Host The Coca-Cola Cup Women Kabbadi Tournament in Uttar Pradesh on the occasion of International Women’s Day
The competition symbolizes women empowerment
Winning team Mahila Mandal Gramin Vikas Sansthan from Mau was felicitated and awarded The Coca-Cola Cup

Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, March 8, 2015: Satyagyan Foundation in association with Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Pvt. Ltd., the largest bottling partner of The Coca-Cola Company in India, organized The Coca-Cola Cup Women Kabbadi Tournament 2015 in the heart of Varanasi. The competition was organized on the occasion of International Women’s Day to symbolize and promote gender equality.

This was the 8th edition of celebrating women empowerment through sport by Satyagan Foundation. The Foundation seeks to empower women by providing means of livelihood to better their lives and those of their families. This year, Kabbadi, a sport that is normally associated with men and male physical prowess in India was chosen to demonstrate and celebrate women’s strength.

The Satyagyan Foundation’s objective was supported by Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages that already works extensively in the area of women empowerment through special initiatives that focus on making women self-sufficient and employable.

The Kabbadi competition saw participation from 16 teams from across 10 villages in 4 districts that competed against each other in the preliminary matches. The semi-finals and finals were attended by an audience of over 1000 that included Mr. Patrick Suckling, Australian High Commissioner to India; Mr. Rahul Singh, Chairman, Satyagyan Foundation and Mr. Prateek Dubey, Zonal Head – PAC, Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages among other dignitaries.

The team from Mau won the tournament by 40-10 in a keenly contested competition that was physically demanding and demonstrated the fighting spirit in all the players.

The winning team was handed over The Coca-Cola Cup by Mr. Satyendra Shukla, City Magistrate, Varanasi.

Speaking on the occasion, Ms. Alpana Vartak, General Manager – Human Resources, Coca-Cola India, said, “Women around the world are already pillars of our business system. We are building on that foundation by implementing several programs under the 5by20 initiative to help women entrepreneurs throughout the Coca-Cola value chain in India and all over the world. On International Woman’s Day, we are proud to partner Satyagyan Foundation and extremely thrilled to see the performance of both the teams today. Congratulations to all the participants of the Kabaddi Tournament.

Rahul Singh, Chairman, Satyagyan Foundation, said on the occasion, “For a long time, Indian women have been doing things that challenge set perceptions around them not being equal to men in certain fields. But that disparity still exists in the rural areas in India. The latest demonstration of physical strength by rural women in the Kabbadi Tournament 2015 organized by Satyagyan Foundation in association with Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages demonstrates how society has been changing. We will continue to create more such platforms to celebrate Indian women and their strengths.”

Gudiya, Captain of the winning team from Mau, added, “We are grateful to Satyagyan Foundation and Coca-Cola India for providing women like us with a platform to showcase that we are an equal in the society. The scenario in urban India is different and our counterparts there have much greater opportunity and support to play the part of equals in the society – be it at home or at work. But life in rural India is different. This Kabbadi tournament helps the confidence of many women and gives them hope that we can achieve much more.”

For further details please contact-

Tarun Rekhi
trekhi@perfectrelations.com
9818532035

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