ITBP mulls having all-women mountaineering team

New Delhi, July 15 (IANS) With the rising interest of women in adventure sports, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) is mulling over the idea of having an all-women mountaineering team.

An ITBP official here said: "We have observed that women personnel are showing keen interest in adventure sports such as mountain climbing and trekking. A group of 14 women undertook an advanced course training in mountaineering from the Mountain and Skiing Institute (M&SI) in Auli, Uttarakhand. There is an idea to have a dedicated all-women mountaineering team."

These women, between the age group of 20 and 30 years, underwent an extensive and rigorous training for six weeks at the institute, where they learned about the techniques of mountaineering and trekking and also how to carry out search and rescue operations in difficult and hostile conditions.

As a part of their advanced training course, they also successfully climbed an unnamed peak around 17,000 ft high near Mana post in Uttarakhand.

"They have been imparted various trainings including rock craft, ice craft and snow craft besides survival techniques in high altitudes," officials added.

They also undertook a cleanliness drive around the Badrinath Temple and the Alaknanda ghats in Uttarakhand.

ITBP Deputy Inspector General Aparna Kumar had set the trend by completing 'Seven Summits' challenge by scaling Mount Denali peak in North America on June 30.

The ITBP started recruiting women personnel in January 2017 and since then these personnel have been posted along the India-China border from Arunachal Pradesh to Ladakh. It has also opened combat roles for women officers.