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There I was. Peacefully having a cup of coffee.
Suddenly a new notification popped up on my phone.
'10 Feared Dead As Avalanche Hits 41 NIM Trainees'.
This news hit me hard. It could have been me or you. More bad news kept coming of trekkers missing, trapped in glaciers, falling in crevices, dying.
Jan: Trapped in snow, two teenagers die of hypothermia Read
Feb: 02 trekkers die falling off Katarwadi mountain peak in Maharashtra. Read
May: IAF helicopters rescue stranded trekkers in Rudraprayag. Read
May: Trekker dead on Bali Pass. Read
May: Gurgaon woman dies on EBC. Read
Aug: Tapi Mra, first Arunachalee to climb Everest, missing. Read
Sep: Trekker dead, 6 other stranded in Chamoli. Read
Sep: 27 year old man meditating on glacier rescued from Kedarnath. Read
Oct: 10 dead as avalanche hits 41 NIM mountaineer. Read
Oct: West Bengal trekker dies on Kedarnath trek, another safely rescued. Read
Nov: Missing US trekker found dead in forest near Dharamshala. Read
Dec: Trekker dies after falling from Tail Baila cliff in Pune. Read
What the hell is going on? Why are so many trekkers dying in the mountains?
This question was driving me insane. Insane to the point that I would lie awake at night thinking about those unfortunate trekkers that died doing something that is supposed to bring you so much joy and happiness.
I had to get to the bottom of this.
I went back and re-read every single article about missing or dead trekkers.
And, I found something.
But first, let me tell you about 34 year old Alok Biswas from West Bengal.
Alok was a primary school teacher who on the insistence of a neighbourhood friend went to Kedarnath. He was with a group of 10. Kedarnath in October? This is how this tragedy unfolds.
Oct 2 - Trek begins from Ransi Village
Oct 3 - Alok calls his wife and mother on the day of Durga Ashtami
Oct 8 - 8 out of 10 trekkers reach Kedarnath at night. They left two trekkers behind who were unable to walk further. They inform the police but since it's night and weather is bad, rescue operations have to wait till morning.
Oct 9 - Rescue team begins search but returns empty handed. The two trekkers remain trapped in the Mahapanth glacier.
Oct 10 - Team goes back and finds the two trekkers by evening. 48 hours after being stranded. Vikram Majumdar was alive and rescued. Alok Biswas was not so lucky. He had taken his last breath that morning. His body could not be brought down due to bad weather.
Oct 28 - A six member high altitude rescue team is airlifted to retrieve the body. Due to heavy snowfall, they are unsuccessful.
Nov 2 - 23 days after he passed away, Alok’s Biswas body is recovered.
23 days!
Take a minute to watch his rescue video. If you watch in normal speed you will completely miss what I saw. Instead watch the video in normal speed for the first 20 seconds and then switch to playback speed 0.25. (Settings > Playback speed > 0.25)
Did you see what's inside the tent? My guess is that’s Alok. Dead.
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Back to the articles. One name constantly kept coming up. Lalita Negi. Inspector Lalita Negi is the spokesperson for State Disaster Relief Force (SDRF). Surely, she must have some answers for me.
After lying to several government officials that I was a journalist, I finally got hold of Inspector’s mobile number. I called her. She confirmed that in recent years the number of trekking related accidents and deaths has sharply risen. My doubts were real.
I wrote an email to SDRF, Dehradun requesting permission to speak with rescue officers and understand what was causing these tragedies.
Meet Head Constable Ravi Chauhan & Head Constable Virendra Kala, both part of SDRF Uttarakhand Police High Altitude Rescue Team.
We spoke for an hour. Here are the 4 main reasons why death rate have shot up for trekkers and tourists -
- Trying to save money and hiring inexperienced locals as guide
- Not accounting for bad weather while planning their itinerary
- Not getting enough ration to plan for emergency days
- Forcing guides to move ahead even in bad weather
These reasons for tragedies are avoidable with preparation and planning.
The single biggest piece of advice that both rescue officers gave me was that if you are injured or in trouble in the mountains, do not step away from the trek route. It becomes impossible for the rescue teams to find stranded trekkers in the vast space if they separate themselves from the path.
Alok would have been alive if they had checked weather reports. If he had not travelled away from the trek route. If a proper tour operator was hired.
Was he even fit to go there in the first place? Too many unanswered questions. Too late now. I feel choked.
I salute the high altitude rescue teams who put their lives on the lines for us.
Jai Hind.
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