Ahmedabad:
Mahatma Gandhi's Salt Satyagraha 80 years ago might have been a rebellion to break free of the British Raj over the country, but today morning, when wife of British Deputy High Commissioner in Mumbai, Jill Beckingham, will start the walk to retrace Dandi Yatra, from Sabarmati Ashram; it will be as a mark of respect and friendship for the country, she says.
Gearing up for the long march, Beckingham on Wednesday evening said she valued Gandhi's principle of 'Equality for all Indians', which had primarily inspired her to undertake the daunting march.
"I was wondering what one person can do to give back to the society. During a visit to the Ashram and interacting with some scholars in Vadodara, it struck me that everybody knows about this historic movement and it would be the most natural thing to want to do. Raising funds from our corporate sponsors through this walk to donate to the NGOs would be my way of giving back to the society," she told DNA.
Beckingham is primarily committed to issues of child trafficking in different parts of the world, but the six NGOs she will be donating to function in varied areas like child education, tribal development etc.
People from different walks of life will join in on the 17-day walk. Around 15 people are expected to start today morning; several more will join for a few days in between. "Around five people from the UK Embassy will join in over the last weekend," husband Peter Beckingham, who is joining her for the first and last few days, said.
During the walk, 1,000 tribals will join in the lastleg near Dandi, a group of deaf children Jill is supporting in Mumbai and a few leprosy affected students will also join in.
An Octogenarian Mohan Patel, who attended the original Dandi march with Bapu as a two-year-old with his mother, will also join in at Nadiad for a while. One of the stops will be Kasturba Ashram at Maroli, run by Ushaben Gokani, Gandhiji's great granddaughter. Several UK-born Gujaratis, who wish to reconnect with their homeland, will be joining in.
Jill, who has been maintaining a strict fitness regimen of walking around 10 km thrice in a week, hopes to walk about 20 km everyday. "I would try to walk for about five hours everyday," Jill said.
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Gearing up for the long march, Beckingham on Wednesday evening said she valued Gandhi's principle of 'Equality for all Indians', which had primarily inspired her to undertake the daunting march.
"I was wondering what one person can do to give back to the society. During a visit to the Ashram and interacting with some scholars in Vadodara, it struck me that everybody knows about this historic movement and it would be the most natural thing to want to do. Raising funds from our corporate sponsors through this walk to donate to the NGOs would be my way of giving back to the society," she told DNA.
Beckingham is primarily committed to issues of child trafficking in different parts of the world, but the six NGOs she will be donating to function in varied areas like child education, tribal development etc.
People from different walks of life will join in on the 17-day walk. Around 15 people are expected to start today morning; several more will join for a few days in between. "Around five people from the UK Embassy will join in over the last weekend," husband Peter Beckingham, who is joining her for the first and last few days, said.
During the walk, 1,000 tribals will join in the lastleg near Dandi, a group of deaf children Jill is supporting in Mumbai and a few leprosy affected students will also join in.
An Octogenarian Mohan Patel, who attended the original Dandi march with Bapu as a two-year-old with his mother, will also join in at Nadiad for a while. One of the stops will be Kasturba Ashram at Maroli, run by Ushaben Gokani, Gandhiji's great granddaughter. Several UK-born Gujaratis, who wish to reconnect with their homeland, will be joining in.
Jill, who has been maintaining a strict fitness regimen of walking around 10 km thrice in a week, hopes to walk about 20 km everyday. "I would try to walk for about five hours everyday," Jill said.
Copyright restricted. Under license from www.3dsyndication.com
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