'Run for Unity': As it happened

New Delhi: 8:49 am: 'Run for Unity' marathon concludes.

8:39 am: President Pranab Mukherjee also participates in the 'Run For Unity' as he flags off the event from Rashtrapati Bhawan.

8:27 am: According to the Delhi Police, over 10,000 people are participating in the marathon.

8:20 am: Sports icons Bijender Singh, Yogeshwar Dutt, Sushil Kumar participate in the 'Run for Unity'.

8:19 am: Rajpath is brimming with people as thousands take part in the 'Run for Unity'.

8:17 am: Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu runs with other participants in the marathon.

8:16 am: Prime Minister participates in the 'Run for Unity'.

8:13 am: PM Modi flags off 'Run for Unity' in Delhi to commemorate Sardar Patel's birth anniversary

8:09 am: PM administers the 'Unity Oath'.

8:09 am: "Our culture and legacy is of Unity in Diversity. Let us rise over differences of creed, community, language," says PM.

8:05 am: "Gandhi seemed incomplete without Sardar Patel...It was a unique partnership," says PM.

8:04 am: Through his skill, vision and Rashtra Bhakti Sardar Patel integrated the nation. We can never forget his contribution: PM

8:02 am: Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel...their bond remained unbreakable: PM

8:01 am: Sardar Patel joined Mahatma Gandhi and integrated the farmers in the freedom struggle: PM

8:00 am: "We cannot divide history & legacy according to our ideologies," says Modi.

7:58 am: A country which forgets its history cannot create history. Today is the inspiring day when we remember Sardar Patel: PM

7:57 am: Modi evokes Patel with "Sardar Patel Amar Rahe, Amar Rahe" slogan.

7:54 am: Naidu hails Patel, remembers his contribution towards the unity of our country.

7:53 am: Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu delivers the welcome address at India Gate.

7:50 am: Cricketer Gautam Gambhir will also participate in the 'Run for Unity' marathon.

7:48 am: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other ministers reach India Gate to launch 'Run for Unity'.

7:45 am: Union External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj is also present at Patel Chowk along with PM and other ministers.

7:44 am: Thousands of students have been gathered at India Gate to participate in the 'Run for Unity'.

7:42 am: Before heading to Patel Chowk, PM had tweeted, "Sardar Patel's life is a journey of deep-rooted courage, dedication & service to the Motherland. He is truly the architect of Modern India."

7:40 am: Prime Minister Narendra Modi pays tribute of Patel at Patel Chowk, New Delhi. Accompanying him is Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu and Delhi Governor Najeeb Jung.

It is a celebratory mood at Vijay Chowk near India Gate in New Delhi as Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to flag off the 'Run for Unity' on the occasion of the birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, which is being commemorated as Rashtriya Ekta Diwas.

Modi will pay floral tributes at the statue of independent India's first home minister at Patel Chowk, Parliament Street, at 7.30 am and thereafter address the participants of the 'Run for Unity' at Vijay Chowk at 7.40 am. He will then administer the Unity Pledge at 8 am.

The run from Vijay Chowk to India Gate on Rajpath will be flagged off at 8.15 am, Home Ministry said in a statement on Thursday.

Modi has been very vocal about the contributions of Patel during the days of freedom struggle. During his term as the Gujarat Chief Minister, Modi had started off a similar 'Run for Unity' marathon in Vadodara to mark the death anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.

When Modi moved to 5 RCR earlier this year in May after taking charge as the Prime Minister, the central government had announced that it would observe the birth anniversary of Patel on October 31 every year as National Unity Day as a tribute to his efforts to unite India.