Rotary and Giripremi honours rescue mountaineers

17/11/2019

PUNE: Rotary Club of Pune Metro and Giripremi felicitate organizations and individuals who have rendered exemplary rescue work in the hilly hinterlands of Maharashtra. The individual rescuers and organizations were awarded with Vocational Service Award for their contribution to the field of Rescue and Disaster Management.

Air Marshal Bhushan Gokhale (Retd) felicitated selected organizations and individuals in the presence of Mukund Chiplunkar (President, Rotary Club of Pune Metro), Anand Palande (Founder, Giripremi), Umesh Zirpe (Veteran Mountaineer and Convenor Giripremi) along with several mountain and trekking enthusiast and Rotary club members. Todi Mill, Mumbai honoured the awardees with mountaineering ropes.

The awardee organizations and individuals are affiliated to Maharashtra Mountaineering Rescue Co-ordination Center (MMRCC). MMRCC is a dedicated rescue coordination organization founded by Guardian Giripremi Institute of Mountaineering (GGIM). Under MMRCC, a 24X7 helpline number to carry out rescue and relief work in hilly region of Maharashtra is work throughout the year. 

There are several local organizations and individuals are part of MMRCC and have carried out more than 300 rescues and relief works in last three years since the launch of helpline in 2016. The selected organizations and individuals were felicitated during the program for their exceptional work.

The chief guest of the program Air Marshal Bhushan Gokhale (Retd.) praised the awardee for their exceptional contribution towards recue and disaster management. He said, “Awardee mountaineers and organizations are doing exemplary work and they deserve this honour. I would suggest them to Board of Trustees (2019-20)

Umesh Zirpe, veteran mountaineer and convenor of Giripremi, expressed his feeling about rescue organizations & workers and their contribution to the field. He said, “Several local organizations were carrying out rescue and relief work for the past several years. They are the first one to react to emergency call and provide the help in golden hours. MMRCC brought them on single platform to coordinate and work accordingly. It helped all the rescue organizations and mountaineers in streamlining the rescue work. These rescue mountaineers are selfless and true legends and deserve the praise. I feel Rotary Club of Pune Metro’s initiative to felicitate them will boost the morale of rescue mountaineers and organizations. I thank Rotary Club of Pune Metro and the president Mukund Chipalunkar for their efforts.”

He also expressed that MMRCC is trying to set up Helicopter rescue facility in Maharashtra to bolster the rescue work. Gurunath Agiwale, Mahuli Fort Vaintey Giryarohan Giribhraman, Nashik Ganpat Vhole, Peb Fort Nisargmitra, Panvel Santosh Dagade, Karjat Mahabaleshwar Trekkers, Mahabaleshwar Kondu Vare, Kondhana, Karjat Bhosala Adventure Foundation, Nashik Balu Dhanagar, Nashik Kartavya Bahu-uddeshiya Sanstha, Poladpur, Raigad Suresh Bodke, Tringalwadi Fort Sahyadri Trekkers, Mahabaleshwar.