Lucknow girl rises to the top: In a 1st in country, female NCC cadet completes gruelling advance mountaineering course

A student of Bappa Shri Narayan Vocational PG College, Shalini was the only female cadet in the team of 45 that was selected for this course.

LUCKNOW City girl and under-officer Shalini Singh has scripted history by becoming the first female NCC cadet in the country to successfully complete the advanced mountaineering course in the Himalayan region of Uttarkashi in Uttarakhand.

Under-officer from 67 UP Battalion, Shalini Singh, successfully completed the advanced mountaineering course. (HT Photo)

A cadet from 67 U.P. Battalion, the 20-year-old began the month-long mountaineering course after having completed the mandatory basic mountaineering course last year at Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir. A student of Bappa Shri Narayan Vocational PG College, Shalini was the only female cadet in the team of 45 that was selected for this course. She scaled 15,400 feet through snow-covered mountains in the Dring Valley.

Under this course, the trainee mountaineering team was given special training from April 26, 2023, to May 6, 2023, at Tekla, Uttarkashi at an altitude of 4,200 feet by the instructors of the Army.

A pivotal role behind her success is that of Colonel Puneet Srivastava, commandant of 67 UP Battalion NCC Lucknow, who provided special training and necessary facilities while encouraging her to pursue this feat.

Shalini said that this month-long course had to be completed in extremely inhospitable conditions in less than sub-zero (-14 degrees Celsius) temperatures. “This victory is a product of my passion and efforts. I hope that this achievement will be an inspiration for other girls of the country as well,” she added.