Army Medical Corps doctor from Metturu shows mettle
In February this year, she became the only woman to complete a 1,040-kilometre rafting expedition on the mighty Brahmaputra River, a feat that earned her a place in the World Book of Records (London). The expedition, conducted under the leadership of Col. Ranveer Singh Jamwal, SM, VSM & Bar, a Tenzing Norgay Awardee and the first Indian to climb all the highest peaks of India, took the team through high-grade rapids and remote terrains, from the Indo-Tibetan border in Arunachal Pradesh to the Indo-Bangladesh border.
'The Brahmaputra was magnificent, but it was also merciless,' she recalls. 'One day, a giant wave hit us with such force that our raft flipped. In those few seconds, we were completely underwater, unsure if we'd come out alive. But we didn't panic. We trusted our training. We held on to each other. And we survived. That moment showed me how thin the line is between life and death and how powerful courage and calmness can be,' she expressed.
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Business Standard
32 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Andaman & Nicobar plan commercial helicopter services to boost tourism
The Directorate of Civil Aviation, Andaman & Nicobar administration, has invited Expressions of Interest (EOIs) from registered Indian aviation companies for introduction of commercial helicopter services from Sri Vijaya Puram (formerly Port Blair) to 11 islands in the archipelago, popular among tourists. The call for EOIs, issued on August 4, is aimed at obtaining response from interested operators and ironing out operational concerns before proceeding to a formal tender. Subsequent to this, based on the responses would float a transparent and competitive request for proposal (RFP) on no-cost-no-commitment (NCNC) basis for selection of the operator. The administration's pitch is anchored in existing infrastructure. On the northwest side of Veer Savarkar International Airport's runway sits a dedicated inter-island helicopter terminal, complete with passenger facilities, security screening, and a hangar. The apron can park up to six helicopters at a time, while a 32-by-29-metre hangar stands ready for operations. Operators to bear full responsibility Under the plan, the island administration would serve as facilitator, offering helipads and related amenities — from waiting rooms to X-ray machines — available at a cost. Operations from Sri Vijaya Puram to all the proposed routes can be undertaken by filing flight plan(s) with Air Traffic Control (ATC) service, provided by Indian Navy (INS Utkrosh), while refuelling would be provided by Indian Oil Corporation. No government subsidies or viability gap funding are on offer. Operators would assume full responsibility for aircraft, crew, passengers safety, and property, along with all insurance and liability obligations. Rising tourism spurs push for helicopter service Tourism to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands has surged in recent years. In 2024, the archipelago welcomed roughly 722,000 visitors, a steady increase that has prompted major investments in infrastructure, according to the Andaman & Nicobar administration. In 2023, the Veer Savarkar International Airport inaugurated a new integrated terminal building capable of handling 1,200 passengers an hour, or up to five million domestic and international travellers annually. Inter-island air connectivity has become a priority. The administration has developed 19 helipads — 12 of them strategically located in popular tourist destinations across south, north, and middle Andaman — opening the possibility of helicopter services that could shorten journeys to some of its most remote and scenic parts.
India Today
an hour ago
- India Today
Want to work remotely? First village for WFH in Himalayas is ready for you
Yakten, a small village in Sikkim's Pakyong district surrounded by emerald hills, has just been declared India's first Digital Nomad Village. Once known only to its residents, this quiet settlement is now at the heart of a pilot project under the state's Nomad Sikkim initiative, a bid to draw global remote workers into the Himalayas while boosting local project, a collaboration between the Pakyong district administration and NGO Sarvahitey under the 'Nomad Sikkim' initiative, aims to transform select locations, like Yakten, in the Himalayan state into spots for digital professionals from across the country and even abroad. The initiative is also aimed at providing sustainable income opportunities for homestay is a time when India's digital nomad population is growing. According to the 2025 State of Digital Nomads report by Nomad List, about 1.7 million Indians, or roughly 2 percent of the global nomad community, now combine work with travel. A 2022 Deloitte India Workforce and Workplace survey further found that nearly 80% of Indian professionals prefer remote or flexible OF NATURAL BEAUTY SIKKIM MEETS DIGITAL NOMADSYakten offers a cool Himalayan climate, with summer highs around 24 degrees Celsius and winter nights dipping to about 4 degrees are currently 8 homestays with 18 rooms in the village where digital workers can spend months working in peace. For a private homestay with fast Wi-Fi and coworking access, the 6,000 per week plan is ideal for shorter stays. For longer stays, the 15,000-per-month plan offers a dedicated workspace, cultural activities, and full nearest railhead, New Jalpaiguri (NJP), lies about 140 km away, while Bagdogra Airport is 125 km away, and the state capital Gangtok is just 30 km from India's first nomad village."Sikkim has always been a land of natural beauty and rich culture. What Nomad Sikkim is doing is connecting that cultural strength with the global digital economy," the state's Lok Sabha MP Indra Hang Subba told India Today Subba, the Nomad Sikkim initiative is not just another tourist scheme."This is tourism with purpose, where visitors don't just come and go, but become part of the local story, supporting livelihoods and preserving heritage," the representative