It is the moment the World Cycling Alliance (WCA) had been waiting for. With the UN General Assembly adopting a resolution to declare June 3 as World Bicycle Day, there is palpable joy among cycling enthusiasts. And D.V. Manohar, the newly-appointed vice-president of WCA and the only Indian on the Board, is quite elated.
“This is what the WCA and the European Cyclists Federation have been campaigning for, over the last two years. I am sure this will give a major fillip to cycling across the world just as World Yoga Day did to yoga,” Mr. Manohar said here on Tuesday.
To celebrate the day in a big way, Delhi will host a grand cycling event on June 3, with a similar do planned in Hyderabad too.
“The All India Bicycling Federation is planning to start the cycling event from India Gate. Here, we are waiting for formal approval from the authorities concerned,” he said while showcasing smartbikes today.
“The response to public sharing of these smartbikes has been very good with the registered number of customers touching 5,000 at the seven bike stations. More importantly, the Cyber City station has been rated the best in the world,” Manohar said.
“We have a tie-up with the Hyderabad Metro Rail and the customers can use their smartphones by hooking onto the app to book the smartbikes which are fitted with a computer, gears and GPS,” D. Dharmin, co-founder of Smart Bike Mobiity Pvt Ltd, said.
WCA president Manfred Neun and General Secretary Bernhard Ensink, through video conferencing, said that the UN move would have a huge impact on cycling. “The message that cycling leads to a humble, healthy and happy life will now spread across the world, thanks to UN resolution. And to mark this great day, we are conducting a cycling event featuring one lakh participants in Berlin and New York,” they said.
