Trio walk 1,050 km to hoist flag in Mumbai

A unique journey that started almost a month ago in another part of the country is about to culminate in the city. Three people walked a daunting distance of 1,050 kilometres to hoist the national flag in Mumbai.

The trio -- Vijay Rao (31), Manaram Kadela (59) and Rameshwar Gurjar (32) -- are from a group called Yuva Shakti Sangathan. They started their journey from the Shaheed-e-Azam Bhagat Singh statue in the city of Jodhpur on September 1.

Have feet, will walk: (From left to right) Rameshwar Gurjar, Vijay Rao, and Manaram Kadela are in the city to hoist a flag at the Gateway of India on the birth anniversary of Bhagat Singh

Their journey ends at Mumbai on September 28, when they will hoist the tricolour at the Gateway of India, in honour of Bhagat Singh's birthday.

But, that is not the only significance. By hoisting the flag, the trio also wants to commemorate the victims of the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai.
According to them, the hoisting of the flag at the Gateway is a symbolic gesture to terrorists that Indians are not afraid of them. It's a warning not to enter the country again, they said.

They are currently at Shivaji Park in Dadar, where they will go on a fast (without food and water). "By fasting for a day in the park, we wish to mark the birth anniversary of Bhagat Singh," said Rao.

Yuva Shakti Sangathan, a group from Jodhpur, encourages the youth to get involved in social work and serve people, like Bhagat Singh did.

The group has organised blood donation camps, and also collected funds for those affected by floods and earthquakes. "We believe and respect Singh for his immense dedication to the country, without having any expectations from his countrymen," explained Kadela.

The group has sent invitation letters to top ministers of the country, and also to Bollywood personalities to join them for the flag hoisting.

On being asked whether they expected the invited personalities to show up, Gurjar replied, "We are not here for publicity. We welcome all, and we will hoist the flag and continue as per our pre-decided schedule. However, it would be great if the actors gave respect to Singh not only in reel life, but also in real life."

Encouraging the youth
>> Yuva Shakti Sangathan, a group from Jodhpur, encourages the youth to get involved in social work and serve people, like Bhagat Singh did.
>> The group has organised blood donation camps, and also collected funds for those affected by floods and earthquakes. u00a0