Swasth Bharat Yatra to be held in the City Beautiful from 26th December 2018.

Chandigarh, 17th December 2018:

A meeting was held today at DC Office, Chandigarh under the chairmanship of  Mandip Singh Brar, Deputy Commissioner, Chandigarh, regarding the Swasth Bharat Yatra to be held in the City Beautiful from 26th December 2018.

Inspired by the Hon’ble Prime Minister India vision of leveraging 150th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, various activities and movement have been planned.

Swasth Bharat Yatra’, a pan India Cyclothon, is a key element of the Eat Right India movement.  150 ‘Volunteer-cyclists’ along with the ‘Eat Right Mobile Unit’ and ‘Mobile Food Testing Unit’ are travelling across the country over 100+ days to engage citizens on issues of food safety, combating food adulteration and healthy diets.

Volunteer Cyclists will be handing over the symbolic relay baton to Chandigarh on 26th December, 2018. The cyclothon will be flagged off from Sukhna Lake Chandigarh by Hon’ble Governor of Punjab and Administrator UT, Chandigarh, Sh. V P Singh Badnore.

The cyclothon flagged off on 16th October, 2018 (World Food Day) will be culminated after covering 2000+ locations at New Delhi on 27th January, 2019.

The theme of the events is based on:-

Eat Healthy: Eating a balanced diet, Reducing foods high in fat sugar and salt, Eliminating tans-fats, Convergence with Ayushmaan Bharat, Convergence with National Health Mission

Eat safe: Personal and surrounding hygiene: Following practices that maintain personal and  surrounding hygiene are essential to prevent food and water borne illnesses as germs and contaminants often carry pathogens that spread these diseases.  This includes hand washing, keeping clean, proper garbage disposal and pest control.

Eating Fortified food: Fortification is a proven and useful supplementary strategy to tackle  micronutrient deficiencies.  Staple foods that have added vitamins and minerals to improve their nutritional content are called fortified foods.

No Food Waste: Millions of tons of food are wasted every day.  One third of all food is spoiled or  wasted before consumption, even as billions go hungry daily.  Thus, reducing food waste and ensuring that surplus food is distributed to people in need.

Cycling: Cycling is a healthy, low-impact exercise that can be enjoyed by people of all  ages, from young children to older adults.

Brisk walking: These are many benefits of brisk walking.  It reduces blood pressure, lowers  cholesterol, and lowers the risk of heart disease, diabetes, and some cancers.

Sh. Sanjay Kumar Jha, Special Commissioner Municipal Corporation, Dr. Dewan, Director Health, and other officials of various departments of Chandigarh Administration attended the meeting.