The 58-year-old engineer is running the Vizag Half Marathon for the cause ‘Save Soil’.

Subramanya Sharma Challa walks along the coast of Visakhapatnam carrying the Save Soil flag as part of his soil health awareness campaign. | Photo credit: BY ARRANGEMENT

Subramanya Sharma Challa, a 58-year-old chartered civil engineer from Visakhapatnam, completed the 21.1 km run in the Vizag Half Marathon 2026 on Sunday as part of his efforts to raise awareness about soil health.

Mr. Sharma, who started running as part of Sadhguru’s Save Soil movement about four-and-a-half years ago, said he covered 7,642 km carrying the Save Soil flag across cities including Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada, Kakinada, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Goa and Bhubaneswar.

“There’s a lot of awareness today about air pollution and water pollution, but we don’t talk enough about the ground under our feet,” he said.

Mr Sharma said he would continue to participate in organized events to raise awareness of soil health and the need to protect and regenerate soil.

The movement says it seeks to raise awareness of soil degradation and promote policies and agricultural practices to improve soil health.

Published – 04 Oct 2026 20:55 IST