Mahatma Gandhi's 150th birth anniv: 500 CAPF, AR personnel to take part in cycle yatra

Five-hundred personnel of central armed police forces (CAPFs) and Assam Rifles will embark on a 'Cycle Yatra' from Gujarat on Saturday and paddle their way to Rajghat in New Delhi to commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.

The yatra will be flagged off from Porbandar, the birth place of the Father of the Nation, and its aim is to spread the message of non-violence, cleanliness and the dangers of drug abuse, according to an official statement.

The 500 participant cyclists include 100 each from the Border Security Force (BSF) and Central Reserved Police Force (CRPF), 65 each from Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), 70 from Sashatra Seema Bal (SSB), and 50 each from National Security Guards (NSG) and Assam Rifles, it said.

"The cycle yatra will be flagged off from Chowpatty Ground, Porbandar, on September 7 at 9 am and will end at Rajghat, New Delhi on October 2," the statement from Frontier Headquarters, BSF, Gujarat stated.

During the journey, the cyclists will pass through Rajkot, Morbi, Kutch, Patan, Banaskantha, Jalore, Barmer before reaching Jaisalmer, under the Rajasthan Frontier of the BSF, it said.

The yatra will further go past places including Bikaner, Churu and Haryana's Narnaul, Rewari, Gurgaon and then culminate at Rajghat in the national capital.

Rajghat is a memorial of Mahatma Gandhi and is situated along the banks of river Yamuna in the heart of Delhi.