MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Falklands expecting arrival of the all-woman Indian Navy team in INSV Tarini

The tiny sailboat INVS Tarini with its six member crew left India last September and should be arriving in Goa next April. (Pic by Indian Navy)

The all-woman Indian Navy team sailing in the INSV Tarini in one of the toughest feats, a global circumnavigation trip has successfully crossed the notoriously rough Drake Passage, rounding Cape Horn off the southern tip of South America and are en route to Stanley in the Falkland Islands, where they will be arriving any moment.

 The tiny sailboat INVS Tarini with its six member crew left India last September and should be arriving in Goa next April.

Following the feat the sail boat hoisted the Indian flag and Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulates the crew underlining he was “proud of their accomplishments”.

Indian Defense Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had flagged off the 56-foot vessel from Goa on September 10. The indigenously-built INSV Tarini reached Lyttelton in New Zealand early last month after their first stop in Australia. The crew's four stop-over points include, Fremantle in Australia, Lyttelton, Port Stanley and Cape Town.

The five-leg expedition is titled 'Navika Sagar Parikrama'.

Led by Lieutenant Commander Vartika Joshi, the five-leg expedition is titled 'Navika Sagar Parikrama'. The leg between Lyttleton and Port Stanley in the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic Ocean may well be their most challenging.

During their journey, the officers are also collating meteorological, ocean and wave data and monitored marine pollution besides putting together piping hot vadas.

The first Indian solo circumnavigation was undertaken by Commander Dilip Donde, SC (Retd) from August 19, 2009 to May 19, 2010 on board another India-built vessel INSV Mhadei. It was later used by Lt Commander Abhilash Tomy for his own single-handed, unassisted, non-stop circumnavigation from November 1, 2012 to March 31, 2013.