Siachen Glacier trekking expedition begins
Srinagar,
Sept
26:
A
trekking
expedition
to
the
Siachen
Glacier
has
begun,
despite
objections
from
the
Pakistan
Government.
"The
first
of
its
kind
expedition
left
for
the
Siachen
Glacier
on
Tuesday," army
spokesman
Lieutenant
Colonel
Anil
Mathur
said.
He
said
the
43-member
team
included
civilians,
men
from
the
army,
journalists
and
students
from
several
military
training
schools.
Mathur said it would take some 20 days for the trekkers to make the trip to the 6,300-metre (20,800-feet) high Siachen Glacier, a battlefield occupied by Indian and Pakistani troops since 1984.
Pakistan and India launched a peace process in 2004 and the guns on the glacier have largely fallen silent, but Siachen remains a bone of contention in negotiations.
Pakistan last week protested to India after the trek was announced as a first step to opening up Siachen to tourists, warning it could hurt the peace process.
Pakistan foreign ministry spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam said India's Deputy High Commissioner had been summoned to receive a "strong protest" over the trek plan.
"The area remains a conflict zone and the reported move by India to open this for tourism could aggravate the situation with serious consequences that vitiate the atmosphere for the ongoing peace process," she said.
Experts say India has around 5,000 troops on the glacier, while Pakistan has less than half that number. Harsh weather and the high altitude claims many more lives than actual fighting over Siachen.
Pakistan also lodged protests with Britain and India over a joint military exercise in Kashmir's Ladakh region, of which Siachen is a part.
Britain's Royal Marines last week kicked off 25 days of joint high-altitude exercises with the Indian army in Ladakh.
Nuclear-armed
India
and
Pakistan
each
hold
part
of
Kashmir
but
claim
all
of
it.
Kashmir
has
sparked
two
of
their
three
wars
since
independence
60
years
ago.
ANI>