The teams get ready to ride the Teesta. Picture by Prabin Khaling

Gangtok, Jan. 4: The “dauntless gunners” have come to Sikkim to ride the Teesta.

After negotiating the rapids in the Zanskar-Indus confluence in Ladakh and the Ganges in Uttarakhand, the Trishul Gunners (also known as the dauntless gunners) of the Regiment of Artillery started off on the last leg of their expedition from Rangpo in East Sikkim today.

The Sikkim part of the Zingata white water rafting was flagged off by Brigadier B.K. Goswami, Brigadier Artillery, Trishakti Corps.

The expedition is called Zingata as the teams are negotiating the rapids in three rivers: the Zanskar-Indus, the Ganges and the Teesta.

The expedition began with rafting on the Zanskar-Indus and Ganges in August. Two teams in two rafts followed by a rescue group in another are participating in the white water adventure here. The gunners are led by Captain Saurabh Sharma.

The expedition will conclude at Coronation Bridge at Sevoke, 80km downstream from Rangpo, on January 6. Each team consists of seven members and have been trained by the Black Cat Gunners, the army formation responsible for conducting adventure activities at Aqua Node, Bardang, in East Sikkim, on behalf of the Black Cat Division.

While flagging off the expedition, Brigadier Goswami said expeditions like this served to inculcate grit, determination, courage and a spirit of adventure in a soldier besides cultivating bonhomie between the army and the peace- loving, friendly people of Sikkim.

“The determination and hard work of every member of the expedition team and their training at the army Aqua Nodal Centre will help the teams to achieve the peak of success,” Goswami added.

Brigadier S. B. Singh, Commander of the Black Cat Gunners Brigade, in his address highlighted the significance of such adventure activities in army life. “The gunners have always been in the forefront in their quest for adventure and such opportunities will enhance the camaraderie between the participants to work as a cohesive team,” he said.

Army sources said the Zingata expedition was first flagged off on August 29 at Chilling in Ladakh by Major General A. K. Oberoi, the General-Officer-Commanding of the Trishul Gunners. The Ladakh part of the expedition was flagged in at Saspol. The distance between Chilling and Saspol is 60km, the sources said.