HYDERABAD: The Great Hyderabad Adventure Club - GHAC and the Society to Save Rocks conducted the fourth edition of the Hyderabad Rockathon on Sunday, at the stunning rocks around the 400 year old Ghar-e-Mubarak Dargah at Bairagiguda near Taramati Baradari.
The Hyderabad Rockathon attracted 500 participants from all walks of life. Rockwalk, rappelling, zip lining, treasure hunt, rock quiz, photography, rock balancing and rock drawing were few of the 15 activities that had both children and adults participating at the day-long event.
“The aim of the event was to sensitize the general population about the importance, preservation and protection of rocks as the rocks are very much a part of our ecosystem and play a very important role in ground water level preservation and are home to many flora and fauna in nature,” said Frauke Quader, Secretary, Society to Save Rocks.
The fourth edition of Hyderabad Rockathon supported Telangana tourism, highlighted the need for preservation of the over 2,500 million years old Deccan Rockscapes and to promote adventure sports, outdoor recreation and environmental protection.
Diyanat Ali, Founder, Great Hyderabad Adventure Club said, “The Rockathon was a blend of adventure and conservation and participants got to enjoy the beauty of our stunning ancient granite formations. These rock formations are so beautiful that they can be conserved for future generations by making the Heritage precincts and few other remaining rock formations in and around Hyderabad into rock parks which would provide the citizens good opportunities for adventure and fun activities.”
He added that the Rockathon is a tradition of celebrating adventure while spreading the important message of rock conservation. In its full glory of greens and granite, Ghar-e-Mubarak invited Hyderabadis for a day-long feast of rock and adrenaline.
“I have lived my life among rocks as a child in Banjara hills and the rocks have been a very much part of my life and it pains to see these beautiful formations that date back to 2500 million years old broken down for construction”.