Major DP Singh – Kargil War Veteran

The JK Cement SwachhAbility Run is the brainchild of Kargil War veteran Major D P Singh. A Limca Book of Records holder, Major Singh is India’s first blade runner who has 25 (inclusive of 3 in high altitude) marathons to his credit.

He was grievously injured during the Kargil War and lost his leg but he did not let his disability affect him. Major Singh says “After 10 years of my injury during Kargil war, I started running half marathon using an artificial leg to convey the message to the society that disability is a state of mind. As a 100% disabled and an amputee, this was the beginning of my journey of turning every adversity into an opportunity.”

To reach out to the Divyangs and to encourage them to not to give up, he formed a group, The Challenging Ones (TCO) in 2011. TCO uses sports as medium to empower Divyangs and it aspires to enable them to extend their abilities and bring laurels to the country in various Paralympic sports. Today, TCO has a membership of 1650 amputees and 1000+ amputees have participated in various marathons across India. This has instilled confidence in them and empowered them to bring about a positive change in the society where they are seen as “challengers” and not physically challenged.

Boosting the morale of the Divyangs across the country was necessary to change the perception of society towards them. Through TCO, they are made to showcase their hidden abilities by performing on ground. This was the guiding thought behind organizing the JK Cement SwachhAbility Run. JK Cement SwachhAbility Run is a very important step towards promoting two important causes – inclusion of Divyangs as equal and Swachh Bharat.

It is a unique run where Divyangs along with all the participants will clean a designated area after the event as a part of the Swachh Drive. This is a humble beginning and we look forward to your support in making JK Cement SwachhAbility Run a national phenomenon.