Finolex Industries participates in Pandharpur Wari Yatra along with millions of Vitthal Devotees

Pune, June 22, 2022: The month of Jyeshtha is on the wane and Ashadha beckons. The marching, singing, dancing, praying, joyous feet of nearly a million devotees thrum a glorious beat on the drumskin of the earth. The air is suffused with saffron flags and sandal. The 800 years old journey of a saint is lived again anew in the heart, the sweat, the chant and the song of each Warkari. 
 
Every year, lakhs of lakhs of devotees across Maharashtra undertake a 21-day pilgrimage on foot to the Vithoba temple in Pandharpur. The procession is called the Wari and the devotees are called the Warkaris. This 800-year-old tradition is a distinctive part of the Maharashtrian culture.
 
As it has done over several decades, Finolex Industries Limited is participating in this wonderful human & spiritual experience this year as well. The wari is a daunting journey through rain and sun. Each warkari carries a few belongings, a small musical instrument, a tulsi sapling or an idol of Lord Vitthal. Finolex makes this journey a little comfortable by providing essentials such as raincoats and convenience bags to the pilgrims and to the thousands of policemen who oversee the entire event.
 
Further, Mukul Madhav Foundation, the CSR arm of Finolex, is conducting around 10 medical camps spread across various key locations of the yatra. Several hospitals of Pune have collaborated with MMF to provide this seva.
 
Commenting on the initiative, Pradeep Shastry Vedula, President Sales & Marketing, Finolex Industries Ltd. said, “Over the last 40 years, Finolex products have reached and served millions of customers in every state of the country to establish us as one of the few truly national players in the PVC pipes industry. However, Maharashtra is the birthplace of our organization. The Pandharpur wari holds a special significance for us. It is our continued privilege and honour to be associated with this uniquely special tradition.”
 
Finolex, of course, understands the power of tradition. India’s largest and only backward integrated PVC manufacturer, it has after all become the dominant market leader in the agriculture, plumbing & sanitation segments it is today, through its carefully nurtured traditional values of trust, quality and service to its hundreds of dealers, thousands of retailers, and millions of customers. 
 
“The Pandharpur Wari is not just a spiritual pilgrimage. It is a community building force – people travel, eat, sleep together on this journey without any consideration of caste, creed, gender or socio-economic status. These are values that we strongly believe in. FIL, through its CSR partner Mukul Madhav Foundation, has worked tirelessly in the areas of equality, empowerment, healthcare, and education among others to strengthen the communities it operates in.”, he added further.
 
The first rains have begun. The rising petrichor enchants people across the state. But for those in the path of the Warkaris, the divine smell is nothing but the earth’s joy on touching the feet of the pilgrims.