Army's expedition sets sail from state capital

  • | Monday | 12th November, 2018

Although the expedition is undertaken by the Indian army, the coast guard, navy and air force are offering their full co-operation to the expedition. Being on a sea journey is a unique experience and often, you puke during your first experience at sea. The 40-day expedition covering 3,850 nautical miles will come to a close by the end of this month. "It is a moment of great pride and privilege to be part of such an expedition. Of the 55 members, eight to 10 officers will be in the sail boat all the time.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Commanding Officer of 19th Madras Regiment, Col Dinesh Singh Tanwer, flagged off Army's Indian peninsular expedition from Vizhinjam to Cochin Port on Sunday morning.The expedition, organized by EME Sailing Association, Secunderabad under the aegis of Army Adventure Wing, began the journey from Haldia Port in West Bengal on October 21 and reached the shores of Vizhinjam on Saturday. It will be flagged off from Kochi on Monday to Mangaluru. After spending 20 days along the east coast, the expedition, which covers the Arabian Sea, Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal, came around Cape Comorin and onto the west coast towards Vizhinjam port.Col Dinesh appreciated the effort put by the team and wished all sailors fair sea and favourable winds for the remaining expedition. "It is a moment of great pride and privilege to be part of such an expedition. The expedition aims to generate awareness and comradeship among the forces," he said.Team leader of the expedition, Major Alok Kumar Yadav, said the main objective of the expedition is to foster the adventure spirit among the soldiers in the army and to spread awareness on ocean pollution and integrity of oceans."There are 55 members, including 5 women officers in the team. Of the 55 members, eight to 10 officers will be in the sail boat all the time. The officers are rotated at each call of ports. We have members from all divisions of theArmy and the experience so far has been wonderful," he added.Apart from the officers sailing, the rest of the team are also traveling the distance via Army trucks and train. The team hopes to enter into the Limca Book of Records for travelling the whole waters of Indian peninsular in a sailing boat.There are five Malayali officers in the team, Major Liju Rajan, Lieutenant Arun, Subedar Dileep, Haveldar Hareesh and craftsman Rammohan. There are also five women officers in the 55 member team. Lieutenant Sonal, woman officer who was part of the expedition from Kariakkal to Thiruvananthapuram, said sailing as a sport in India is often seen as a low-key event. "It was a nice experience to travel around the Cape Comorin. Being on a sea journey is a unique experience and often, you puke during your first experience at sea. It was a great adventure," she said.Thiruvananthapuram was the fourth port of call for the team, which had stopped at Visakhapatnam, Chennai and Karaikal. There are five more port of calls scheduled at Kochi, Mangaluru, Goa, Mumbai and Porbandar. The 40-day expedition covering 3,850 nautical miles will come to a close by the end of this month. Although the expedition is undertaken by the Indian army, the coast guard, navy and air force are offering their full co-operation to the expedition.

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