Up there, one can get badly hit by frostbite if their skin touches steel or gun trigger, for a mere 15 seconds. “Soldiers get to talk to their families once a week for two minutes per person,” says an officer who served at Siachen in 2003. he Siachen Glacier is located in the eastern Karakoram range in the Himalaya Mountains at about 35.421226°N 77.109540°E, just northeast of the point NJ9842 where the Line of Control between India and Pakistan ends. Even a seemingly innocuous action can leave a soldier maimed for life. You have been successfully added to the mailing list of Times of India Travel. He remembers two young officers who had formed a dancing troupe. In September 2003, the governments of India and Pakistan were urged by the participants of 5th World Parks Congress held at Durban, to establish a peace park in the Siachen region to restore the natural biological system and protect species whose lives are at risk. Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard. Do they get to eat roasted onions and canned purée? “Everyone would laugh on receiving these letters but secretly each soldier liked it and cherished the letter.” By Road and By Air. “We have to take a lot of laxatives.”document.write("");googletag.cmd.push(function(){googletag.defineOutOfPageSlot('/6516239/outofpage_1x1_desktop','div-gpt-ad-1490771277198-0').addService(googletag.pubads());googletag.pubads().enableSyncRendering();googletag.enableServices();}); To bathe, the troops have to melt snow. There the pilots literally have less than a minute to drop the supplies as the enemy army is posted just a few hundred metres away. “We were sent packets made by officers’ wives in Delhi, with chocolate, cards and letters of encouragement,” says Bhardwaj. Of course, one cannot survive for long there, while soldiers fight to survive the harshest climatic conditions in the world; staying for long at this altitude might eventually lead to numerous health issues. Siachen Glacier, located near the Indo-Pak Line of Control, is known to be the highest battlefield in the world. Much has been written about the Siachen glacier in the past few days. But these structures keep coming loose and shifting because there is no foundation holding them in place; they are just hammered down into the ice with nails. Siachen Glacier, located near the Indo-Pak Line of Control, is known to be the highest battlefield in the world. Recommend 0. 4) Fresh food is a rare luxury at Siachen. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. Earlier, it was delivered in jerry cans. For others, the life a soldier leads at Siachen is impossible to fathom. To complete the subscription process, kindly open your inbox and click on the confirmation link which has been emailed to you. On an average, India spends ₹ 50 million a day for maintaining troops on the glacier. Now, there is a kerosene pipeline running from the base camp to the last post, with pumping stations in between that have to be constantly maintained. This highest combat region in the world demands soldiers, who are not just physically but mentally strong as well. Updated : May 21, 2019, 11:32 IST. For water, most soldiers just boil snow and drink it. Brar. The human cost is very, very high.” “We would also play pithu, kho-kho or invent new games,” recalls an officer. It is in fact unimaginable how a soldier survives without eating fresh food for so many days. Times Internet Limited. ARY NEWS. Besides, the helicopter cannot carry much load in this area, so the patient often has to be evacuated alone, without any nursing assistant or doctor on board. As a premium subscriber you get an across device unfettered access to a range of services which include: Welcome to the premium services of Business Standard brought to you courtesy FIS. And so, many soldiers lose their lives every year. Feb 10, 2016 07:06pm. Each soldier carries an ice axe, his weapon and a colossal battle load of 20-30 kg. Often you . “That’s a difficult task because it takes a lot of snow to make half a bucket of water. Making a simple dal or chawal is a challenging task when temp drops to -30 to -40 degrees," one Twitter user wrote. In severe cases, the organs might just fall off. “Whenever there is a blizzard, soldiers catch the snowflakes and store it away in jerry cans. Once at the post, the harsh ways of life in Siachen became routine. The sweat has frozen. Each can accommodate six people and two can be joined to take in 12. All efforts to save the life of this 33-year-old lance naik, however, failed. I ate bhindi (okra) raw just to get a feel of fresh food,” recalls Bhardwaj. “And if you touch, say, your metal weapon even briefly without gloves on, you could lose a part of your skin or even the hand. Only those who have served at Siachen can understand what Koppad had endured. As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. As soldiers prepare food or sleep inside — mostly in sleeping bags on the floor or on makeshift wooden planks because beds would take up too much space — the ice underneath melts. Supplies, including ration, are airdropped largely between 5 and 7 in the morning because as the temperature starts rising, the rarefied atmosphere becomes thinner and it becomes difficult for the helicopter to fly. Nmami Life – Best nutritionists in Delhi to guide you – New Delhi, India. It is the longest glacier in the Karakoram Range, running 78 km long and the second lar... 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