Ahmedabad:
As they say, the more things change, the more they remain the same. And this adage will be proven true by a British woman who will walk on the path Mahatma Gandhi took 80 years ago.
Starting Thursday, Jill Beckingham, wife of British Deputy High Commissioner in Mumbai, Peter Beckingham, will be retracing the route of the Mahatma's historic Dandi March. She will walk from Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad to Dandi in South Gujarat for raising funds for charity.
Eight decades ago, Bapu embarked on salt Satyagraha demanding to break free from the British colonialism through a non-violent movement. In a larger context, it was the battle of 'right over might'. On Thursday, Beckingham will repeat the symbolic walk to garner support for the marginalised sections of our society - a section that Bapu struggled for in his lifetime.
Termed the 'India UK Friendship Walk', this initiative - unlike Bapu's Satyagraha - is sponsored by heavyweight corporates. And the proceeds will be donated to six NGOs - three each in Mumbai and Gujarat.
Beckingham's 320-km walk will conclude at Dandi beach on December 23. A large group of tribals from Bhasha Centre will walk the final 10-km stretch of the route to Dandi.
She says a visit to Sabarmati Ashram inspired her to retrace the Dandi March. "When we visited the Ashram, I learnt more about the Gandhian principles of fairness, and his desire to see that all Indians - no matter what religion they belong to or status they have in society -- should be treated equally. His walk to Dandi inspired me," said Beckingham.
She added, "I decided to walk the same route in a spirit of friendship between our two countries and at the same time raise money for the poor in both Mumbai and Gujarat." Bapu's great-grandson Tushar Gandhi aptly sums it up. "In 1930 when Bapu walked for the cause of freedom, he termed his endeavour 'a battle of right over might'. Today 80 years and some months later, Jill once again walks the same path seeking the rights for those who have none, for the weak and the underprivileged... The battle of right versus might of a different kind still continues," he says.
Earlier, Jill Beckingham walked from London to Brighton to raise money for NGOs in the Philippines where her husband was the British Ambassador.
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