Mitra Run is a 5k run by Eka Educational & Charitable Trust. It is an inclusive event, where anyone can participate including people from all ages and disabilities.

I participated in Mitra Run for the first time. I didn’t know much about the run, but just knew that it involved running 5 kilo meters in Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore (IIM-B) campus. In fact, I signed up mainly to visit the campus of IIM-B.

As I went there, I met a lot of volunteers and teachers from Eka Educational Institute. I also volunteered and helped them with a few tasks, like creating name badges for volunteers, arranging chairs, etc. I was pleasantly surprised to see disabled people, even those in a wheel chair participate. I also saw many mentally challenged kids coming to the venue.

For the 5k run, we had to do 5 laps of one kilometers each in the beautiful IIM-B campus. Running amidst corridors of tree cover made it a wonderful experience. The IIM-B campus is very beautiful and it consisted of well architected minimalistic buildings with a lot of open space. The walls are long and wide and they are covered with a lot of creepers. The marked forests between buildings make the campus extremely pretty.

During the run, I saw a few disabled people in their wheelchair helped by their friends and family. I also saw kids from Eka (many of them are specially challenged) running the 5k. They were being encouraged by volunteers. These kids, despite their challenges were running quite fast and are setting better pace than the occasional runners like me. There are also people running with a walking stick/stand. All of them are determined to complete the 5 kilometers.

It’s definitely inspiring and shows that with determination, anything can be possible. Each of the people who ran there is an achiever. It was a change to see such an unique and inclusive event, in the midst of the beautiful IIM-B campus.

As we run, we become

Have you participated in any inclusive events like Mitra Run? Let me know your experiences.