“Don’t let your waistline become a wasteland. Start Running!” – was the tagline of a recently held mini marathon on the campus of Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences, Sevagram. The marathon—held on 20th March 2016—was aimed at promoting a healthy lifestyle which has inarguably taken a back step these days.
Hundreds of faculty and students swapped their stethoscopes with sneakers and headbands and flocked together to participate in the event. Dr. OP Gupta, Emeritus Professor of Medicine and a staunch fitness supporter, signalled the start by waving the flag. The participants began running from the Indian coffee house of the campus—the starting point—drank fruit juices and energy drinks as they huffed and puffed to reach the Sevagram railway crossing—the finishing line. The 5K marathon tested the strength and endurance of the sprinters—a mix of total newbies and seasoned road warriors—as they ran through the finish line to break the tape.
Mr. Khalinborlong and Ms. Michelina bagged the gold medal; Mr. Tim and Ms. Manwatkar, the silver medal and Mr. Sanghai and Ms. Bhugra, the bronze medal. In addition, the winners also received attractive cash prizes. The organizers acknowledged the veterans and the students and gave them individual prizes.
“Doctors can play an instrumental role in promoting health, and the marathon is surely one of the means to do that,” said Dr. OP Gupta congratulating everyone. Mr. Deepak Katkade, a pre-final year medical student and the organizer of the event was visibly pleased and thrilled with the success of the event and said, “I am happy to see so many people ready to kick off the sedentary lifestyle and accept the healthier one.” “I can’t thank enough all the philanthropic partners (Dr. Gulhane, Dr. Salankar, Dr. Khatana, Dr. Ghorpade, Dr. Bade, Dr. Kharat and Dr. Akulwar) for stepping forward to fund the event,” he added. He also thanked his teachers for supporting the event.