Additional superintendent of police (Admin) in Adilabad district of Telangana, G R Radhika is all smiles. On September 7, she achieved a rare feat, and became the first woman police officer from the two Telugu speaking states to conquer Mount Kun in Jammu and Kashmir.
Out of the eight participants who made the attempt, Radhika was the only Indian who scaled the peak. Besides her, an American and three Sherpas climbed the peak.
“I felt on top of the world, when I reached the peak. It was a challenging task, but once I got there I felt sky is not the limit if we have the determination," the 35-year-old lecturer turned police officer told The New Indian Express.
This was Radhika's second attempt at scaling the mountain.
Nun and Kun are the highest twin peaks in the Zanskar Range. Though Mount Nun is 7135 metres tall, Mount Kun with a height of 7077 is also difficult to climb.
Radhika's mountaineering adventures started in 2013, after Former additional director general of police (ADGP), Rajiv Trivedi, who is now principal secretary for Home in Telangana had recommended her for the basic mountaineering course at the Jawahar Institute of Mountaineering and Winter Sports, Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir, which she completed with distinction.
In August that year, Trivedi nominated her again for an advanced mountaineering course in the same institute.
On September 20 2013, Radhika scaled the 5980-metre Golep Kangri peak, located in the same Zanskar range of the Western Himalayas, after a week long expedition.
Radhika hails from Anantapur and earlier served as Nellore city's DSP between 2009 and 2011. She also worked in Karimnagar in 2012 before she was elevated to ASP in January 2015.
She is also part of the list of police officers that adopted villages as part of Telangana government’s pet scheme Grama Jyothi. She has adopted the Ponnari village in Tamsi mandal of Adilabad.
Radhika now aspires to conquer Mount Everest. “I will start preparing to climb Everest and will undergo training for the same. Mountaineering is not an easy task,” Radhika added while taking to TNIE.
Beside receiving praise from various quarters of the police department, the state police are considering extending financial help to Radhika, beside sanctioning her special leaves, for her mountaineering trips.