INDIA. Mumbai: Mortal remains of four, out of five members of the Indian Navy mountaineering expedition team to Mount Trishul I ((height 7120 m), Uttarakhand, who were caught in an avalanche near summit camp on Friday, were retrieved on Saturday.
The deceased were identified as Lt Cdr Rajnikant Yadav, Lt Cdr Yogesh Tiwari, Lt Cdr Anant Kukreti, and Master Chief Petty Officer(MCPO II) Hari Om. Of these Lt Cdr Rajnikant Yadav and Lt Cdr Anant Kukreti were based in Mumbai. All out efforts continue to locate the fifth naval climber and one Sherpa, a Defence spokesman Commander Mehul Karnik said.
Ten climbers had started their approach on the final leg to the summit on Friday morning but were caught in an avalanche short of the summit. Five climbers reached safely to their base camp.
“Deeply anguished by the tragic death of four Navy personnel who were part of the Indian Navy mountaineering expedition to Mt. Trishul. The nation has not only lost precious young lives but also courageous soldiers in this tragedy. My heart goes out to the bereaved families of Lt Cdr Rajnikant Yadav, Lt Cdr Yogesh Tiwari, Lt Cdr Anant Kukreti, and Hari Om MCPO II. My thoughts are with their families in this hour of tragedy. Praying for early locating of the remaining team members, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh twitted.
The search and rescue efforts are underway by the ground rescue team and helicopters from Army and Air Force and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), Commander Mehul Karnik stated.
The expedition was led by commander Vishnu Prasad. It had 17 members drawn from various units of the Indian Navy. The team commenced trek from Chamoli district to the base camp on September 14 after acclimatization and logistics preparations.
The expedition was flagged off by Vice Admiral R Hari Kumar, Flag Officer Commanding in Chief, Western Naval Command from INS Trishul in Mumbai, on September 03. The expedition is part of “Swarnim Vijay Varsha” commemorating 50 years of the victory of India over Pakistan in the 1971 war. The theme of the expedition is ‘Trishul Youdhpoat Se Trishul Parvat Tak’.(from the warship” Trishul” to Mount Trishul).
The Mount Trishul falls in the Bageshwar district of Uttarakhand. The three peaks are named Trishul I, Trishul II, and Trishul III. The main peak, Trishul I, was the first peak over 7120 m (22,970 ft) to have climbed in 1907.
