12 tribal girls from district all set to tame Himalayas

MYSURU: While majority of tribals living in the forest fringes have never seen nearby towns or cities, twelve tribal girls from the haadis (hamlets) of Nagarahole and Bandipur Tiger Reserves are set to climb the Himalayas.
The tribal girls studying in Swami Viveka Tribal Centre for Learning (VTCL) in Hosahalli will be participating in the expedition to Himalayas which is being organised by Tiger Adventure Foundation (TAF) founder D S D Solanki and Madhya Pradesh’s Kanha Tiger Reserve naturalist Mohan Kumar from May 2 to 17 next year.

The girls, who are mostly from Class 7 to 8, will not only trek the snow-clad steep mountains, but they will also participate in adventure sports like paragliding and visit the famous tourist places in New Delhi, Agra, Amritsar, Mathura, Manali and Wagah Border.

However, the organisers, who had planned to take only female tribal students for the expedition, had a huge task during selection. Of the 120 students from Class 7 to 10 who had come for the selection, only 12 were selected on the basis of physical fitness and medical examination.

Solanki told STOI that the students were selected after getting consent of their parents with indemnity bond undertaking.

“After the selection process was completed, from November the students are getting physical training at their institution from physical trainer Nanjundaswamy, which is supervised by us. While most of the girls have not even travelled in trains, it will be thrilling for them to travel in flights from Bengaluru to New Delhi,” he said.

While the expedition is led by Riya Solanki from Mysuru, Solanki said the cost estimated cost for the expedition would be Rs 6.76 lakh. “We are seeking contribution from general public to realise the dreams of the tribal girls,” he said.