Kolkata Police to introduce permanent website for SDSL Half Marathon

Kolkata: Kolkata Police is going to introduce a permanent website for its Safe Drive Save Life Half Marathon, that will ensure round-the-year registration and dissemination of information about the event.

The introduction of the website is a major step, as it will enable international runners to participate in the event. They will get sufficient time to register online and to plan their visit to Kolkata to participate in the half marathon.

It may be mentioned that all the internationally famous marathons, including one each in Boston, New York and Athens, have their respective websites, through which people get information and register online to be a part of the event.

In a bid to provide a similar facility to people for the Kolkata Police Safe Drive Safe Life Half Marathon, the city police are going to introduce the same. It has been decided that the half marathon will take place on the first Sunday of every year. In 2019, it is going to take place on January 6.

Kolkata Police has organised the same for the first time this year and it has become immensely successful, with the highest number of people compared to that of any marathon in the city, participating in the event.

On Wednesday, there was a meeting regarding next year's half marathon in the police headquarters at Lalbazar. Sources said that a committee headed by Vineet Goyal, additional commissioner of police (I), Sumit Kumar, deputy commissioner (traffic), three assistant commissioners of police and two officers on special duty, has been formed to take all necessary steps for organising the event successfully in 2019.

The next meeting in this connection will be held on February 24, when the concerned officers will be presenting the blueprint, based on which the website will be developed. There will also be discussions on the route of the half marathon.

According to a senior officer of Kolkata Police, the website is expected to be in public domain by the first week of March. There will be detailed information in the website about the half marathon, including the date, time, route, process and rules of registration and participation, etc.

It may be mentioned that this year, the half marathon was organised at a very short notice. So, the website that was launched for the time being, was made ready in a hurry and it is not of international standards, said the officer, adding that at the same time, there was only a time span of around a month for registration.