THE FIRST INDIAN SAILING EXPEDITION AROUND THE WORLD IN YACHT TRISHNA

Return to Mumbai

 Yacht Trishna, with her Crew, entered the Mumbai Harbour at 1600 hours on 10 Jan1987, amidst tremendous cheering and fanfare, escorted by two ships of the Indian Navy, and numerous smaller naval and civil vessels, and yachts of the local sailing clubs. We were received by the then Governor of Mumbai  Mr Alexander, the Chief Of Army Staff  Gen K Sundarji, Gen Dipender Singh Southern Army Commander, FOC-in-C Western Naval Command, Engineer-in-Chief, a host of other dignitaries, and the leading Yachtsmen of the Country. It was a wonderful feeling to be back ‘Home,’ after completing a historic 30,000 nautical miles (54000 kms) sail around the World- the First done by any Indians!!. It was a journey when we saw ‘Death’ facing us many times, and when we all had said our last prayers many times over. But GOD had been very kind to us!! We had heard on our radio, yachts capsizing, big and small boats and even ships overturning, ships getting grounded and many SOS messages sent by sailing vessels. (Even we had sent SOS messages many times, but without any response from anyone). Our crew was extremely tired in the storms and gales that we had encountered continuously for many days at a time, till we could no longer do our ‘watch’ duties two at a time, and had to switch over to only one crew on duty. Our sails got torn into shreds, the stay wire snapped, and we  encountered many many problems on the way!! We really were grateful to GOD to bring all of us back home, without any loss of life!!

