Spirit of Wipro on full display as thousands of Wiproites hit the streets of Bangalore

The start of the Bangalore leg of the 2013 Spirit of Wipro run

The city of Bangalore was witness to over 14,000 people out on the streets yesterday morning as employees of Wipro along with their friends and relatives turned out in force for the 8th edition of the ‘Spirit of Wipro Run’ which was being simultaneously held across the world in around 97 cities on Sunday.

Wipro chairman Azim Premji flagged off the event, which saw runners taking part in three categories – 5 km, 10 km and 21 km – in the Electronics City area of the city, reports News Track India.

This year’s edition titled ‘For the Long Run’ began at dawn and finished by noon, and saw the company’s customers, analysts and suppliers come together for a mazy run around Electronics City.

“We believe planning for such an event is important and requires hard work, pro-activeness, foresight and endurance. Over 50,000 runners, took part,” Wipro chief executive T.K. Kurien said.

Vehicular traffic was blocked during the course of the event to allow the runners to have a free run, as it included some difficult stretches including running upon the elevated highway near Electronics City.

“The run manifests our ethos of endurance, working together to create synergy, superior performance, fortitude and sustainability as well as giving back to the community,” human resources vice-president Pratik Kumar said.

The proceeds from the event will go towards Wipro Cares – the company’s social arm, which will in turn use the funds for community initiatives run by itself or with the assistance of other non-government or charity organizations.

“Over the years, the run has built a tradition of getting people together and making them a part of causes relevant to the local community,” Wipro Cares chief sustainability officer Anurag Behar said.