Two teams of Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) mountaineers have successfully scaled Mount Dome Khang located at an altitude of 23,786 Feet in North Sikkim. The border guarding force becomes the first to scale an over 7,250-metre-tall peak located in Sikkim.
According an ITBP spokesperson, the team of mountaineers completed the mission in two groups - rope 1 and rope 2 on September 22 and September 23.
"This is the first ever ascend to this peak by any expedition according to Indian Mountaineering Foundation records. This summit paves way for future expeditions to the peak and will boost adventure sports and tourism in north Sikkim," he told to PTI.
As per reports, Rope 1 was led by deputy commandant Anoop Kumar while the second team was led by commandant Ratan Singh Sonal. A total of 13 members, including a woman, have reached the summit till the last update.
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ITBP mountaineers | Twitter
The expedition comprising a total 21 climbers, including five women, was flagged off by ITBP director general Sujoy L Thaosen on August 11 from Delhi as part of the 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav' celebrations being undertaken in the country to mark 75 years of India's independence.
The mountain-warfare trained force, raised in 1962, has undertaken more than 230 successful expeditions till now.
In June this year, the ITBP mountaineering team scaled 24,131-foot Mount Balbala in Uttarakhand, crossing the second highest peak in the immediate region, after Kamet.
Raised in 1962 to guard the border with China, the force started scaling the Himalayan peaks in the late 1960s, at times carrying out as many as nine expeditions in a single year.
So far, ITBP has successfully completed more than 230 mountaineering expeditions over the years, including scaling Mount Everest four times.
The paramilitary force is primarily tasked with guarding the 3,488 km stretch of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China apart from rendering a variety of duties in the internal security domain of the country.
