Capt Shiva Chouhan first woman officer to be deployed at Siachen Glacier

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January 3

Capt Shiva Chouhan has become the first woman officer of the Indian Army to get operationally deployed at Siachen Glacier, the world’s highest battlefield.

To lead Sappers team

• An Engineer Officer from Bengal Sappers, she is posted at “Kumar Post” at an altitude of 15,632 feet
• The Sappers team led by her will be in charge of numerous combat engineering tasks

Hailing from Rajasthan, Captain Chouhan is an Engineer Officer from the Bengal Sappers. She is posted at the “Kumar Post” at an altitude of 15,632 feet where night temperatures are close to -25°C. The Kumar Post on Siachen Glacier is named after Col Narendra (Bull) Kumar, the noted Army mountaineer who led the first expedition to Siachen before India launched Operation Meghdoot in April 1984 to capture the glacier.

Captain Chouhan was deployed yesterday to the Siachen Glacier, having reached there after an arduous climb. The Sappers team led by her will be in charge of numerous combat engineering tasks. It will be deployed at the post for three months. Before the new posting, Captain Chouhan underwent a month’s arduous training at Siachen Battle School along with other Army personnel. The officer was put through rigorous training in endurance strength, ice wall climbing, avalanche and crevasse rescue and survival drills.

She has done her schooling from Udaipur and holds a Bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Udaipur. She lost her father at a young age of 11 years. Her mother, a housewife, took care of her studies. Since her childhood, she was motivated to join the Armed Forces and showcased unparalleled zeal during training at Officers Training Academy, Chennai. She was commissioned into the Engineer Regiment in May 2021.

Displaying grit and determination, she successfully led a cycling expedition from Siachen War Memorial to Kargil War Memorial in July 2022, covering a distance of 508 km.

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