36 armymen set out on sea expedition,Mumbai to Maldives

A total of 36 sailors attached to the regiments of Indian Army posted at the College of Military Engineering,have embarked on a sailing expedition from Mumbai to Maldives and back.

The month-long expedition was flagged off by the CME commandant Lt,Gen USP Sinha. “Such ventures instill a spirit of adventure among young officers and inculcate qualities of leadership,initiative,camaraderie and character,” Sinha said. The expedition will cover 3,000 nautical miles (5,000 km) from Mumbai to Colombo (Sri Lanka),Male (Maldives) and back.

“The challenge to cruise non stop across the choppy waters of Arabian Sea without any technological devices called out to the adventurers in all of us,” said Major Karunakaran of CME,the expedition leader.

The expedition has set off on Yacht Trishna,a 36-feet Swan Class of 1970 vintage which has undertaken a number of sailing expeditions in the past,including a trip around the world in 1986.