 Background

2. All the crew members were from the Corps of Engineers, and experienced sailors. Experience varied from Services Sailing, National Sailing Competitions to International Sailing Competitions. A total of 10 crew members were selected from over 100 volunteers after a tough selection process, and then we all were put through a rigorous training programme, including Ocean sailing, Navigational training, Seamanship training, Radio training, Cooking, Medical training, etc, etc. The Navy, in particular, were very cooperative to us in all spheres. I was lucky in having our Coursemates Bhasin, Anand, and Sonalkar correctly placed in the Naval Headquarters, Western Naval Command, and the Naval Dockyard, where they could help me.
3. We selected a total Team of 10 Officers, out of which six were the crew on board Trishna,( four permanent and two rotating, one at a time) ; two at Delhi( one in touch with the Ministries of Defence and Finance, and one with the Army Headquarters and E-in-C’s Branch) ; one at Mumbai for Communications with the yacht, the E-in-C’s Branch , and in touch with the Coast Guard and the Navy; and one at our Alma Mater CME Pune to supply whatever we needed on the way, and to be in touch with our families. All the 10 crew sailed in the Expedition, four the complete journey and the other six atleast one third of the journey around the World. I was a Lt Col at that time  (1984), and was appointed the Team Manager and crew, and Overall in Charge of the Expedition.  Maj KS Rao was the Skipper, with Maj AP Singh, Maj AK Singh(who was handicapped with amputation done above the knee, and became the First amputee to sail around the World), Maj SN Mathur, Maj A Bhattacharya, Capt R Bassi, Capt S Shekhar, Capt C Bharti and Lt N Ahuja. Maj MS Pillai had joined us at Port Suez, and sailed till India. However, he could not join us in the around the World Expedition, due to International Yachting Competitions.
4. Besides the sailing training at the NDA during  the ‘Hobby classes’, I picked up competitive sailing at CME during the YO’s training, and also took part in Services and National Regattas. During our Engineering Degree Course at CME, I skippered a Sea bird yacht ‘Albatross’ from Mumbai to Goa in 1968. Some of our crew members also sailed from Mumbai to Iran (Bandar Abbas) and back in two sea birds.
5. It took us four years to get a sanction from the Army and the Govt to sail around the World. Too many hurdles to cross, but we made it ultimately. In Jul 1984, Maj AK Singh and myself flew to UK to select a good Ocean going Yacht to sail around the World, as there were none in India, nor could anyone build it with the various safety International certificates required. After looking over 100 Yachts or more, we selected a ‘SWAN’ Class yacht, 37 feet in length( approx 11m) and 3.25 m wide, with two sails(sloop rig), and 15 years old. We repaired her, trained on her around UK and France, and ultimately left Gosport, UK on 12 Oct 84, with a crew of six for India amidst warnings of bad weather. We encountered our first storm in the infamous ‘Bay of Biscay’, which really shook us up! With torn sails, broken aerial, damaged stay, we limped to La Coruna in Spain. After carrying out repairs, and recouping, we sailed to Portugal, Gibraltar, (where we learnt of the death of Indira Gandhi and the tragic riots thereafter)  Isle of Ibiza, Malta, Krete, Irakalion, through the Suez canal, Red Sea, Salalah, Muscat, and reached Mumbai on 1 Feb 85, with a thunderous welcome at the Gateway of India. We had sailed 7700 nautical miles,( approx 14000 Kms) and became the First Indians to sail in a Yacht from UK to Mumbai. It was a creditable achievement for all of us, and we really could not believe that we had done it!!
6. We overhauled Trishna at the Naval Dockyard, Mumbai, and had many technical and legal problems with the Army Headquarters and the Ministies of Defence, External Affairs and Finance. There were innumerable hurdles in getting sanctions for leave, as they did not agree beyond two months plus furlough, not adequate  money in Foreign Exchange, and no temporary duty. It  was almost called off twice, due to bureaucratic problems. We finally set sail around the World, on 28 Sep 85 from the Naval Sailing Club, Mumbai , with our personal foreign exchange money, still waiting for the foreign exchange to be given to us by the Govt.
7. Monsoons had not really finished, so we were caught in the fading Monsoons near Mangalore, Cochin and Sri Lanka. Near Mauritius we  got another jolt from the Weather Gods, followed by storms near the Cape of Good Hope, (also called the Cape of Storms) where we almost hit the rocks whilst rounding the Cape. We were strictly ordered by the  Indian Govt, not to touch any port in South Africa. After Port Louis in Mauritius, we touched the Island of Saint Helena in the Atlantic, (where Napoleon was imprisoned and later died) after 33 days of non stop sailing. We had our communications cables broken in the storm whilst rounding the Cape, and had lost contact with India. We later learnt that the Govt requested the South African Govt to launch a search for us, but their aircraft could not spot us in the storm, so we were given up as lost in the sea. Much to the comfort of our families and the Govt, they were overjoyed when we rang up from Saint Helena, and declared that all of us were safe and sound. We also learnt that the mother of one of our crew, and the daughter of another crew member went hysterical, as they thought that they had lost their son/father; and, we had to send them back from Saint Helena, and Panama.
8. From Saint Helena, we sailed to Ascension Island, where USA was carrying out moon-landing trials, and would not allow us to touch the Island. They gave us food and water at sea, and told us to move on. Thereafter, we sailed to Natal and Belem in Brazil, Surinam, Guyana, Port of Spain, where we again encountered bad weather. With a storm in the Gulf of Mexico, we changed our route. Instead of heading to Miami, we went to Panama.
