when Dr Abhishek Singh leads a marathon race of 56 kilometer from Ranchi to Ramgarh.
Vivekanand Jha Ranchi: On the grand occasion of the commemoration of 75th anniversary of nation’s independence, as I heard Prime Minister Narendra Modi unfolding the vision of his government for the nation, in the backyard of my mind, another important news too was taking a tangible shape in my mind: The new age dynamic leader Dr Abhishek Singh was running a marathon race of almost 51 kilometer from that of his residence at Harmu in the heart of Ranchi to Ramgarh, a town in the vicinity of Ranchi, physically sequestered from the city by almost 51 kilometer. In other words, Ramgarh, a small town, awaited the arrival of this redoubtable young man with a bated breath, for the young doctor was not running a marathon for the sake of running but, in fact, he was acting as the brand ambassador of Prime ministerial vision for freeing the nation from all sorts of deadly diseases; ‘ Rog mukt’ Bharat, a prime ministerial vision, which developed wings, even though in a microcosmic expression, nonetheless with a macrocosmic message: Run India run; run for a good health; run for driving out the diseases from the length and breadth of India; run for letting go the lethargy, the procrastination, and achieve your dream with a bang, for only an able body with a cool mind can do wonders.
Little wonder then, the maraton run spearheaded by Dr Abhishek and his team, had a singular message to deliver: in this age and time of online revolution when mobile has become our most trusted ally, we find little time for anything else, far less steal some time for walking, let alone running for keeping ourselves physically fit. Unequivocally then, this marathon race undertaken by Dr Abhishek and his team helped in breaking that jinx: let us wake from our self- induced slumber; take to running to keep the diseases away. As my eyes caught the attention of the robust prime minister over 70 years old, my chest swelled with pride beholding him bubbling with energy which could blush even the young men of thirty, I could not help but marvel at the importance of physical fitness which seldom has any other substitute. I exclaimed, ‘ Indeed, Dr Abhishek Singh’s prima facie stressing of importance on health is the pre-requisite for the successful launch of any career whatsoever. ‘A sound mind in a steely body’, as the aphorism goes, to my perception, anyone does embody it to the point of perfection, it was none but Dr Abhishek Singh.
Significantly, as the adage goes, ‘ Ham akele chalte gaye, karvan banta gaya'( I started alone, yet a caravan was formed behind me). Dr Abhishek Singh started alone but, as he moved along, a caravan was formed behind him. A sprightly team of young doctors have come to revolve around him. However, a small team of four young men, one of whom doctor Vikash and other two young men accompanied him to this expedition. Better still, this team has a minor, a boy of ten years, Yash Vardhan Singh, the son of Dr Abhishek who, remarkably keeping pace with his father, traversed a distance of almost forty kilometer riding bicycle. Interestingly, while other members intermittently changed gears, for they dared not summed up the courage to keep pace with Dr Abhishek –they would ride the car when they felt deeply exhausted –Dr Abhishek Singh, far from stopping even to regain his breath, continued running, at times slowing down, never ceasing to walk. Thus the marathon which was kick-started at 4.00.a.m., finally reached its destination at Ramgarh at 11.a.m. covering a distance of approx 56 kilometer. Really an achievement worth trumpeting.
The adage goes that, ‘ a journey of thousand miles begins from the first step’. Dr Abhishek Singh, by virtue of undertaking this marathon run, has almost covered 100 miles of his thousand miles journey. However, there is the least chances of complacency , for he has already made a promise to the people of Jharkhand in particular and that of the nation in general–to awaken the nation from its deep slumber. This Run for Health is a commitment given to the people that he will stand by then in their needs. It was a microcosmic expression of the macrocosmic vision of the prime minister to achieve ‘ Rog mukt Bharat’. Yet he has to go a long way to keep the very promises he has made to the people of Chhatra –to fulfill their collective aspiration by representing them in the Parliament in 2024. He, therefore, will have to keep in mind the memorable poem of Robert Frost: ‘ The wood is lovely dark and deep, I have promises to keep! miles to go before I sleep, miles to go before I sleep’! He has to translate the promise into tangible shape in the coming years.
Vivekanand Jha, Author, Academician and a Public Intellectual.
