The Tata Mumbai Marathon (TMM) is the largest marathon in Asia as well as the largest mass participation sporting event on the continent, bringing thousands of professional athletes, runners and charity volunteers on a common platform to race towards victory and to sprint towards making lives better. Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care has had a stellar run at the TMM for over a decade, resulting in it being the Highest Fundraising NGO for 10 consecutive years. In the process, it has raised funds for its multiple charity initiatives including the 250-bed Shrimad Rajchandra Hospital and Research Centre and Shrimad Rajchandra Vidyapeeth. Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care has also been an inspiration for many other NGOs to raise funds for long-term, sustainable and impactful projects; contributing immensely to creating and nurturing a culture of compassion.
Race-Day
The bright morning of 15th January saw over 1,300 Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care volunteers and supporters put on their running shoes for the six km Dream Run of the TMM 2023. This year’s novel theme was ‘Lights, Camera, Compassion!’, which was showcased through volunteers wearing innovative costumes such as a camera, film reel, studio lights etc. The theme emphasised that amidst the darkness in the lives of the less-privileged, Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care provides the light of hope; understands and captures each of their critical needs, akin to a camera; and puts compassion into action. These creative and bold costumes fetched Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care the first prize in the ‘Imagica Run-In Costume’ contest.
The Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care Motivational Zone was a sought-after place along the iconic Marine Drive as several runners and on-lookers participated in the activities. A pulsating music and dance performance by youth volunteers was received with admiration and applause by the crowd. Children from Shrimad Rajchandra Divinetouch added to the festive spirit through their acts.
Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care had the support of 31 corporates including Sun Pharma, Reliance Industries, Pidilite Industries, Aditya Birla Group, Viacom18 etc., fielding in a total of 41 corporate teams. The consistent and unwavering support is truly demonstrative of the faith that Corporate India reposes in Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care and its activities. Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care also had an enthusiastic and passionate team of over 40 individual fundraisers at the event.
Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care’s participation at TMM was covered by media like The Times of India, Hindustan Times, The Free Press Journal, Mumbai Samachar, Janmabhoomi, Divya Bhaskar, News18 Lokmat etc. It was also invited to discuss about its initiatives at the pre-event press conference as one of the leading NGOs.
The Cause
At TMM 2023, Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care walked to raise funds for the construction of the upcoming Shrimad Rajchandra Animal Hospital at Dharampur, which will be a state-of-the-art facility in the rural belt of South Gujarat. With a capacity of treating 150 animals at a time, this multi-speciality animal hospital will house facilities such as X-ray and sonography machines, separate operation theatres for small and large animals, an Intensive Care Unit, amongst others.
Besides this, the supporters also walked for the cause of women empowerment; to raise funds for the construction of the Shrimad Rajchandra Centre of Excellence for Women. This 54,000 sq. ft. facility at Dharampur will provide employment to hundreds of tribal women by increasing the manufacturing capacity of snacks and aromatic products, and will provide holistic development opportunities too.
With the grace of Param Krupalu Dev and blessings of Pujya Gurudevshri, TMM 2023 was yet another significant opportunity for Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care to spread awareness of its initiatives and to further its benevolent objectives.