9. At Panama, we took ‘Trishna’ out of water for overhauling, as a lot of ‘Barnacles’ had got attached to the yacht, and had to be taken out. They were slowing down our speed from 4 Knots to 2 Knots. We were now  almost halfway around the World at Panama. We decided to give a coat of anti-fouling paint to the Yacht. Sails and other parts had also to be repaired. Fumigation had to be done, as Cockroaches had slipped in our Yacht and had to be taken out/killed; and de-ratting (anti-rat fumigation) had to be carried out as per the regulations. It took us 7 days to get the yacht under control, and whilst the paint was drying up, we took a two weeks holiday to the USA.
10. We sailed off from Port Balboa in Panama on 5 Apr 1986 for the beautiful Islands of Galapagos, seen off by the Indian High Commissioner (an Ex Sapper) and other dignitaries at Panama. Galapagos Islands was one of the best halts of our journey. It was ‘Nature at its Best’. What a tremendous variety of birds, reptiles, insects, flora and fauna  that we saw! No wonder, Charles Darwin propounded his ‘Theory of Evolution’, sitting on these Islands!! Of particular interest were the Marine Iguanas (3 feet long lizards which spat right into your eyes when frightened, causing blindness). Absolutely black hideous creatures, ugly to look at, but handled very ably by a German pilot, who was stranded on these islands after the War, after being shot down by the Allied forces. The North part of these Islands had warm equatorial climate, where as the Southern part had cold climate. The cold Peru current comes along the Western coast of South America, and hits these Islands, bringing with it Penguins from Antartica, which get reduced in size by the time they touch Galapagos Islands. A very strange phenomenon, which baffled us!! And we swam with these small penguins!
11. After this lovely halt, we sailed a long distance to Nuku Hiva in the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia. Here we were astonished to find the French Customs searching every nook and corner of our yacht, thinking that we were pirates, or had come to stage a coup on their Islands. Why have six Army officers come in a Yacht to their Islands all the way from India? They would not believe it, inspite of our Military Attache having informed their Govt about our Expedition!! We really were harassed! We were also astonished to find a buxom lady as the Mayor of one of these Islands, who invited us for Lunch, and then gave us a Bill for the Lunch! Strange customs that they had! 
12. We then sailed to the beautiful Island of Tahiti. We stayed at the French Officers Mess, where we were served by the French waitresses, who were again very curious to know why have we come to Tahiti from India in a Yacht, when there were faster and better methods to come!?! They had never seen Indians on the Island, and more so never seen a ‘Sardar.’ I was an instant hit, and my photograph was out in the Newspapers the next day, as if I had descended from the Moon! Seeing the popularity of my Turban, the youngest crew member, Lt Navin Ahuja, wanted to wear my second Turban and go to Town. And he too was an instant hit ! The local ladies in Tahiti wore a ‘Paro’, one and a half metres long, to cover their bodies. They would not believe that my turban was five and a half metres long, till I had to open up my Turban, and tie it in front of them. We also learnt their famous ‘Tamure’ dance, and became pretty good at it. We were also able to distinguish a married woman from an unmarried by the wearing of their local flower ‘Tiare’- worn on the left by a married woman, and on the right by an unmarried woman. We were thereafter only looking for ladies with the flower on the right side!!
13. From Tahiti, we sailed to the World’s most beautiful Islands of   ‘Bora Bora and Moorea’. They were no doubt beautiful, but our islands of  Lakshadweep, Andamans and Nicobar Islands beat them hollow in beauty. Unfortunately, our Islands don’t have adequate  Infrastructure, and are not advertised very well all over the World. We were also lucky to escape the testing of the French Nuclear Bomb whilst sailing in this area, as we heard the warnings on the Radio, but luckily due to bad weather, the Tests were postponed. The bad weather continued making life difficult for us whilst sailing to Rarotonga, Fiji and New Zealand. At Fiji, we met a lot of local Indians settled there, who were in important positions. We had Brig Sitiveni  Rabuka, who had done Staff College in India, as our Liaison Officer, and who later staged a Coup in Fiji, much to our surprise!
14. At Auckland, we were met by Admiral Dawson, the Indian High Commissioner of New Zealand, who was extremely helpful in getting our yacht repaired and getting her ready for the next journey across the Tasman Sea. He had warned us that sailing in the winter months was not recommended in the Tasman Sea. But we had no choice! We were on ‘special leave’ by the Govt, had to get back in time, and not be declared ‘deserters’. After initial good weather, we ran into a cyclone, which came from Tasmania, swerved around to hit Melbourne and Sydney, causing floods after 100 years, then turned towards the sea to Solomon Islands, catching us in the middle of the Tasman sea. With winds over 140 kmph, and waves over 40 feet high, there was nothing much we could do, except to hold on to the steering wheel with tremendous pressure on our shoulders and body, for holding on course. Yet, we got into the eye  of  the cyclone, and drifted 350 nautical miles off course towards Solomon Islands. On the Radio, we heard of yachts capsizing, ships overturning and running aground, while we were being tossed around like a cork going up 40- 50 feet and coming crashing down to find our yacht half under water with each wave. It left us dog tired, and we had to reduce our watch from two to one, and follow the special ‘Hove-to’ drill on many occasions. Later on, when we exchanged notes, we found that all of had said our last prayers many times over. But as mentioned earlier, GOD was ‘Great’, and kept us alive. 
