“Run, Forrest, Run!” 

No, I’m not going to talk about Forrest Gump here! But I’m just taking the reference of “running”. And I’m going to share with you all how we, the UIPL family participated in a recently organized marathon and enjoyed the event throughout the day. 

A Quick Sneak Peek to “Green Marathon”

The SBI, our nation-wide renowned Public Sector Bank organized a “Green Marathon” across 15 different cities in India. And it had its Kolkata edition on 23rd February 2020. Radio Mirchi 98.3 FM, another renowned brand of the nation took the initiative of this one of the biggest marathon events in the “City of Joy”. 

Venue Details of the Event: Eco Park Gate 1, AA II, Deshbandhu Nagar, Newtown, Kolkata

If you have followed our blog archive, you are probably already aware that at UIPL, we do not always work only. We believe in the “work smart, party hard” motto. So, we arrange games, employee outings, competitions with fun-filled activities, and take part in different events around the city whenever possible. 

Thus, when we got to know about this big marathon event, our management instantly decided to be a part of it. 

The Greater Cause Behind The Event

“The greener future” – we all dream about it, right? A cleaner environment, a greener city, breathing fresh year – all these seem like a fiction in today’s busy world. Pollution and global warming are always in the limelight. These issues are always in the headlines!

Now, in such chaos and amidst so much of negativity, when an event is organized to promote a “greener future”, how can we not be a part of it? 

Yes, the main objective of organizing the “Green Marathon” is showing our commitment towards the greener and fresher environment and sustainable development. And this was indeed a “zero-waste” event. And being the responsible citizens, we took part in it. 

Also, if I were to flaunt how physical activities like running can help us, I would have come up with a long list of benefits. Not only better physical health but our finer mental health, enriched soul, personal development – everything comes from physical activities like running. And not to forget, there is fun too. 

The Event Day

Usually, in Kolkata, shivering cold is not an issue in February and that too around the third week of the month. But this year, it was a bit of an exception. And the “Global Warming” caused by us only was one of the main reasons behind it. 

However, beating the “not-so-freezing” cold, we all reached the venue within the reporting time i.e. 5:45 AM. 

Different Running Categories

Well, the entire marathon event had different categories based on the total distance to be covered. The three different categories were:

1. 21 km
2. 10 km
3. 5 km

And for different categories the reporting time and the flag off time were different. 

Our UIPL family participated in the 5 km marathon. So, our reporting time and flag off time were 5:45 AM and 6:45 AM respectively. 

A Glimpse of the Ambiance

You will be amazed to know that around 7,500 participants came that day to participate along with us. Even if it was Sunday, people from different backgrounds and different ages came together to pledge for a greener future.

A gold medalist of the Asian Games, an IPS officer, the first Bengali mountaineer too came to participate. So, from the very beginning, we all felt so energized to see so many enthusiastic and energetic faces around us. 

And the event organizing partners just nailed it. The arrangements were huge. Every participant got t-shirts. And you know what all the t-shirts were organic. The main objective was to promote a greener and cleaner city. And the bibs we all got there consisted of seeds for tree plantation. Sounds cool right? 

Source: https://ibgnews.com

Also, on every checkpoint, there were water stations. It is not like everyone can start and finish maintaining the same pace. So, keeping that in mind, there were enough water stations. 

And we got mouth-watering food packets as well after the marathon was over.

How Our UIPL Team Performed There 

Well, even though we clicked a lot of photos together and enjoyed ourselves before starting the marathon and post-marathon while running, not every one of us was together! 

One of our developers put on his headphones to listen to some kickass music while running. Another developer was fully concentrating on the run! I’m sure rest performed well too because all of them got their medals! 

You will be amazed to know that each of our superwomen at the office, who participated that day, completed the entire 5 km run within the allotted time too. 

So, yes, after that kind of achievement, we all want to flaunt our medals! 

The Feeling of Achievement

Well, it is not like every one of us regularly exercise (which is not a very good thing though!). To some extent, our busy lifestyle is kind of responsible for that. Still, when we got an opportunity like this, we could not afford to miss it.

See, how the happy faces look! Being able to be a part of a greater and better cause, we all are very happy indeed. And the feeling of an accomplished achievement is clearly visible in our faces! 

And of course, we all will plant the seed we got. And if you have reached this far while reading, I would like to request you too that please plant more trees. Also, encourage people to do so and make your city greener, cleaner, and a better place to live. 

Wrapping Up

So, this was our story to make this world a better place even if it is a tiny one. But to reach a goal, you need to start taking your steps right?

At UIPL, we always encourage this type of activity. Also, such gatherings help us to make our network stronger. Meeting new people comes with new opportunities. Thinking in this way helps us to grow together. 

We don’t want to be the “Jack”, who is a “dull boy”! So, both work and play are important to us. 

Well, that was all for our “Green Marathon” day out. I will keep you posted about our next events too. Till then you can follow us for any technology and development-related news, updates, releases, and guides.