Mumbaikars run marathon to raise Rs 34 crore for charity

Tata Mumbai Marathon raised Rs 34 crore for charity, this year.

Mumbai, April 12: In January this year, at least 44,000 people, from athletes to commoners, participated in the mega 15th edition of Tata Mumbai Marathon 2018. Today, the sporting event has ended up raising around Rs 34 crore for charity, according to a statement by the organisers of the corporate-funded running event, which is mostly a philanthropic exercise.

"Each year, our supporters--individuals, corporates and charities--raise the bar and raise incredible amounts of funds, always surpassing past results and setting new benchmarks. The scale of the achievement in philanthropy makes Tata Mumbai Marathon a unique event," said Jayanti Shukla, executive director, United Way Mumbai.

The United Way Mumbai is the philanthropy partner of the marathon event started in 2004. In 2004 the sporting event raised around Rs 1.4 crore for charity and in 2017 the marathon managed to collect Rs 33 crore from various organisations and individuals.

Since 2004, a total of over Rs 229 crore has been raised by the marathon event. This time around 262 NGOs and 169 corporates raised money for various causes through the sporting meet.

"The highest fundraising corporate was Kotak Mahindra Bank, which raised Rs 1.7 crore followed by Godrej & Boyce and Mahindra & Mahindra. The highest fundraising NGO was Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care with Rs 3.5 crore in its kitty," stated a report by The Times of India.

"It is inspiring to see citizens open up their hearts for a cause and go that extra mile," said Vivek Singh, joint MD of Procam International. Even several young leaders wholeheartedly took part in the event to collect money. Sankara Raman raised Rs 1.3 crore, the highest individual fundraiser in the history of marathon.