Latest news with #RoopaAlagirisamy
Hindustan Times
04-06-2025
- General
- Hindustan Times
Dreams are like a mirror where time's meaningless
Almost all of us have in our younger days rehearsed answers for the next day's exam in our dreams or appeared in dream versions of interviews before they actually took place. Dreams have this way of foreshadowing coming events, particularly if they weigh heavy on our minds. The world of dreams is as eventful, populous and animate as the world in which we live. Dreams are the common ground where we meet friends, enemies, relatives, people long dead or even strangers. Sometimes, we even meet altered versions of ourselves,doing things we would never do otherwise such as play in the IPL or drive a Ferrari even though we own a less expensive four-wheeler. The other day, after poring over the adventurous story of Indian Navy lieutenant commanders Dilina K and Roopa Alagirisamy, who circumnavigated the planet in their boat Tarini, I had a dream in which I took to the open seas attired as a buccaneer and found myself repeating their words published in the newspaper of that day: 'The sea was as calm as a mirror… and time felt meaningless.' Sometimes, it seems the moment we fall asleep some primordial AI invades the deep recesses of the mind to strip-mine and back-propagate our thoughts and produce complex stories and narratives at a speed faster than Grok or ChatGPT. Dreams not only produce spectacular visions but also cock a snook at the restrictions of the physical world. No anti-immigrant sentiment or law can block an oneiric odyssey to any part of the earth nor can the scientific impediments come in the way of time travel. What's more, dreams come at zero cost. A well-wrought nightmare produced without any technological or logistical support can give a horror flick a run for its money. It is quite another thing that anything scary or unpleasant can be winked off as soon as we get up. There is also no dearth of people who treat their dreams as a crystal ball where they read premonitory messages about the impending future. Such people often take clues from dreams to decide their future course of actions or take important decisions. William Shakespeare once wrote: 'We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep.' Quite clearly, he wished to say that dreams and life resemble and reflect one another. There is no doubt that dreams are an apt metaphor for life because they reinforce its possibilities and richness like nothing else. Seen in this way, days and nights use our minds like a palimpsest, each writing its own script as the sun sets or rises. The varied colours of life get diffracted to paint the pictures we see in our dreams. Dreams are not an escape route, rather they are a means of negotiating life. They are also the greatest levellers as everyone of us enjoys the luxury of dreams when we go to sleep. Rather than an impervious stone wall, there is a thin sheet of glass between our waking life and our dreams and we keep peering from one side into the other. We can almost say with the naval officers, who scripted history last month, that dreams are like a mirror where time feels The writer is a professor at the Centre for Distance and Online Education, Punjabi University, Patiala.
India Today
31-05-2025
- General
- India Today
Operation Sindoor is a symbol of power: PM Modi's strong rebuke to terrorists
2:33 Lt Commanders Dilna K and Roopa Alagirisamy of the Indian Navy completed Navika Sagar Parikrama II, a daring, eight-month circumnavigation aboard INSV Tarini.
News18
31-05-2025
- News18
PM Modi Lauds Women Naval Officers Who Sailed 50,000 Km. What Is Navika Sagar Parikrama?
Last Updated: Two women naval officers -- Lt Commander Dilna K and Lt Commander Roopa Alagirisamy -- returned to India after successful global circumnavigation spanning eight months. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday hailed women's empowerment in the country, especially in the armed forces, and cited the instance of two Indian Navy officers who successfully completed the circumnavigation of the globe under Navika Sagar Parikrama II. Lt Commander Dilna K and Lt Commander Roopa Alagirisamy returned to Goa on Thursday after culminating their eight-month voyage across four continents, three oceans, and three Great Capes. The second edition of the expedition was flagged off from the Naval Ocean Sailing Node, Goa, on October 2, 2024. The Prime Minister, while addressing a public meeting in Bhopal today, hailed their courage and said that they defeated all challenges and troubles in their way and emerged victorious. 'The brave Navy women personnel have successfully completed a voyage of oceans spanning 250 days. They visited all around the world. They did it on such a boat that does not run via motors but uses wind. We all know the storm in the oceans. The two daughters defeated all troubles like bad weather and storms of the oceans. This shows that no matter how big the challenge may be, Indian women can emerge victorious," he said. Notably, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh presided over the flag-in ceremony on Thursday, formally marking the success of the global circumnavigation. He received the two naval officers and said that they have made the nation proud by waving the Tricolour across the world. What Is Navika Sagar Parikrama II? The two Indian Navy women officers covered a distance of around 50,000 kilometers (47,041 km) in nearly 250 days aboard Indian Naval Sailing Vessel (INSV) Tarini. The expedition began on October 2 last year with an aim to cover over 23,400 nautical miles. The return was scheduled for May 2025. This was the second edition of the Navika Sagar Parikrama expedition that took place in 2018 with an all-women crew onboard. However, this time, only two officers featured on the vessel, who set out to cover the globe, significantly raising the challenges that may have arisen during the expedition. The expedition's route was planned with four major international stops, chosen for both practical and diplomatic reasons. The first important stop was on November 9, 2024, when INSV Tarini reached Fremantle, Australia, after a long and challenging 39-day journey covering over 4,900 nautical miles from Goa. The two officers then continued their voyage to Lyttelton, New Zealand, for their second international stop, and later continued to Port Stanley in the Falkland Islands, a British territory. With each stop, they had a chance to carry out maintenance, restock supplies, and take part in cultural exchanges, while also presenting India's naval strength in front of the world. Their fourth and last international stop was in Cape Town, South Africa. INSV Tarini was warmly welcomed in the country with the South African Naval Band holding a special welcome ceremony, showing the global respect the expedition had earned. From Cape Town, the vessel started its sail back to Goa on April 15, 2025.
