Ablaze in a Blizzard

India's 5 th winter team had been in Antarctica from Dec 1987 to Mar1989. In this about 480 days the teams perfomance had been unique that no other winter team in the world would have attempted to do. One such event is the design and execution of wintering caravan. Even though four winter teams had been there no one had made any arrangements for winter movement. Perhaps no one might have moved out of the research station. But the necessity has come now as India's second winter station "Maitri" construction had started in Dec 1987 and has to be completed by Mar1989 before Ganesan's team moved out of Antarctica. So there was a need to go to Shirmaachar Oassis hills during wintering period of 1988 which is about 85 Km away where the new station was coming up. The tracked wintering vehicles will have a speed of about 4-5 Km/hr. So about 12 to 15 hrs of drive is required . During this period if blizzard comes one has to stay put as visibility reduces to zero. For all this there was a need to have a caravan type vehicle/trailer. Explaining all these to the secretary, Department of ocean Development, New Delhi, Ganesan got special permission to modify one of the existing container to suit their requirement.

The project was named"Ashrey "and started in March 1988. The steel container was to be cut at different places, and 16/18 mm ply wood used for the design. The caravan is to have accomodation for 6-7 persons, a radio room, a mini kitchen, a toilet. Provision for keeping food and other items are to be made. Frozen items like mutton, fish etc can be outside of the container as the wintering temperature is always -30 -40 * c. The team had worked for day and night as the Polar night was fast approaching. Once sun goes down there will be no day light for about 4 months. By 20 April 1988, the project was completed and was to be inaugurated the next day. But on the next day there was blizzard and could not be conducted. Another day was fixed and unfortunetely that day also had blizzard . This time Ganesan decided to change the name of the caravan to "WILL POWER " and requested members to suggest suitable name in any language. Accordingly name "SANKALP " was selected and a day was fixed for inauguration. But unfortunetely on that day also there was blizzard and even stronger than previous days. But Ganesan did not stop. The team lifted a portable 1.5 KV generator to the container and boiled milk, did pooja and had ready made "suji halwa "as prasad. To day it is almost 30 years old. Sankalp with other modifications in accordance with technological developments still going strong I believe. Long live "Fikar Not Fifteen " (5 th winter team )

Sankalp made frequent trips to Maitri during 1988 .Here Sankalp at midway between Dakshin Gangotri and Maitri'