About 24K people take part in Kolkata half marathon

Kolkata: The Kolkata Police (KP) ‘Safe Drive Save Life (SDSL) Half Marathon’, on Sunday, was although largely successful, the Additional Commissioner of Police (Addl. CP) I, Murlidhar Sharma sustained injuries after a temporary installation collapsed on him. While the marathon was getting flagged off from the dais, a temporary gate-like structure that was set up on the Red Road collapsed due to wind and fell on the road. Addl. CP-I, Murlidhar Sharma got trapped and suffered injuries since he was standing below it. However, he was taken to a private hospital in Mallick Bazar area where he was admitted. As per the reports, his condition is stable.

Meanwhile, the marathon, which drew a footfall of 24,000 people, was flagged off by Commissioner of Police (CP), Kolkata,Vineet Kumar Goyal and Director General of the state police, Rajeev Kumar in presence of many other eminent personalities including actor Abir Chatterjee at Red Road. Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee also took part in the 10 km segment. Sharing some photos on his social media profile, Banerjee wrote: “Revitalised by a refreshing morning! Participating in the Kolkata Police Safe Drive Save Life Marathon was exhilarating. Embracing a healthy morning routine is the cornerstone of a vibrant lifestyle, and contributing to the noble cause of road safety filled me with absolute joy. Sharing some glimpses from today’s marathon. It is moments such as these that inspire change!”

CP Vineet Kumar Goyal claimed that the road safety record of Kolkata is perhaps close to most of the safest cities across the world. “In 2016 we had 407 fatalities. Since then the area has extended. The number of vehicles has gone up and so has the population. But, the number of fatalities last year was just 159. This was achieved because of the kind of awareness and activities we carried out. We are the safest metropolitan city in the entire country in terms of road safety. In the road safety record, we are very close to the safest cities in the entire world.”

While talking about the compliance level of the traffic rules, Goyal said that in the past few years the speed compliance levels and the trend of wearing helmets have improved significantly. “We aim to make it 100 percent. We want to make the road safe for all,” Goyal added.

In the 21 kilometre segment, about 3000 people took part while about 10000 people took part in the 10 kilometre segment. In the five kilometre segment about 11000 people took part.