15. We finally limped to Sydney on 17 Aug 1986. What a joy to see land again!! Seeing the Sydney Harbour bridge really brought joy and cheers in all of us. Our Yacht was badly damaged, and we had to get it repaired from the Sydney Yacht Club. Capt MS Kohli, the Everest hero, Manager Air India at Sydney, the Indian High Commissioner in Australia, and the Consul General at Sydney helped us a lot to get back on our feet. Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was to meet us at Sydney/ Darwin, but the Australian security really made it very difficult for him to meet us. (Those were the days of the Militancy in India) We were very disappointed!
16. From Sydney, we sailed to Brisbane, Thursday Island, Darwin, Bali, Jakarta, Singapore, and Malaysia,. It was comfortable sailing this stretch, and we had good winds. We were warned to beware of Pirates near the Straits of Malacca. We were out of communications with India on our BEL modified inverted ‘V’ aerial with the Army radio set, from South Africa to Darwin, and it was a great pleasure in getting back to communicating with India. Fortunately for us, the HAM radio operators all over the World did us yeomen service in keeping in touch with us, and passing back messages to our Indian HAM operators, who in turn informed the  E-in-C’s Branch , and our families. Without them, we would have been doomed! Only recently in Jun 2010, I met Brig Sukhjit Singh, the present Maharaja of Kapurthala, who was in touch with us on the HAM Radio, and recounted all his experiences of the Trishna Sailing Expedition. Very nostalgic indeed!!
17. Our Military, Naval and Air attaches at Mauritius, Brazil, USA, Panama, France, New Zealand, Australia, Jakarta, Singapore, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka,  really helped us during the journey, and at the ports too. Whether it was accommodation, meeting Indians and locals, borrowing money from them, or anything, they were really forthcoming and helpful. The remainder journey to India was peaceful and pleasant. It was a real joy coming to homeland at Campbell Bay in Nicobar on 8 Dec1986. We had a wonderful Reception at Campbell Bay from the Army, Navy and the AirForce, not to mention the Civil Administration and the local people. We were overjoyed!!
18. We left Campbell Bay on 15 Dec 1986, escorted by Naval and Coast Guard ships and boats, and helicopters. Unfortunately, two of us seem to have been bitten by the giant size mosquitoes of  Nicobar, and developed Malaria, with temperature rising to 40 degrees C.  Bharti and myself  had to be evacuated. This was the first time that any of us fell seriously sick during the Expedition. And that too on our Motherland!!
19. From Nicobar, we sailed to Colombo, and met President JR Jayewardene, who applauded our adventurous spirit. On 29 Dec 1986, we left Colombo on the last lap of our journey to Mumbai. Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was to come to receive us at Mumbai, but could not make it due to his pre-occupation in the Andamans Islands. We were given a rousing welcome at the Gateway of India on 10 Jan 1987, with all our family members present, and carrying placards ‘Welcome Papa. Welcome Home.’ That was real touching!
20. We were really surprised when we were told that the Prime Minister wanted Yacht Trishna to be seen by the people of India at the Republic Day Parade on 26 Jan 1987. It was 10 Jan 87, when we had just reached Mumbai. The move of Yacht Trishna from Mumbai to Delhi posed so many problems, that it became a nightmare. It would not fit into any Military or Civil aircraft, nor any wagon/’Flat’ of the Railways;  nor any road transport. Ultimately, I had to go to New Delhi to see the Railway Minister, Late Mr Madhav Rao Scindia, to give the Railways a safety rule exemption, to put Trishna onto two Flats tied together, and transport it to Delhi. We were able to reach Delhi with extreme caution on 22 Jan 87, and had to get it unloaded the same day, in order to take part in the Dress Rehearsal on 23 Jan 87. Getting a long boom crane was one  hurdle, and then loading Trishna on the Tableaux Trailer was the other problem. Moving her through the City, cutting the Tree branches, raising Telephone cables and Electricity cables were a herculean task. But we were there in time for the Dress Rehearsal at 0700hrs on 23 Jan 87. Many of the spectators thought that Trishna was a model of the yacht in which we had sailed around the World. They just found it too small to believe!
21. Well that was the end of our long journey. The Prime Minister also wanted Trishna  in the National Museum, but I had to suggest to him that  it was the only sea going yacht available in India at that time, and a better utilization would be to train younger officers and the youth of the Country on her. He agreed, and now we have Trishna in the  Mumbai Naval Sailing Club, available to train yachtsmen of the Armed Forces, and the Country, even today. Do see her at Mumbai, and sail in her.
22. After sailing around the World, I was lucky to have sailed ‘Trishna’ and led the following Expeditions:-

      (a) 1995-96  Mumbai to Singapore and back.

      (b) 1996-97 Mumbai to Dubai – Muscat – Salalah – Seychelles –  Maldives – Sri Lanka and back to Mumbai.

      (c)  1999-2000  Mumbai – Katchall Islands – Singapore and back. We sailed into the Millennium 2000, to catch the first rays of the sun in the new Millennium.

22. And with that Expedition, I laid down uniform on 30 Jun 2000. We have met at Mumbai many times thereafter, sailed in Trishna in the Mumbai harbour, and overnight in the Arabian Sea. On 10 Jan 2007, the entire crew met at Mumbai, and sailed out in the Arabian Sea to commemorate 20 years of completion of our Expedition around the World in Yacht Trishna, and released a First day cover to mark the occasion. We will again meet on 10 Jan 2012 to mark the Silver Jubilee of our Expedition.

BRIG TPS CHOWDHURY, AVSM,

TEAM MANAGER AND CREW,

FIRST INDIAN SAILING EXPEDITION AROUND THE WORLD IN YACHT TRISHNA