Kolkata, 4th January, 2026: FTS Yuva, FTS Yuva, the youth wing of Friends of Tribals Society organized its annual flagship event Ekal Run at Godrej Waterside, Kolkata today wherein 5000+ participants ran for their chosen category of timed run – 21km, 10km, 5km and non-timed /fun run of 3km at this Marathon. People of all age groups participated in the run.
The Ekal Run was inaugurated by: Saina Nehwal, First Indian Badminton Player to win an Olympic Medal and was attended by: Shri Mukesh, IPS, Commissioner of Police, Bidhannagar; Rahul Dev Bose, Actor, Debadrita Basu, Actress; Payel Mukherjee, Actress; senior members from the organization present were: Sri. Sajan Bansal, Sri. Ramesh Saraogi, Sri. Ramesh Maheshwari, Smt. Rupa Agarwal, Sri. Rakesh Jhunjhuwala, Sri. Bulaki Das Mimani, Sri. Manoj Modi, Sri. Kishan Kejriwal, Sri. Mahendra Agarwal, Sri. Praveen Agarwal, Sri. Subhash Murarka, Sri. Anil Kariwala, Sri. Manoj Kumar Chetani, Sri. Vikash Poddar, Sri. Vinay Chugh & many other eminent personalities.
Speaking to the media, Mr. Rishabh Saraogi, President of FTS Yuva, Kolkata Chapter, said, “Ekal Run has grown into a powerful movement that blends fitness with purpose. This year’s edition reaffirmed our belief that collective efforts can create meaningful change. Every step taken today contributes towards educating children in the remotest parts of India, and we thank every participant, volunteer, and supporter for being a part of this impactful journey.”
On this occasion, Mr. Gaurav Bagla, National Coordinator of Ekal Run, said, “Having Olympic medalist Saina Nehwal inaugurate the 7th edition of Ekal Run has been a moment of immense pride and inspiration for all of us. Her presence energized thousands of participants and beautifully reinforced the message that sports, discipline, and education together can drive meaningful social change. We are deeply grateful to her for supporting our mission of educating children in rural and tribal India.”
Key Members:
FTS Yuva Board Members: Niraj Harodia – National Convenor; Gaurav Bagla – National Coordinator of Ekal Run; Rishabh Saraogi, President; Raunak Fatesaria, Working President; Rishav Gadia, Vice President; Abhay Kejriwal, Secretary; Rohit Bucha, Treasurer; Rachit Chowdhary, Yash Dhanuka, Jt. Secretary; Namrata Agarwal, Jt. Treasurer; Manish Dhariwal, Yogesh Choudhury, Arpit Saraf, Vaibhav Pandya, Ashray Tandon, Surbhi Bagla, Ayush Agarwal, Isha Garg, Saurav Garg and Meeta Modi – Executive Committee Member.
About FTS: Friends of Tribals Society (FTS), a non-profit, non-governmental and voluntary organization committed towards upliftment of underprivileged rural children. They are running 45,352 One Teacher Schools – popularly called as “EKAL VIDYALAYA” which provide non- formal education to 11,98,088 children in remotest villages of India. FTS focuses on the holistic development of a child and through their endeavor they uplift the entire village. They operate from 37 chapters across India, Kolkata being the Headquarter. They are also a recipient of the prestigious Gandhi Peace Prize 2017 and had the privilege of receiving this award from the honourable former President of India Shri Ram Nath Kovind and honourable Prime Minister of India Shri Narendra Modi.