the founder of NGO Sarvahitey, Prem Prakash, the idea is bigger than just tourism; it is about helping the local communities thrive."With Nomad Sikkim, we're not just offering work-friendly stays in stunning locations; we're building an ecosystem where local communities thrive alongside global talent. Our goal is simple: to make Sikkim the most inclusive and sustainable hub for digital nomads in South Asia," Prem Prakash told India Today Digital. These homestays, surrounded by mountains and lush greenery, offer an escape in sharp contrast to the pollution and bustle of city life. (Image: Prem Prakash) The initiative also addresses a local challenge, which, in a way, is not too local and applies to most tourist destinations across the years, homestay operators have struggled through the long off-season, which stretches nearly half the year. With very few visitors arriving in Yakten between April and September (monsoon in the Eastern Himalayas), incomes often dried initiative now enables homestay owners and allied local sectors to have a steady income all-year NOMADS AS NEW KINDS OF TRAVELLERSNomad Sikkim, by welcoming new kinds of guests to remote work with reliable internet, offers more than a holiday calendar. It lets professionals stay there for months rather than days, while also getting their work done."By opening these homestays to remote professionals, we are transforming local families into digital entrepreneurs and helping them increase their income by three to five times through a regular stream of income throughout the year," District Collector of Pakyong, Rohan Agawane, told India Today idea has already struck a chord online, and people are already in awe of the idea of spending months working in the lap of seeing this! These kinds of nomad villages are exactly what we need more of, especially ones that are actually needed," wrote one person on social media, as word of Yakten's new identity spread. People go to Sikkim for its pristine mountains, monasteries, and rare calm.(Image: Sikkim Tourism) Another person shared their own memory."Was in Sikkim six years ago. Great place, very different from the rest of India I've been to. Not much pollution at all, not much noise, etc. very chill. Highly recommend it," they itself has undergone a remarkable transformation in the last few years, which has aided in its appeal to cut off by poor infrastructure, it now offers high-speed Wi-Fi with dependable backup, uninterrupted power supply, and eight homestays redesigned with work-friendly spaces."It's a village ready to welcome the modern digital worker," Pakyong's DC Agawane YAKTEN'S PILOT PROJECT COULD BECOME A MODEL PROJECTThe project is being treated as a pilot, to be closely monitored for three years. If successful, more villages across Sikkim will be brought under the is set to become a trendsetter for tourist destinations across like Dharamshala, McLeod Ganj, Spiti, and Rishikesh have already become informal hubs for remote workers. With such an initiative, such as the one in Sikkim, more nomad villages could come up in the near future, for professionals from nearby cities to opt Portugal's Madeira has set the benchmark with its Digital Nomad Village in Ponta do Sol, while Ubud in Indonesia's Bali, Chiang Mai in Thailand, and initiatives in Spain and Italy show how remote work is being used worldwide to revive rural economies and reimagine community Yakten, the experiment is just beginning. In the coming days and months, this quiet Sikkimese village will test whether a place once defined by cardamom fields and bird calls can also hum with keyboards and video calls.- Ends
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
NASA astronaut Mike Massimino who saw India from space calls these two Indian cities 'spectacular'
The visuals of Earth from orbit aren't just a beautiful postcard moment; it's something profoundly moving, and among those who've had that experience is former NASA astronaut Mike Massimino, a man whose journey above the planet eventually brought him back down to Earth in the most unexpected way, right here, to India. Recently, former NASA astronaut Mike Massimino shared an emotional moment from his time aboard the International Space Station (ISS), describing how the beauty of India as seen from space left such a lasting impact that he promised himself he would one day visit the country. That long-held dream finally came true. Speaking with YouTuber and podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia on a recent episode of his show, Massimino remembered how breathtaking the view of India was during his space mission. 'India is very beautiful,' he said, without hesitation, when asked if certain parts of Earth looked more stunning than others from space. According to a clip shared by Ranveer on Instagram, the astronaut described how the lights of major Indian cities like Mumbai and Delhi stood out in the night. He called them "spectacular," talking about the glowing cityscapes under a blanket of stars. But for Massimino, the view was more than just visually stunning; it carried an emotional weight. 'He says he always wanted to visit after seeing it from above,' Ranveer wrote in the post, 'and finally made that dream come true. The beauty he saw from space matched what he experienced on the ground.' Who is Mike Massimino? Mike Massimino is far from your average astronaut. Born in New York, he holds engineering degrees from Columbia University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Selected by NASA in 1996, he flew on two space shuttle missions and spent more than 571 hours in space, including 30 hours of spacewalks to repair the Hubble Space Telescope. He also made history as the first astronaut to send a tweet from space, giving the public a direct glimpse into life aboard the ISS. After retiring from NASA in 2014, Massimino returned to Columbia, this time as a professor of engineering. His recent trip to India, inspired by a decades-old memory from space, is a beautiful example of how even the most distant views of Earth can bring us closer to one another.
