Apart from spreading good health and cheer, the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon is also a hotbed for moving achiever stories. Deebashree Mohanty catches up with some people who are running for a humanitarian cause — some for their patients, some for their father and some to create awareness about organ donation after their son passed away suddenly, only to live in ‘another body’
The Airtel Delhi Half Marathon is all about heart warming stories. While Mamta Desai (23) is going to be a part of this marathon to finish a job her father had undertaken, tycoon Sanjeev Mehra is running so that his 6-year-old son can watch him live on TV! “My son has been diagnosed with cancer and he is going in for a second chemotherapy tomorrow. He was always interested in knowing what I do for a living. But he never understood the corporate lingo. For him, Shah Rukh Khan and Tom Cruise were the real men because they appeared on TV. I want him to consider me a hero as well. So, I am here,” Mehra who is an executive director of a well known MNC, says.
The much sought-after marathon is no longer just for health enthusiasts who come out in numbers to participate in a health event. It is also about people who are running for a cause. “My father, Prakash Kumar Desai, a jeweller, had run for this marathon last year. He was one among the many who ran past the finishing line. This year too, he wanted to be a part of this run but he has fractured his knee. I am running on his behalf. This is meant to surprise him on his birthday,” Mamta, a Delhi University student and a doting daughter, says. She has mobilised 20 other students from her college who will be running alongside her for support.
Gurgaon-based couple Arun and Mamta Jain are also running the marathon to spread awareness about organ donation in India. “My son passed away due to a severe asthma attack when he was 13. He died in front of us and we could do nothing to save him. In the same ward there was another patient’s mother weeping because her daughter needed a transplant. I decided there and then to donate my son’s organs. At least someone else will have a lease of life. Our child will be alive in another body,” Mamta, a homemaker, says. The couple will be running on behalf of ORGAN India, an initiative of the Parasher Foundation. “The biggest problem in India is that people are not aware of the benefits of organ donation. They think it is a taboo. But I am a living example of how it feels to be able to give life to someone else. We are running in the marathon because we believe in this cause,” she says.
While this couple is going in without any proper practise, there is another doctor couple from Vaishali Gardens, who have been practising for this marathon for a long time. Dr Aditya and Shilpa Gujrati, both consulting paedetricians, are supporting a noble cause.
“In the past year, we have witnessed 27 infant deaths due to non-developed brain facilities. It is the highest ever that we have dealt with. A major reason for this being that doctors are going in for a c- section at a very early stage. Through the half marathon, we want to get a message across loud and clear — gynaecologists please stop this mal practise. We want to win and dedicate the prize money towards spreading awareness,” Dr Aditya informs.
Max Hospital has also come up with an initiative called Run for Someone’. Max employees will run for a patient they are taking care of. A patient, who because of a medical condition can’t run, will have their treating doctor or nurse running on their behalf.