NEW DELHI, Sept 7:
Notwithstanding Pakistan’s protests, Indian Army today flagged off a civilian trekking expedition to the Siachen Glacier.
“Surging the civil-military interaction, the Leh-based 14 Corps today flagged off the trekking expedition consisting 22 volunteers from all walks of society, who will cover 120 kms over eight days at altitudes of upto eight days,” Army said in a release.
The entire trek will be supervised by the Army under expert mountaineers to ensure safety of the expeditionaries.
The civilian Siachen expedition had run into a controversy when it began in 2007 after Pakistan lodged a strong protest, calling it “incongruous” to the ongoing peace efforts between the two countries.
Though the Army halted the trip immediately after the protest that year, it went ahead with the trekking expedition after a go-ahead was given by the Government later.
Every year since then, India continued with its Siachen expedition of civilians and mountaineering enthusiasts, even as Pakistan voiced its concern.
Despite protests from Pakistan, India maintains it does not need Islamabad’s approval to send trekkers to Siachen, which is essentially in Indian territory. (PTI)
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