28 girl cadets cycle their way through India to reach Delhi

Twenty-eight girl cadets of National Cadet Corps (NCC) , hailing from different parts of the country, have completed a countrywide mega cyclothon and will participate in a rally in New Delhi on Saturday to celebrate the 75th Raising Day of the NCC, their team leaders said on Thursday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be the chief guest of the event, they said.

Presently residing in Greater Noida, these NCC cadets will head to Delhi on Saturday for the rally as part of the last leg of their countrywide cyclothon.

They had embarked on their cyclothon last month on two distinct axis -- one from Kanyakumari along the Western Coast on December 8, and the other, from Guwahati along the Eastern axis on December 22.

Both culminated in Greater Noida on January 21.

Each team comprised 15 cyclists -- 14 girl cadets and their team leader.

The one led by col Anjan Sengupta started off from Guwahati on December 22 and the team covered 2,107 kilometres on cycle via Assam, West Bengal, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.

The other group, led by brigadier NS Chaarag, started their journey on December 8 and covered 3,600 kilometres via Kerala, Karnataka, Goa, Maharashtra, Daman & Diu, Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Haryana.

“All girl cadets, aged 18 to 20 years, are excited to complete the last leg of their cyclothon journey on Saturday, in the presence of Prime Minister Modi in Delhi, said Chaarag.

He said after cycling for over 3,600 kilometres, the team feels a sense of accomplishment as well as pride “in having faced adverse challenges along the way and overcame them”.

The teams will leave Greater Noida on Saturday evening to participate in the rally, set to start at 5.45 pm at the Cariappa Parade Ground.

He said the event aims to convey the message of women’s empowerment to the citizens.

NCC girl cadet instructor (GCI) Versha Kesarwani from 15 UP battalion, Prayagraj said that the teams have been practising at the parade ground in Delhi since arriving in Greater Noida last Sunday.

Talking of the challenges they faced during the countrywide cyclothon, sergeant Riddhi Raiker from Gujarat battalion who cycled on the Kanyakumari axis, said their most challenging ride was when we were entering Goa.

“We had a 22km climb ahead of us and the roads were not in a good condition in those parts. There were several times during that leg when many of us got injured and got involved in minor accidents,” she said.

“However, we faced each adversity with determination and overcame them,” she added.