Southern Command team scales Bhagirathi II

The triumphant Southern Command mountaineering expedition team that conquered the 6,512 metre Bhagirathi II peak in the Gadhwal Himalayas was flagged-in Thursday by Lt Gen Pradeep Khanna.

The triumphant Southern Command mountaineering expedition team that conquered the 6,512 metre Bhagirathi II peak in the Gadhwal Himalayas was flagged-in Thursday by Lt Gen Pradeep Khanna,General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C),Southern Command. Mt Bhagirathi II is the second-highest peak of the three sacred peaks of the Bhagirathi group of mountains. The team finished the expedition in 27 days despite rough weather conditions.

Such expeditions should be organised at least once a year by the Command. It is a great feeling to know that the Command that normally looks southwards or does desert safaris and coast expeditions is conquering the northern mountains, said Lt Gen Khanna.

Led by mountaineer,Brig MP Yadav,the expedition was flagged off on August 21. The first ever mountaineering expedition by the Command included a team of 34 members- five officers,six JCOs and 23 other ranks reached the summit around 3.15 pm on September 16.

On September 5,the team commenced its journey from Uttarkashi to Gangotri. After covering 18 km,they set up their Intermediate Base Camp (IBC) at Gomukh. The Base Camp (BC) was established at Nandanvan. We established our Advance Base Camp at nearly 4,800 metres on September 13. By the time we were set to establish Base- Camp I at 5,400 metres,the weather turned bad. Our experiences on September 15 and 16 are unforgettable. It was snowing heavily and there was four-feet snow outside the camp. The other teams that had gone before us were not able to complete the expedition. National Council of Medium Range Forecast had informed us that there is a small window of 16 hours when the weather would be clear and we made use of the opportunity, said Brig Yadav.

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