Hyderabad|India|February'2009: Hyderabad’s first ever Cyclothan, a bicycle rally to create awareness about the benefits of cylcing held on Sunday morning at People’s Plaza at Necklace Road. The rally was flagged off by many dignitaries such as A. Chakrapani, Chairman of the Andhra Pradesh state legislative council, MLA Kishan Reddy, Christine Lazarus, Nominated member of AP Legislative Assembly, Vinayak, Principal of Abhyasa School and others. About 500 bicyclists have participated in this 9kms stretch friendly rally. The moment it was flagged off they pedalled upto Sanjeevaiah park and retuned back to People’z Plaza.

Forty bicyclists from Hyderabad Bicyclists Club, students of thirty Engineering collegs, such as Malla Reddy, CMR, VJR, school students of Chinmayananda, Sister Nivedita, Meridian, Abhyasa School etc have participated. Few participants from Google, Infosys Eco Club etc have also taken part. There were equal number of girls participated in the rally. The participation fee was Rs 30/-. The bicycles were provided by Passionate Foundation which has got about 250 new bicycles on hire spending about Rs ten thousands. About 40 volunteers from Passioante Foundation namely Chaitanya, Dheeraja, Tina, Teja, Rahul, Pranith, D.Rakesh etc. have made the arrangements for the smooth conduct of the rally.

Passionate Foundation the organiser of the rally is a city based NGO founded and run by the youth of Hyderabad aims at inspiring the youth to take up social responsibility and community service in thier own community.

Passionate Foundation aims at inspiring the Citizens of Hyderabad to take up Cycling as a means of transport and save the environmental pollution and degradation. Disclosing this Mr. Chaitanya, Founder Secretary of the Passionate said, the Rally aims at making people realize all the advantages of Cycling, which include health reasons, traffic problems, Environmental pollution and sustainable source of energy etc.

Speaking on the occasion many dignitaries who graced the occasion said Cycling is a great fun activity that is especially enjoyed by kids. It is a fantastic workout that not only enables you to derive pleasure, but also goes a long way in ensuring your overall fitness. The best part about this sporting activity is that, you find cycling a delightful experience, without even realizing that it has done good to your body.

Members of Hyderabad Cycling Club participating in a Cyclothan organised by Passionate Foundation

When you like pursuing a particular activity, then carrying it out doesn't appear cumbersome to you.There are innumerable benefits of cycling. It minimizes the risk of coronary heart disease and provides protection from the clutches of health problems like strokes, diabetes and cancer. It ensures that your blood pressure is under control. Pursuing cycling helps a great deal in building your stamina, to enable you to carry out your day-to-day activities effectively. Cycling is one of the most effective exercises to shed off those extra calories and get rid of flabby abs. Even a small amount of cycling would be good enough to boost your metabolism level, thereby fastening your weight loss program. It helps to improve the overall balance and coordination. Not only, it paves for maintaining health fitness, but also for leading a healthy peaceful life. So, cycle off your weight and tensions and lead a happy fit lifestyle.

Passionate in the span of one year has orgaized several activities such the first ever Youth Assembly of Hyderabad, Three Medical Camps in the slums of Hyderabad, Participation of the Youth in the Policy making of the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly, Peace Walks, etc. Chaitanya, 17 years old is a student and a young achiever. He recently founded Passionate (NGO) and is a Winner of U.N. Award for Excellence in Community Service at United Nations Youth Assembly - 2007 at New York. He is a youth to reckon for service activities in the state of Andhra Pradesh.