Oxfam India announces the first edition of this year’s Virtual Trailwalker Challenge

New Delhi: Oxfam India, has announced the first edition of 2021’s Virtual Trailwalker Challenge. Starting from 25th Feb to 6th Mar and 8th to 17th March 2021, the edition offers three challenges to the participants to choose from. They can complete either 100 km, 50 km or 25 km in 10 days. The challenge is accessible to anyone who wants to participate and every joining contribution will help Oxfam India in their projects.

This year, the walkathon is themed around #WalkForHer, with the tagline, “Walk to end all discrimination against women.” The pandemic has been tough on everyone but women and the marginalized communities bore the real brunt of it. Statistics have painted a grim picture of women suffering from employment loss and increasing domestic violence while girls have faced disruption in education. The walkathon’s theme hence is a response to the countless examples of gender- based violence, extreme injustice and deep rooted discrimination against women that shocked the nation in 2020. It also aims to generate financial aid for women and girls who have faced such enormous challenges.

For Oxfam India, a non-profit organization working to support child education, empowering women and fighting against inequality, the Trailwalker Challenge has been one way to involve citizenry in important conversations as well as fund-raising. Last year even though the walkathon had to go virtual due to the pandemic, the participation remained enthusiastic.

Amitabh Behar, Chief Executive Officer of Oxfam India, says, “Our aim has always been to consistently work towards addressing societal and economic faultlines but last year, the plight of migrant workers hit by the pandemic and the subsequent lockdown, took center stage. The 2020 Trailwalker Challenge hence was themed around them and all through the year between March to December, it attracted almost 5,000 participants who walked to show their solidarity and raised over Rs.50,00,000. This support augmented our other important initiatives and also our COVID-19 response. Consequently, we were able to reach out to underserved citizens in 16 states and provide one month’s dry ration to 387,495 people. We also distributed 60,080 ready-to-eat meal packets and 57,424 safety kits. We were able to transfer Rs. 264.45 lakh to 5289 households and provide critical information about the pandemic to over 5 million people. We also provided 6,626 PPE Kits to front-line workers and hospitals.”

In 2021, he adds, the aim of the Trailwalker Challenge is to generate even more synergy so that important conversations about gender based discrimination and inequality can be mainstreamed all through the year and women in crisis can be helped in a substantial way.

Participants can register on the following link – https://virtualtrailwalker.oxfamindia.org/