,two Governors’ Raj Bhawans and through a golf course?” he says.

In the past,Dr Shakuntala Lavasa has talked about how running strengthens the body against allergies,Dr Satbir Singh had a session on preventing injuries while running while Dr Arun Kochar,a cardiologist spoke about the benefits of running for the heart and in lowering blood sugar. Verghese says the runs are a great way to link with other running groups across the country,make new friends and learn to coach others.

Recently,women turned out in large numbers to participate in the city’s first ever Carmel Ex Students Association (CESA) Parabolic All Girls Mini Marathon. CESA has encouraged women’s participation in all walks of life. For this marathon,it sponsored a group of 50 underprivileged girls from the NGO Hamari Kaksha. As many as 600 participants joined in the 5.8 km run at Sukhna Lake,and as Dr Navita Mahajan,president of CESA quipped,“the overwhelming response reiterated the idea behind giving girls an opportunity to showcase their talent and encourage sports among Chandigarhians.’’