Wasim Akram, former Pakistan cricket captain, will lead a marathon walk Sunday here to spread diabetes awareness across the country.

Being organised by Biocon Ltd, the leading biotech firm, which launched its new generation bio-insulin (Insugen) Wednesday, the event will mark the World Diabetes Day.

"We have requested Akram to participate in 'Winning with Diabetes' walk as he represents the best face in the subcontinent to have successfully fought the disease since young age and controlled it," said Biocon chairperson Kiran Mazumdar Shaw here.

The company is mobilizing hundreds of people from all walks of life, including some celebrities to join the event.

"Akram is an icon in the cricketing world and a known diabetic. We want to spread the message through him on the World Diabetes Day that the dreaded disease can be contained with greater compliance and better healthcare," she stated.

Though India ranks among the world's top five countries in diabetics' population, the lack of awareness and absence of compliance by the patients has led to an alarming rise in the number of diabetics in the country.

"On the occasion, we are also launching a dedicated portal (insugen.com) for diabetes with a wealth of information on what it is and how to cope with it," Shaw disclosed.

According to International Diabetes Federation (IDF), about 40 percent of diabetes patients develop complications of the disease during their lifetime.

Poor glycemic control, inadequate diet, smoking and lack of exercise increase the risk of contracting the disease in various forms related to heart, brain, feet, eyes and kidneys.

Diabetes mellitus is a condition in which the human body does not produce or properly use insulin that converts sugar to energy or does not perform both these functions.

--Indo-Asian News Service