Abhilash Tomy

Commander Abhilash Tomy (born 5 Feb 1979) is an Indian Naval Officer. He is the first Indian, second Asian, and seventy-ninth person to complete a solo, unassisted, non-stop circumnavigation under sail.

Preparation and prior voyages

The voyage was a part of the Indian Navy's project Sagar Parikrama, initiated by Vice-Admiral (retd.) M.P. Awati. The first stage of the project involved a solo circumnavigation under sail which would not be non-stop. This was accomplished by Commander Dilip Donde, a clearance diver of the Indian Navy. Cdr. Donde completed his trip on 19 May 2010, sailing over a period of nine months.[1][2] Tomy was Donde's shore support during this journey which included four stops.[3] The second phase of the project, called Sagar Parikrama-II, was Tomy's non-stop circumnavigation. His preparations included training voyages with a crew, and a first solo sailing expedition from Cape Town, South Africa to Goa. Preparations for the journey included food supplies of specially-packed freeze dry food, and a consignment from the Defence Food Research Laboratory in Mysore.[4]

The vessel

INSV Mhadei

The boat used in both circumnavigations of the Sagar Parikrama project was the Indian Navy Sailing Vessel INSV Mhadei, custom built by the Indian Navy. The sloop is 56 feet long, and was built under Donde's supervision,[4] by Ratnakar Dandekar at the boat yard of M/s Aquarius Fiberglas Pvt Ltd at Divar. The vessel was handed over to the Indian Navy in February 2009. The yacht was christened INSV Mhadei, the river Mhadei being the origin of the Mandovi River in Goa.[5]

Solo circumnavigation

Tomy began his journey in Mumbai, from the Gateway of India, on 1 November 2012. He crossed, from West to East, the Indian, Pacific, Southern and Atlantic Oceans, covering 23,100 nautical miles, rounding Cape Leeuwin in Australia, Cape Horn in South America and Cape of Good Hope in Africa.[6] The journey took 151 days and was completed on 31 March 2013.[7] On 6 April 2013, a ceremony was held in his honour, where he was officially received by the President of India, Pranab Mukherjee. Mukherjee stated, "I am sure that this achievement of Lt Cmdr Abhilash Tomy will continue to be a source of inspiration for future generations of young seafarers. His epic voyage has placed our nation into the ranks of a few select countries whose citizens have been successful in braving such an arduous voyage."[8] Tomy became the first Indian and second Asian after Minoru Saito to complete such a journey.[4]

During the journey, Tomy faced a shortage of drinking water because of the failure of the on-board reverse osmosis water-treatment plant about a third of the way into the journey, and a diesel leak which contaminated his stored water and sealed bottles. He was left with approximately 15 litres of fresh water to last him the remaining 15 days of the journey, and resorted to rain water harvesting and conservation of water for the rest of the voyage. Weather encountered during the trip included winds averaging 30 knots, 3 to 4-meter swells in the Southern Ocean, and one instance at the Cape of Good Hope with wind-speeds of 70 knots and 10-meter waves.[9]

While at sea, Tomy's activities included boat-related work, cooking, reading books, and communicating through e-mails with friends and colleagues.[10] He began his day with Shambhavi Mahamudra, a meditation.[9] In his words, "I used to begin my day in the yacht with meditation. I used to check the weather report regularly and prepared myself for the worst. I would sleep for half-an-hour, wake up, read, check the boat and take a nap again."[10] He had not sighted human beings for a period of 130 days, his last sighting being a group of Sri Lankan fisherman. Tomy reported that immigration officers who stamped his passport when he arrived in India after completing the journey were confused when they noticed that his passport contained no immigration stamps indicating a country of arrival after he left India at the beginning of his journey.[3]

Recognition

Tomy was awarded the Kirti Chakra (second highest peacetime gallantry award in India) and the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award. He has spoken to students regarding the protection and conservation of the world's oceans.[11] In a column in Tehelka magazine, he wrote about the "media onslaught" during his visit home after the voyage.[12]

References

  1. ↑ "First Indian to Circumnavigate the Globe Solo ,Non stop and Unassisted : Abhilash Tomy".
  2. ↑ "Back Home!". 31 May 2010. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
  3. 1 2 Chandrashekaran, Gitanjali (7 April 2013). "Come hell or high water". Mumbai Mirror. Times News Network. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
  4. 1 2 3 Anandan, S (28 March 2013). "After a solo voyage round the world, hero's welcome awaits Tomy". The Hindu. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
  5. ↑ "Indian Navy Sailing Vessel Mhadei ready for solo sail around globe". Times of India. 20 October 2012. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
  6. ↑ "Navy officer Abhilash Tomy becomes first Indian to circumnavigate the globe solo and non-stop". Deccan Chronicle. 6 April 2013. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
  7. ↑ Dara, Neha. "Can I go back for another round?". National Geographic Traveller. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
  8. ↑ "Abhilash Tomy: First Indian to circumnavigate the globe solo, non-stop, Slide 4". Economic Times. 9 April 2013. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
  9. 1 2 "Sailing Solo Around The World? Shambhavi Mahamudra Can Help". Isha Blog. 26 May 2013. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
  10. 1 2 Bose, Adrija (29 April 2013). "Meet Abhilash Tomy, the first Indian to complete solo circumnavigation". First Post. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
  11. ↑ "Student fans get to meet Abhilash Tomy – the Real Pi". New Indian Express. 9 June 2013. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
  12. ↑ "Too close to the madding crowd". Tehelka magazine. 4 May 2013. Retrieved 11 August 2013.

External links


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