New Delhi, April 27: India’s aggressive push to become a global sporting heavyweight could literally be weighed down by a population that is staring at an obesity crisis in the next two decades.
And well aware of the looming threat, the sports ministry’s ‘Fit India’ campaign has been trying to create the mass movement that India desperately needs to avoid a health crisis which will also have massive economic repercussions due to loss of productivity if research is to be believed.
To ensure that the significance of a healthy lifestyle is driven home in a manner that’s less preachy and more fun, sports minister Mansukh Mandaviya has been actively leading the initiative of ‘Sundays on Cycle’ that was launched in December last year.
Various groups representing the civil society, sportspersons, and prominent public figures come together across venues in India to cycle early morning on Sundays, campaigning for a healthier lifestyle and push for decreased carbon footprint.
“More than two lakh people across 5,000 locations have participated in this campaign so far. Our partners have included ITBP, Indian Army, sports clubs, specific cycling clubs and FICCI among others,” Sports Authority of India’s Deputy Director General Mayank Srivastava said.
Olympic medal-winning athletes such as weightlifter Mirabai Chanu, boxer Lovlina Borgohain, and actor and Rugby Federation of India head Rahul Bose are among the prominent names that have shown up at 7am on different Sunday mornings to cycle with the minister and hundreds of other enthusiasts.
Those who turn up include children as young as 10, accompanied by parents and sometimes even grandparents, well into the late 60s or 70s. The cycles are provided by SAI at the venue itself and the fun element is brought through activities like Zumba.
As per available estimates, 24 per cent of Indian women and 23 per cent of men are either overweight or obese (a condition that is at the core of life-threatening health problems like cardiovascular diseases and cancer). (PTI)
