Surendra Pathare Foundation combined with Agardoot Bangosamaj arranged a unique Blind Folded Marathon in Kharadi on 25th September. Blind Folded Marathon is a long-distance run where anyone can participate with a partner. In the SPF Marathon, participants worked in a two-person team. One of the team members was blindfolded, and another team member assisted her/him in completing the race.
This Blind Folded Marathon is aimed at spreading awareness and searching for solutions for the betterment of the life of the visually impaired guided by several NGOs and blind schools. This initiative also helped in reaching our message for awareness of blindness to more people all over India.
India is home to a third of the world’s blind population with 12 million visually impaired individuals. There are different stages of blindness ranging from partial blindness to total blindness. However, 80 percent of blindness can be prevented or cured; thus it is essential to create awareness about what causes blindness, protection of your eyes and prevention of visual impairment. There are primarily three types of challenges faced by blind individuals- environmental, social and technological. Physical movement such as travelling or simply walking down a crowded street may pose great difficulty for blind people outside their well-known environment. Additionally, blindness poses several social challenges such as eligibility for job duties and participation in social activities. As for the technological challenges, many visually impaired people find it difficult to navigate through the latest technology such as internet browsing.
SPF Blind Folded Marathon helped educate the masses of Pune about blindness, understanding the obstacles faced by visually impaired individuals, and finding ways to assist them in leading a better life.
