RBL Bank Flags off 8th edition of ‘Umeed 1000’ Cyclothon in support of Inclusive Education  

Mumbai, December 1, 2021: RBL Bank, one of India’s leading private sector banks, today flagged off the 8th edition of its flagship CSR initiative UMEED 1000 Cyclothon, to raise funds for Inclusive Education. 159 cyclists, including 59 RBL Bank employees, will cycle 1000 kms each to support Inclusive Education. The Bank also aims to ensure that education is accessible to everyone, through its digital education initiative in association with the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS).
 
This initiative comes close on the heels of its precursor, a 100kms Cyclothon, that was held in Bhubaneswar last month which was a step forward in the Bank’s inclusive agenda. It saw participation from 70 cyclists which included Senior Bureaucrats, along with RBL Bank employees and cyclists from the Indian Armed Forces. The Bank also hosted the ‘Swarnim Vijay Mashaal’ at the event, led by the Indian army.
 
The event has been divided in phases – A charity challenge, ‘Donate Miles to Educate’ was initiated from October 2, where employees of RBL Bank and their families walked, ran or cycled to donate miles and support education for all. These miles were monetised by the scale of every 1km = ₹10 by RBL Bank. Moreover, during festive occasions, the scale was elevated with 5x/10x rewards for the donated miles.
 
On the occasion, Rajeev Ahuja, Executive Director, RBL Bank, said, “One of the biggest impact bearers of the pandemic has been education, especially for the disadvantaged communities. Given the novel circumstances, there has been a steeper rise in school dropouts, with many being left out of the sphere of education for multiple reasons. Through the 8th leg of the UMEED 1000 Cyclothon, it is our endeavour to help these impacted communities adapt and continue to gain unfettered access to education.”
 
Shanta Vallury Gandhi, Head – HR, CSR and Internal Branding at RBL Bank added “RBL Bank gives utmost priority to social responsibility and is fully committed to serving the marginalized communities through its various CSR pillars encompassing Health, Education and Livelihood Opportunities (HELO). To help communities cope with the challenges posed to education due to the pandemic, the Bank aims to provide quality education to children from underprivileged communities, adults who dropped out of school and set up a school focusing on Children with Disabilities (CWD) in Maharashtra, while continuing to educate the girl children of Udbhav RBL School in Fatehnagar, ensuring we extend the best possible hand of help and encouragement for our collective dream of inclusive education to those who get left behind.”  
 
T. Muralidharan, Chairman Fundraising – Udbhav School, run by IIMAAAHC Trust highlighted, “Central Cabinet Minister of Education highlighted that 150 million Indian children are out of school. This includes children from underprivileged communities, children with special needs and children with learning disabilities. We are grateful for RBL Bank’s commitment towards Education, which will help us focus on all three segments and explore the digital route of Open Schooling, thus reaching out to many more children.”