President Pranab Mukherjee will receive India’s first non-stop solo sailor lt Cdr Abhilash Tomy when he arrives at the Gateway of India in south Mumbai on Saturday, after completing the Sagar Parikrama-II expedition around the world.
With the Navy having made preparations to accord a grand welcome to lt Cdr Tomy on his arrival in Mumbai, Defence Minister AK Antony, Navy Chief Admiral DK Joshi, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command, Vice Admiral Shekhar Sinha will join the President in receiving the new sailing icon.
lt Cdr Tomy had set sail from Mumbai on November 1, 2012 as part of the Sagar Parikrama-II non-stop solo expedition in INSV Mhadei. Cdr Dilip Donde had taken INSV Mhadei around the world in 2009-10, with four stops, to become the first Indian to circumnavigate the world in a sail ship.
Now in the high-seas near the coast of Mumbai, lt Cdr Tomy is now facing a strange problem of water shortage and is literally conserving every drop of drinking water. There is no shortage of food though, as enough stock is left of the consignment delivered by the Defence Food Research laboratory in Mysore to see him through the journey.
Tomy, a maritime reconnaissance Dornier pilot by specialisation was inspired by his mentor Cdr Donde, in taking up this adventure. He, however, decided to do one better by undertaking a solo, unassisted, non-stop endeavour. When he returns to Mumbai, he would have covered a distance of 22,967 nautical miles without stopping at any port.
The family members of Tomy in Kerala are upbeat about his homecoming. His mother and father have been tracking his journey, by marking the route taken by him on a large globe.
It was around the time, when India was celebrating its Republic Day, that Tomy crossed the Cape Horn, the southern most tip of South America, feared by sailors for its wild winds, rocky shores and strong currents. He crossed the Cape of Good Hope on the 19th February and began his journey towards India, past the island of Madagascar.