The past two years have, however, been stable. The army lost four men on the glacier in 2007 – two cases of medical complications and two pilots who died in a helicopter crash on the LoC. This year also, four soldiers have died on the glacier, again mainly due to medical complications.

The main reason, officers say, is the good quality of clothing and special equipment procured in recent years to equip men on the glacier. Most of the clothing - special down feather jackets, gloves, sleeping bags – has improved over the past two years and is being imported from Italy, France and Austria.

“We now have better medical facilities and equipment. Any case that looks bad is evacuated immediately. We don’t need to take any chances on the glacier anymore,” a medical officer says.