The Travel Story of a Shaurya Chakra and 100 girls at Tiger Estate Resort

When we welcomed about 100 girls from St. Mary’s School, Hisar, Haryana, we were not just hosting the students, but we were welcoming the youth and embracing their energy that for the next day would fill the entire Tiger Estate in Mohanchatti, near Rishikesh.

The buses ferrying the girls started arriving at our gate, quite early on in the morning. We were anticipating that the only challenge that lied ahead in hosting them would be the number or the size of the guests, hosting a batch of 100 students in the first few weeks of bringing the resort to operations is no cakewalk. Our staff was expected to be on their toes to serve hot meals, we had hot water running in all our washrooms the moment they arrived, and chairs were laid out in the open lawn to accommodate them for a leisurely morning after their long journey from Hisar. But besides these services which we were prepared for, what ensued was a memorable learning for us at Tiger Estate.

The young girls were so energetic that they could barely sit back for the leisurely scenic offerings of the lawn, what they wanted was the adventure of the day, to face the mountains and the river, to extract learnings from their trips and to make the trip as memorable as possible with their teachers and peers.

Main Attractions of the Trip

Post the breakfast and their much required resting of half an hour, we took the girls on a 3 km trek up the the mountains. There were many attractions of the day that kept up the spirit dissuading the kids from getting tired:

1. The man leading them was none other than Major Rakesh Sharma, a Kargil War veteran and awardee of Shaurya Chakra.
2. The green trek of 3 km where they reached a small village on the mountain top
3. The experience of walking along the pristine beauty of Hule river
4. The team building activities
5. An evening hearing the details of Kargil War from the veteran himself and learning about the achievements of the Indian Army
6. And of course, a fun filled night with DJ music where the girls rolled out their dancing talents.

Led by Maj Rakesh Sharma, the girls trekked the green forest of the hill, and they went further and further, they saw the expansive view of the valley clearer and clearer. Imaging their wonder and excitement when they saw villagers living in a small close-knit community atop the hill. What came next was their conversations with them, their ways of life living on the mountain, and lots of selfies putting the green hillock in the backdrop.

Post the trekking trip, the students followed the fallback track, revisiting the Hule river and by about noon when they reached the valley, the warmth of the sun had become even more pleasant, with the breeze from the cool river greeting all the students on their way to the Tiger Estate.

While the students took some break, an unexpected conversation ensued between Major Rakesh Sharma and the students. The girls started asking questions on his Shaurya Chakra, how did he achieve it, how to get into the Indian Army, what was it like to fight in the Kargil War, etc. The students of St. Mary’s Hisar, got a first-hand account of how it was like fighting in the Kargil war, reminiscing the valor of his fellow soldiers, their grit and mettle proven by the challenges posed by the enemies.

Post the discussion, we had a series of team building exercises which the students enjoyed and participated with much vigor.

Come night and they indulged in a fun filled DJ songs and dance around bonfires. This was one-day well-spent in Tiger Estate.