New Indian Express
29-05-2025
- New Indian Express
Two women navy officers script maritime history after successful navigation of globe
GOA: The sea and sky bled into each other — dull grey and indistinguishable — when INSV Tarini reappeared on the Goan horizon on Thursday. The who's who of the Indian Navy had already assembled on the long pier extending into the Zuari River at Mormugao Port, Vasco da Gama, to welcome their flagship sailing vessel. Aboard were Lieutenant Commanders Dilna K, from Kozhikode in Kerala, and Puducherry native Roopa Alagirisamy, who had successfully navigated over 25,400 nautical miles over eight months in a voyage around the world — part of the Navy's ambitious Navika Sagar Parikrama expeditions. With their arrival in Goa, the two naval officers made history, becoming only the ninth and tenth Indians to have circumnavigated the globe. They are also the first all-woman pair to accomplish the feat in a double-handed mode. Such was the magnitude of the occasion that even Defence Minister Rajnath Singh stood waiting on the pier to receive them. Speaking as the chief guest, he said, 'The duo has made the nation proud by waving the tricolour across the globe.' 'This miraculous voyage is not only your achievement — it is ours as a nation,' he added, also acknowledging the many men and women who enabled the mission. Rajnath urged the officers to document their experiences 'with the same spirit with which [they had] completed it.' 'Record your bittersweet experiences and learnings, so the future generation, especially young women, can draw inspiration,' he said.
Time of India
26-05-2025
- Time of India
Naval women officers' team set to complete historic circumnavigation
Panaji: The two naval officers, Lt Cdr Dilna K and Lt Cdr Roopa Alagirisamy, who sailed out of Goa on Oct 2 as the first-ever Indian duo to circumnavigate Earth, are a whisper away from Goa's coastline. The two women will arrive at Mormugao port on May 29, completing an eight-month-long voyage, sailing into history books. Their return will mark the successful conclusion of a 21,800-nautical-mile journey onboard INSV Tarini, the Indian Navy's iconic sailboat. The circumnavigation took them through four oceans, crossing the equator twice and rounding the five Great Capes — a route acknowledged globally as the gold standard in ocean sailing. 'The Tarini is doing about 120-150 nautical miles a day and is quite close. The early onset of the monsoon was a bit of a surprise and a last-minute challenge,' said a source. The voyage tested not just endurance but training imparted by the Navy. The officers navigated some of the world's most hostile waters, including the South Pacific and the Southern Ocean. They battled towering waves, gale-force winds, and long spells of isolation with only each other for company and the Tarini as their shelter. This mission, said naval officers, was part of the Navy's broader initiative to showcase women's role in maritime operations. It also aimed to inspire a new generation of women to embrace adventure and take to the seas — a domain long dominated by men. The duo trained extensively at the Ocean Sailing Node in Goa under the watchful gaze of solo circumnavigator Cdr Abhilash Tomy (retd). Their voyage was closely monitored by the Indian Navy, but the officers were largely self-reliant once they left port. INSV Tarini, named after the Tara Tarini temple in Odisha, earlier carried out the historic Navika Sagar Parikrama in 2017-18, when an all-women crew became the first Indian team to circumnavigate the globe. This current expedition, however, marks the first time an Indian woman duo has achieved the feat — without additional crew. The arrival at Mormugao will be marked by a ceremonial welcome attended by defence minister Rajnath Singh, naval brass, defence ministry officials and families of the sailors. A debrief and formal recognition ceremony is also planned in the days ahead. 'A sail parade is being planned to welcome the two adventurers on May 29. The sailing fraternity will be there for welcoming them,' said an official. With this voyage, Lt Cdr Dilna and Lt Cdr Roopa join a select club of global sailors who completed circumnavigations under sail.
