Joda, Nov 23: More than 4,600 runners from across the country participated in the second edition of the Tata Steel Joda-Run-A-thon that was organised at the Central Playground of the Joda Municipality area on Sunday. The theme for the marquee event this year was 'Green Today, Greener Tomorrow'.

While Prashant Choudhary from Uttar Pradesh and Basanti Kumari from Jharkhand won the 10K men's and women's categories, respectively, Dhiraj Kumar from Uttar Pradesh and BasantiMandia from Odisha won the 7K men's and women's categories, respectively. Uday Melgandi, from Jharkhand,  clinched the first prize in the 5K boys' category and Mamta Kumari from Odisha clinched the first prize in the 5K girls' category.

Jagdish Kumar Sahu, Joda Municipality Chairman, D DHanumanta, Keonjhar DFO, Rakesh Kumar Panda, Barbil Tehsildar, Nirmal Biswal, Koira Tehsildar, Devendranath Pingua, Barbil SDPO, Prashant Kumar Samal, Joda IIC, Atul Kumar Bhatnagar, General Manager, OMQ, Tata Steel and Surbhi Bhatnagar flagged off the event.

Commending Tata Steel for the initiative, D DHanumanta remarked, 'I am very happy to participate in this. As our lifestyle has become very fast, children aren't playing as much as desired. People are too busy with their lives to spare time for fitness. Such runs are excellent steps to create awareness about health and fitness and to foster a marathon culture. As Tata Steel organises this regularly, I believe the people of Joda will greatly benefit from it."

Jagdish Kumar Sahu said, "On behalf of Joda Municipality, I extend our deepest appreciation to Tata Steel for organising this Run-a-thon. Such events are vital catalysts, not only for encouraging physical well-being among our citizens but also for knitting our community closer together. The entire city wore a festive look, with young and old, men and women alike, all enthusiastically participating. We look forward to continuing our partnership with Tata Steel to ensure a healthier, more active Joda for years to come."

The Run was organised across three main categories: 10K and 7K for men and women (15 years and above), and 5K for boys and girls under 16 years of age. 84 Divyangs from across the region participated in the special 2K run category. The total prize money pool, including all categories, was Rupees Five Lakh Sixty-Seven Thousand (₹5,67,000).