Run to remember a fellow soldier

By Norris Pritam

It was Carnival time at 1 Army HQ Signal Regiment in New Delhi on Sunday. The ranks didn’t matter on the day as close to five hundred participants ran in 1st KBD run to commemorate the memory of Capt Kulbhushan Dogra at the scenic complex.

Even though there were medals and commemorative certificates for the winners and all finishers of the race. But what mattered was the spirit and enthusiasm among the participants.

The officers, jawans, their family members and children all ran in 3-km and 5-km event to make it a grand spectacle.

Before the race, two Zumba experts Nancy and Mihir conducted warming up session for all participants to the beat of popular music much to the delight of everyone.

The event was the brain child of Anupama, wife of Lt Gen Vivek Dogra, Signal Officer-in-Chief, son of Capt Dogra — a cricketer, athletics coach and a fitness freak.

Incidentally, Capt. Dogra was also the first fitness expert of the Indian cricket team that had legendry players like Sunil Gavaskar, Mohinder Amarnath and Madan Lal among others. “For me it is an emotional day,’’ Lt Gen Vivek Dogra said after the successful event. “My father was very fond of running and a great advocate of community running on Sundays. And I am happy and grateful as today all our officers, soldiers and their families have turned up as a mark of tribute to my father. I am also so happy to see some of my father’s old colleagues,’’ the gentle Gen Dogra added. “It will be an annual feature,’’ he said. “Running together as a group irrespective of rank, age and gender is the biggest take away,’’ he added.

He thanked all his colleagues and specially Jyoti Mishra and Ruchi who were the main organisers of the event. The presence of some of the legendary sportspersons added extra colour to the occasion.

Capt. Suresh Yadav (Retd) was Chief guest and flagged-off the race. Capt. Yadav, a former Asian 1,500m champion, is also an Arjuna Award winner and a noted Army Commando. “He recalled the times he spent with Capt. Dogra at Delhi’s National Stadium where “Dogra Sahab’, as he was popularly known, was appointed as an NIS athletics coach after his Short Service Commission stint in the Army.

Well-known Test cricketer Gursharan Singh was also a star attraction of the day. It was Capt. K B Dogra who showed him the way to National Stadium cricket nets under legendary coach Gurcharan Singh. As a young boy he would ride on Capt. Dogra’s scooter along with Gen Vivek Dogra, then a school student, to the stadium. “For me also it is an emotional moment meeting Gen Dogra whom we then affectionally called Vickey,’’ said Gursharan.

Former junior national X-Country champion Rupinder Singh, 400m runner Anil Sethi, Basketballer Sukhminder Singh, 400m runner Rita Wadhera, SAI coach M L Dogra and athletes Mukesh Kapoor, Gursharan Singh and Norris Pritam also graced the occasion and remembered the genial Capt. Dogra.

The results: Men: 5km: 1. Mohit Yadav, 2. Ankit Maurya, 3. Ritu Kumar Women: 3 km: 1. Poonam Kumar, 2. Sindhu Bhalekar, 3. Shivali Raina Boys: 3km: 1. Ishant, 2. Nishant, 3. Sakshan Kumar ENDS CAPT suresh Yadav giving away the prize along with Lt Gen Vivek Dogra and his wife Anumpama