Ahmedabad citizens cool to Sabarmati Marathon

Although Amdavadi citizens and runners are gearing up for the upcoming Sabarmati Marathon, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) is still trying to deal with the shock which it recently received. When AMC floated an expression of interest for organising the marathon, it got much fewer responses than it did last year.

This raises serious concerns for the civic body, as the fate of Sabarmati Marathon hangs in the balance. With such low response for the marathon this year, the civic body is left with no options other than either organising the huge event on its own or opting for the sole interested firm.

According to sources in AMC, reportedly only one company has shown interest in organising the marathon for the civic body. The interested private company Procam is the same firm which organised the Mumbai Marathon.

When DNA tried to confirm the news with municipal commissioner Guruprasad Mohapatra, he refused to comment saying the process is still on. “As and when we finalise the firm, we will inform the people,” he stated.

However, AMC is not happy with the lack of interest this year, unlike last year when AMC saw many interested parties and floated tenders only to receive multiple organisers. It is believed that by November first week, everything would be finalised and the ambiguity about the organising firm gone.

Though the firm organising the marathon along with AMC is not fixed yet, there is some good news to cheer up citizens and would-be participants. This time AMC will focus on better management of the event.

Speaking to DNA about the plans for this year, Mohapatra said, “This year, we want to organise the event professionally and proficiently. This doesn’t happen in the first go, but with the expertise that is built every year.”

In addition, this year the focus of AMC will also be on traffic management during the event. “The will be more involvement of traffic police in the event where for the first two hours the roads which are a part of the route for the runners will be completely closed for traffic,” stated an AMC official.