Walkathon: JM Financial makes social outreach drive public

Diversified financial services firm JM Financial today extended its social outreach drive by opening it to the public and making each of the hundreds of participants at its annual Walkathon to mandatorily contribute Rs 500 for charity.
The company, holding the walk since 2006, was till last year opened only to its employees and their families as well as their clients.
But to make a large contribution it opened it to the public which saw the number of participants almost doubling to around 800 from last year for the Walkathon held here this morning, the company said.
It uses the proceeds to help the underprivileged in areas of education, healthcare, vocational training and disaster relief.

The company on an average collects registration fees and contributions of about Rs 1 crore, which it expects to increase significantly this year due to the spike in participation.
The company said that proceeds from the 6-km walk along the iconic Marine Drive in the city will go to its philanthropic arm JM Financial Foundation, which in turn will fully transfer it to the associated NGOs to fund the philanthropic activities, apart from stressing on the power of walking as an exercise and a step towards progress.
JM Financial group Chairman Nimesh Kampani said, "The simple act of walking can help change lives. This year we have taken the next step towards including many more people in the movement by taking the conversation online. Through this we try to make a positive difference to the lives of the less privileged."

The company said it has opened up a dialogue on important issues like rights of the girl child, youth empowerment and healthcare through the walkathon.