Kanyakumari (Tamil Nadu) [India]: An ‘All Women Motorcycle Expedition-2023’ comprising of 30 women motorcyclists from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) started their month-long ride from Kanyakumari on Thursday to cross over various states.
Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment A Narayanaswamy flagged off the expedition– which is part of three CRPF women teams participating in the expedition and being flagged off from Srinagar, Shillong, and Kanyakumari.
The three teams shall cover approximately 10,000 km across the length and breadth of the nation and culminate at the world-famous Statue of Unity in Gujarat’s Ekta Nagar on October 31.
With the objective of spreading awareness on valuing the girl child and celebrating ‘Nari Shakti’ (women power) as part of ‘Rashtriya Ekta Diwas’ celebrations, the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development, in collaboration with the CRPF, is organizing the CRPF ‘All Women Motorcycle Expedition-2023’.
This women’s motorcycle group will pass through Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Maharashtra and culminate at the world-famous Statue of Unity at Elkta Nagar, Gujarat, covering a distance of around 3,070 km.
During their journey, CRPF women personnel will meet and interact with girl students, women self-help groups, Anganwadi workers, cadets of the National Cadet Corps, and other women entrepreneurs, said the CRPF.
Various events have been pre-arranged at districts falling en-route of bikers, which inter-alia include interaction with the ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ (BBBP) target groups and felicitating BBBP champions, apart from spreading awareness to various women groups for ensuring survival, protection, and education of the girl child and also the women bikers, besides the skilling among girls through the life cycle continuum.
The CRPF, which was established in July 1939, is the world’s largest para-military force. The force is deployed across the country for counter-insurgency operations, anti-terrorist and naxal operations, and VVIP security.
A total of 150 women CRPF officers, divided into three teams, have embarked on the cross-country expedition. Riding 75 Royal Enfield (350cc) motorbikes, these teams started their journeys from the northern (Srinagar), eastern (Shillong), and southern (Kanyakumari) regions of India.
Finally, the expedition team will converge at the Statue of Unity in Ekta Nagar(Kevadia), Gujarat for the grand finale scheduled to take place on October 31, 2023.
“The expedition will cover approximately 10,000 km, passing through 15 states and 2 Union Territories,” said the CRPF.
