30 Cadets train at Kukkarahalli Lake; 18 will be sent to Karwar Naval Base

Mysuru: A group of 30 youngsters in city are undergoing gruelling training for the All India Nau-Sainik Camp (NCC Naval Camp) 2019 to be held at Visakhapatnam (Vizag)where they will compete with the best NCC Naval Cadets who are selected from a pool of different NCC Directorates.  

The Cadets are undergoing practice training in boat pedalling and navigation at Kukkarahalli Lake from 6.30 am till noon every day. It is a three-phase selection process and the initial training is taking place in Mysuru. From the 30 students, 18 will be selected and sent to Karwar Naval Base. 

At Kukkarahalli Lake, each boat has five pullers (who peddle the boat and hold the oar and one coxswain (person who steers a ship’s boat, racing boat, or other boat). They are trained both on operative and theoretical aspects. All of them wear life-jackets for safety. The equipment is provided by the Mysuru NCC Naval unit.

At Karwar, all the six Navy units of Karnataka Goa NCC Directorate will be sending their Cadets and from there, select 36 candidates will go for Visakhapatnam All India Nau-Sainik Camp. There they will compete with Cadets from 17 NCC Directorates from diverse regions such as North-East, Gujarat, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Lakshadweep. 

The Nau Sainik Camp is conducted by Director General NCC, New Delhi. During the Camp, inter-Directorate competitions will be conducted for Republic Day Prime Minister Banner Competitions — Ship Modelling, (miniature Warship making), Firing/shooting, Boat Pulling races, Drill parade with rifles, Semaphore-Naval signal Communication, Whaler Boat Rigging arrangements, Service Exam, Seamanship (practical exam on bends, hitches and knots) and health and hygiene. 

Speaking to Star of Mysore, Madhusudhan, who has already completed the Nau-Sainik Camp, said that the training in Mysuru will be conducted till August 22 and the Cadets will leave for Karwar on Aug.23. “We need to select 18 Cadets from a pool of 30 and we start the training as early as 6.30 am every day. Competition at all-India level will be tough and our Cadets have to be prepared for that,” he said. 

Madhusudhan, who is studying in third year B.Sc at Yuvaraja’s College, said that once the morning practice session ends, Cadets are taken to NCC Koth near the Deputy Commissioner’s Office where NCC rifles and other paraphernalia are kept. “From 2.30 to 5.30 pm, the Cadets are trained in Flag Signal, Communication Signal, Semaphore-Naval signal Communication and Service Subjects,” he added.