CM Bhajanlal flags off Run for Unity in Jaipur on Patel's 151st birth anniversary
Synopsis
Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma and Union Minister Pralhad Joshi flagged off Jaipur's 'Run for Unity' on Sardar Patel's 151st birth anniversary. Joshi invoked Patel's integration legacy, linking it to the Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat programme. Sharma administered the National Unity Pledge to the assembled crowd of athletes and youth.
Key Takeaways
CM Bhajanlal Sharma and Union Minister Pralhad Joshi jointly flagged off Jaipur's 'Run for Unity' on 31 October 2026 .
The event marked Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel's 151st birth anniversary and National Unity Day.
Joshi credited Patel's leadership with building the integrated India of today, linking it to the Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat programme.
Chief Minister Sharma administered the National Unity Pledge to the assembled crowd.
Several medal-winning athletes participated alongside large numbers of youth in the run.
Run for Unity has been held every 31 October across India since 2014 , when National Unity Day was formally instituted.
On the 151st birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the streets of Jaipur filled with runners — medal-winning athletes and thousands of young citizens side by side — as Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma and Union Minister Pralhad Joshi jointly flagged off the state's 'Run for Unity' on Saturday, 31 October 2026.
What Patel's legacy meant on the streets of Jaipur
Flagging off the run, Union Minister Pralhad Joshi — who holds the Education, Food and Consumer Affairs portfolios in the Narendra Modi government — said the 'one India' visible today owes its very existence to Patel's 'skilled leadership and tireless effort, which can never be forgotten.' He added that under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the resolve of Patel's 'Ek Bharat' (One India) is being realised as 'Shreshtha Bharat' (Supreme India).
Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma administered the National Unity Pledge to the assembled crowd — a ritual now inseparable from the annual observance. Several medal-winning athletes participated alongside large numbers of youth, lending the event the flavour of both civic ceremony and sporting celebration.
From 500 princely states to a single republic — the integration Patel built
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, India's first Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister, oversaw the integration of more than 500 princely states into the Indian Union between 1947 and 1950 — arguably the largest voluntary consolidation of territory in modern history. National Unity Day was formally instituted by the Government of India in 2014 to commemorate his birth anniversary on 31 October every year since.
The Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat programme, launched in 2015, institutionalised the spirit of that integration, establishing cultural and institutional linkages between states and union territories. Joshi's remarks at Jaipur placed the Rajasthan event squarely within that decade-long policy narrative.
Run for Unity: a twelve-year tradition that keeps growing
Since its first edition in 2014, the Run for Unity has been held annually across India on 31 October, bringing together citizens, government officials, and sporting figures in a public display of national cohesion. State-level events like Jaipur's 2026 run have consistently served as platforms for both physical participation and the reaffirmation of civic values — the unity pledge administered by Chief Minister Sharma being a centrepiece of that format.
Twelve years on, the run remains one of the Modi government's most visible mass-participation rituals — and Patel's 151st anniversary gave it renewed resonance. The Iron Man of India never lived to see the republic he helped shape turn seventy-five. The crowds in Jaipur ran in his name anyway.
Point of View
The Run for Unity has evolved from a central government directive into a genuinely competitive state-level showcase — and Rajasthan's scale of organisation will be watched as a benchmark.
NationPress
31 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Run for Unity and why is it held on 31 October?
Run for Unity is an annual mass-participation run held every 31 October to mark National Unity Day, which commemorates the birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel . The Government of India instituted the observance in 2014 to honour Patel's role in integrating more than 500 princely states into the Indian Union.
Who flagged off the Run for Unity in Jaipur in 2026?
Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma and Union Minister Pralhad Joshi jointly flagged off the 'Run for Unity' in Jaipur on 31 October 2026 , on the occasion of Sardar Patel's 151st birth anniversary .
What is Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat?
Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat is a programme launched by the Government of India in 2015 to promote cultural and institutional linkages among states and union territories, inspired by Sardar Patel's vision of a unified India.
What did Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma do at the Run for Unity event?
Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma administered the National Unity Pledge to the assembled crowd at the Jaipur Run for Unity event on 31 October 2026 .
What did Pralhad Joshi say about Sardar Patel at the Jaipur event?
Union Minister Pralhad Joshi said that the 'one India' seen today is the result of Sardar Patel's 'skilled leadership and tireless effort, which can never be forgotten,' and that under Prime Minister Narendra Modi , Patel's vision of 'Ek Bharat' is being realised as 'Shreshtha Bharat' .
