Indian Navy’s all-women team crosses Cape Horn

A group of six women from the Indian Navy created history by successfully crossing Cape Horn through the Drake Passage, which is the roughest stretch of water on the planet. Sailing in Indian Navy Sailing Vessel, INSV Tarini, the team crossed Cape Horn, the Mount Everest of sailing, as part of the Navika Sagar Parikrama expedition, the first ever attempt by an all-women crew from India to sail around the globe.

The crew, led by Lieutenant Commander Vartika Joshi, started their 22,100 nautical mile circumnavigation journey from Goa in September 2017.  In October, INS Tarini reached its first stop in Fremantle, Australia, after covering 4770 nautical miles. The crew is scheduled to cross ‘Cape of Good Hope’ in March this year.

The exploration also focuses on ‘Nari Shakti’ or women empowerment from a global perspective that could change the society’s attitude towards women in India. The other members of the crew are Lieutenant Commanders Pratibha Jamwal and P Swathi, and Lieutenants Payal Gupta, Vijaya Devi and Aishwarya Boddapati.

INSV Trini is a product of Make in India initiative that was built at Goa shipyard with sails including mainsail, downwind and a storm sail. With a length of over 56 ft she has all modern equipment to sail in extreme conditions.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi applauded the team for their achievement through a tweet which reads: ‘Wonderful news! Delighted that INSV Tarini has rounded Cape Horn in the last few hours. We are extremely proud of their accomplishments’.