On Wednesday, the expedition team of the Sacred Heart School was flagged off by its director, Albin Anthony, and its principal, Cassendra Mendes, from the Durgadi Fort at 9.45 am.

Shripad Bhosale of Sahayadri Explorers, an adventure sports outfit which has organised the expedition, said that the objective of the initiative was to generate national pride among the children, particularly in the backdrop of the recent terrorist attacks.

The students would be escorted by their trainer Yogesh Sawant and other senior members of the adventure group during the trip so that they don’t come in the way of moving traffic. The team would take about three days to reach the Shivneri Fort where Chhatrapati Shivaji had spent his childhood.

“The Shivneri Fort is a very important educational monument for school children. It was this historical site where Chhatrapati Shivaji received his training and acquired skills that helped him establish Hindavi Swaraj (self-rule),” said Bhosale.

The students have been acquainted with the nature of the expedition and difficulties they would encounter during the trip. They have also been trained to build stamina for long distance roller skating for the past few months.

“The team would be halting at villages on the way where children would be making presentations to create awareness on various subjects like national integration and adult literacy,” said Bhosale.