27th March, 2019, Bengaluru: Renowned ultra-marathoner and the co-founder of Bengaluru-based running club, Proton Sports, Mr. Dharmendra Kumar (also known as Dharma) has begun his cross-country charity run to promote the cause of Hunger-Free India and spread smiles of nourishment. The charity run was flagged off on Sunday, 17th March, 2019, from Sultanpur Lodhi in Punjab. Along the route, he will spread awareness about The Akshaya Patra Foundation and raise funds to feed the Foundation’s beneficiary children.
Over the next six months, Mr. Dharmendra Kumar will be running across India on the route followed by Shri Guru Nanak Devji when he toured the country for his missionary journeys (Udasiya). Mr. Kumar said, “As a part of the 550th birth anniversary celebration of Shri Guru Nanak Dev Ji, I am running his 2 udasis across India. Inspired by Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s message Kirat karo, Naam japo, and Vand Chhako (meaning do your sincere labour, pray to God, and share among needy), I have taken up the cause of Hunger Free India.” He further added, “I aim to raise funds to feed 1 million (10 lakhs) children supported by Akshaya Patra. I hope people across the world and especially India will donate generously to this cause.”
Mr. Kumar will be covering 70-75 Km every day and cover over 12,000 km. He has planned this charity run in two phases. In Udasi 1, which is the first phase, he will start from Sultanpur Lodhi and cover approximately 5,500 km over a period of 2.5 months. Over the course of this phase, he will be passing through major towns of North, Central, and Eastern India such as Ludhiana, Panipat, Delhi, Allahabad, Varanasi, Gaya, Guwahati, Dibrugarh, Shillong, Imphal, Kolkata, Cuttack, Bhubaneswar, Puri, Jhansi, Gwalior, Agra, Gurgaon, and return to Sultanpur Lodhi. In Udasi 2, the second phase, he will cover the rest of India.
Mr. Shridhar Venkat, CEO of Akshaya Patra, thanked Mr. Dharmendra Kumar for his support to the organisation’s vision: No child in India shall be deprived of education because of hunger. Mr. Venkat also said “We are glad that Mr Kumar expressed his interest in spreading the word about Akshaya Patra in his charity run and encouraging young and skilled individuals to support our cause with their talents. It is important to note that community involvement is essential when we are working to serve children across the country.”