By Pawan Khera and Manish Khanduri
After the exciting events of the previous day – including a rocking music concert to complete the #BharatJodoYatra in Indore – it was time to get on the road and start walking again. Today in the morning session the Yatris got on the highway to Ujjain, and walked approximately 13 kilometres to Baroli village. It was for most of the journey, a walk in an urban environment.
As we have been seeing in Madhya Pradesh, and due to the onset of winter, what seemed like a comparatively slow start quickly attracted crowds as the skies began to lighten.
“There was excellent crowd participation,” says Yatri Sushruth Hedna, “And it was obviously organic. There were a lot of women and children out on the streets ready to welcome us.”
“There was excellent crowd participation”, says Yatri Sushruth Hedna (second from right, with activist Yogendra Yadav), “And it was obviously organic”
On the road we met Prince Yadav, 10, who was standing waiting for the Yatra to come by. Prince told us that while he was “waiting for Rahul Gandhi, I also want to see and meet Bharat Yatris.” We’re sure he met a few.
Prince Yadav, 10, waits for the Yatra, flag in hand
Earlier there was opportunity for some Yatris to catch up with their family. We cane across Bharat Yatri Yogesh Meena who met with his aunt and cousin. While Rajesh Verma met with his wife and young child after a few weeks apart.
Families together: Yatri Yogesh Meena (right) with his aunt and cousin. Rajesh Verma (left) met with his wife and young child
Along the way the Bharat Yatris were joined by Lawyer and Activist Dushyant A and writer Arpita Chatterjee. Other notable additions were Jamsetjee Delara Jeejeeboy(descendants of Sir Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy merchant and philanthropist) and Haresh and Sonal Shah (son-in-law and daughter of freedom fighter GG Parikh).
Congress MP Rahul Gandhi will address a press conference at 1pm today. We also note that party General Secretary KC Venugopal was injured yesterday as a result of a fall while walking. We hope that he makes a full recovery soon.
Finally we leave you with a few images of the Bharat Yatra concert from yesterday. We had a great time, but let the pictures speak for themselves!
Currently in the state of Madhya Pradesh, the Bharat Jodo Yatra is a five month, 3500 kilometre long Padyatra from Kanyakumari in the South of India to Kashmir up in the North. It is part of the party’s national mass outreach program aimed at highlighting social polarisation, economic inequalities and political centralisation.
Ground research: Aparna Ashwarya (INC Communications Department research team)
Midday Travel Facts
1. District name: Indore
2. Indore historically has been a junction for pilgrimage (Omkareshwar to Mahakaleshwar) and military movement (Agra to Deccan); consequentially it has developed as a commercial and military town.
3. Mhow town in Indore district is the birthplace of statesman and social reformer Dr B.R Ambedkar.
4. Mhow is also the centre for key training schools of the Indian army including the Army War College and the Infantry Training School.
5. Indore district is the business and trading capital of the state, famous for cotton textile, steel and chemical production. Namkeen production is also a major economic activity.