One day has passed and the page of the calendar has turned. Psychologically another month has passed us by and we are one month closer to flag off. Hmmm.
Today was a very tiring day, albeit a fairly fruitful one. The morning meeting, at one end of town, was with the War Wounded Foundation. I met up with Lt Gen Vijay Oberoi, the President, Maj Gen Ian Cardozo, the Vice President and Brig Veer Pratap, the Executive Director of the War Wounded Foundation. We had a long chat on various issues and in the course of discussions, it was agreed that they would be the official charity partners on OneHelluvaRide. I was really looking forward to this association as I am very partial to men in uniform and take my hat off to those brave souls who put their lives at risk while fighting for their motherland. May lay down their lives in the process, while others suffer disabilities, many of who have to depend on others for even routine daily chores. Their bodies may be broken but their spirits are alive. They are not looking for hand-outs, they are looking for a step up to help them look after themselves. And that is what we are trying to do with this association. The motto of the War Wounded Foundation is to turn the war wounded into Soldier-Entrepreneurs, by equipping them with the skills to become financially independent. A lot has been done since its incorporation in 2002, but a lot still needs to be done. There are over 30,000 war wounded in India, and if each of us helps one, not only will they become financially independent, regain their dignity, but will give each of us an opportunity to repay the debt that we owe these brave men to did not succumb when the bullets were flying think and fast. We need to remember that they gave their today for our tomorrow. We sleep in peace, because these men are prepared to go to war. Visit the War Wounded Foundation at http://www.warwounded.org/.
Incidentally both Lt Gen Oberoi and Maj Gen Cardozo have lost their leg in war. Sir, we as a nation salute your bravery.
The second meeting was at the other end of town, 50km away. It was with a radio channel and the meeting was very fruitful. I suspect this is going to finalise sometime mid next week. There were interesting ideas that came up at this meeting which will help build the expedition across media. Sorry, can’t tell you which it is just yet, a few more days.