ARMY LAUNCHES EXPEDITION TO EXPLORE FORTS
A team of one officer and 10 young soldiers of the Army commenced a cycling cum trekking tour of six important forts of the Great Maratha Warrior Shivaji. The tour was flagged off by the local formation commander, Brigadier Alok Chandra from Aundh Military Garrison at 6.30am on 14 Mar 16. The team is scheduled to visit Lohgad, Raigad, Torna, Rajgad and Sinhagad over the next 10 days and will cover approximately 375 km in all.
This is actually a pilgrimage to the temples of Warcraft of the Great Maratha Warrior. It is a familiarization with the rugged terrain that Shivaji operated in extremely limited means but unlimited courage and tenacity and thus managed to defeat the designs of the Mughal Empire. He turned difficulties of terrain into an ally and in modern parlance a force multiplier.
The team would seek to visualize the relevance of these to Shivajis battles and the circumstances in which they gained prominence in Maratha folk lore. The expedition would also interact with local populace and motivate the youth towards adventure activities and the armed forces. The team is led by Captain Arvind Kumar Singh and soldiers of Maratha Light Infantry. The team is scheduled to return on 25 Mar 16.