A Run to Walk

Mummy, you need not carry me to school any more, I can walk by myself,” — Little Nikhil told his mother, wiping the tears of joy that rolled down her cheeks. Nikhil and many more orthopaedically challenged can stand on their own feet, thanks to the Jaipur Foot Centre, a project of RC ­Bombay Worli, RI District 3140 and their ­service partner Ratna Nidhi Charitable Trust. The Centre provides Jaipur Foot and other mobility appliances such as crutches, wheel chairs and callipers to enable mobility and independence.

To raise awareness and promote this endeavour, the club members along with the Trust and Team Agni, a group of athletes associated with the club for the cause, participated in the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon (SCMM).

To understand the pain of the physically challenged, some ­participants ‘put themselves in their shoes,’ and walked the 6-km Dream Run using crutches.

Commenting on the experience, club President Kiran Vora said, “I used crutches when I had fractured my leg a few years ago, but that was different. Walking on crutches for so long is quite painful.” Few physically challenged people using various mobility aids including Jaipur Foot also participated, providing inspiration to many.

The event fetched around Rs 4.5 lakh through registration fees.