Kashmir Marathon draws 5,500 participants, promotes fitness and unity

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

SRINAGAR, Oct 1: The grand finale of the "Kashmir Marathon-Run for Unity", organised under the J&K Police Civic Action Plan (CAP) 2026, was held at the Police Golf Course, Boulevard Road, Srinagar, today, with nearly 5,500 men, women and children participating in various categories.

Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha was the chief guest, while DGP J&K Nalin Prabhat was the patron and Nitish Kumar, ADGP Armed J&K, was the Chairman of the event. The marathon was flagged off by Nitish Kumar at 7 am.

Addressing the gathering, Manoj Sinha called upon youth to remain drug-free, physically fit and actively participate in sports. Nalin Prabhat appreciated the organising team for providing a platform for fitness, sportsmanship and unity. Nitish Kumar highlighted the importance of sports and the J&K Police's Nasha Mukt Abhiyan in promoting healthy and productive lifestyles.

In the 21-km Half Marathon (men), Rohit Ramkishan, Mukul Kumar and Udit Pal secured the first three positions and received cash prizes of Rs 50,000, Rs 30,000 and Rs 20,000, respectively. In the 10-km Road Race (boys under 19), Surendra Singh, Laksh and Mukhtar Ahmed Tinda finished first, second and third and were awarded Rs 25,000, Rs 20,000 and Rs 10,000, respectively. Munni Devi, Anshika Lodhi and Priya topped the 10-km Road Race (girls above 18), receiving Rs 25,000, Rs 20,000 and Rs 10,000, respectively.

In the 8-km Junior (girls under 18), Anjali Rajput, Hareem Ishrath and Shivali Devi finished first, second and third and received Rs 20,000, Rs 15,000 and Rs 10,000, respectively. In the boys under-17 category, Rizwan Hassan Bhat, Sourab Sharma and Gourav Kumar secured the top three places and received Rs 20,000, Rs 15,000 and Rs 10,000, respectively. Jyotiprova Dutta, Rehana Rashid and Roohi Sultana won the Veterans (women above 45), while Joga Singh, Ram Raj and Mohammad Yahya Khan topped the men's category, with the winners receiving Rs 15,000, Rs 10,000 and Rs 5,000, respectively.

In the 5-km Sub-Junior (boys under 14), Yash, Tyaib Kabir, Vishal, Bilal Ahmed Dar and Junaid Ahmed Gojri secured the first five positions and received cash prizes ranging from Rs 15,000 to Rs 2,000. Liyana Ishrat, Zia Parvez, Labeeba Shah, Uzma Akhter and Mehrukh Tariq finished first to fifth in the 4-km girls category and were also awarded Rs 15,000, Rs 10,000, Rs 5,000, Rs 3,000 and Rs 2,000, respectively.

In the 2-km specially-abled men's run, Makhan Lal, Shariq Majeed, Anam-ul-Rather, Owais Hussain Hajam and Ansab Nabi Bhat secured the top five positions, receiving Rs 15,000, Rs 10,000, Rs 5,000, Rs 3,000 and Rs 2,000, respectively. Sadiya Jan, Nayilah Jan, Pakeeza Ali, Syed Qaasirah Qureshi and Mehak Jan claimed the corresponding positions among specially-abled women and received the same prize amounts.

Anber Taseer, Mohd. Hamza, Mehbooba Nabi and Haji Ghulam were recognised as the youngest female, youngest male, oldest female and oldest male participants, respectively, with each receiving Rs 2,500.

Meanwhile, in the raffle draw, Token No. 4078 won the first prize, a bicycle, while Token No. 6746, belonging to Tabish Nazir, won the second prize, also a bicycle. Token No. 3346 won the third prize of a bicycle, while Token No. 6664, belonging to Mahir Nowshad, won the fourth prize of a bicycle. Token No. 3210 won the fifth prize of a smart watch, while Token No. 3340, belonging to Tawseef Nazir of Magam, Budgam, won the sixth prize of a smart watch.

Among those present were M.K. Sinha, ADGP CID; B.S. Tuti, IGP Hqrs; Uttam Chand, IGP Railways; Sarah Rizvi, IGP Crime; Sujit Kumar, IGP Kashmir; Vivek Gupta, IGP Security; Suleman Choudhary, IGP Traffic; Shiekh Junaid Mehmood, IGP JK4C; Shahid Mehraj, DIG Tech PHQ, besides DIGs, SSP Srinagar, Commandants of Srinagar-based battalions and other senior police officers.