New Delhi, Oct 30 (PTI) The Border Security Force (BSF) will hold a first-ever all-women river rafting expedition traversing more than 2,500 km with "female empowerment" and "clean Ganga" as the theme.
A team of 20 women personnel from the country's largest border guarding force have joined hands with the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) under the Jal Shakti Ministry to undertake the 53-day long voyage from Devprayag in Uttarakhand to Gangasagar in West Bengal, a senior BSF officer said.
After being flagged off from Devprayag on November 2, the journey will be handed over the expedition flag by Union Jal Shakti Minister CR Paatil at Haridwar on November 4.
It will complete its journey on December 26 at Diamond Harbour in West Bengal.
"This is the first time that an all-women team of the BSF is undertaking a river rafting expedition. The squad will also have some members of the support staff and those from the NMCG during their journey," the officer said.
BSF Inspector General (Training) Raja Babu Singh said the 20 participating women have been trained in flood water rescue operations, riverine border domination course and basic kayaking at the BSF Institute of Adventure and Advance Training (BIAAT) in Dehradun.
The team which will spread the messages of women empowerment and clean Ganga will be facilitated by BSF Director General Daljit Singh Chawdhary on completion of the journey, Singh said.
The team will halt at eight cities along its route and hold public awareness campaigns on the banks of the Ganga, including at Prayagraj, Varanasi and Patna.
The BSF with a strength of about 2.65 lakh personnel is primarily tasked with guarding the borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh.
The force has deployed women personnel for these tasks apart from a variety of duties in the internal security domain of the country.