At first glance, India and Antarctica seem like an unlikely pair. Nevertheless, since 1981 the Asian country has operated its own research program and today maintains two active stations as well as a support base on the Antarctic continent. A look further back, however, shows that the foundation for this program had already been laid years earlier, in the mind of a young meteorologist: Dr. Parmjit Singh Sehra, who became the first Indian to circumnavigate Antarctica and overwinter there.
At the beginning of the Indian Antarctic program was neither a desire for territorial expansion nor for personal fame, but rather a dream of space. This dream was held by the Indian scientist Vikram A. Sarabhai, who is today regarded as the father of the Indian space program. In the early 1970s, he wanted to observe Soviet researchers in Antarctica conducting rocket experiments, which were used to gather meteorological data from the upper atmosphere. For this purpose, he selected a young, promising doctoral student who was to travel to what was likely one of the most exotic places imaginable for an Indian: Parmjit Singh Sehra from the Physical Research Laboratory of Gujarat University in Ahmedabad. At just 23 years old, the young scientist had little idea of what awaited him.
“I had read in the newspaper about a Soviet attempt to collect data on the ice cap at the South Pole and dreamed of one day circumnavigating Antarctica and standing at the South Pole myself,” recalls Dr. Singh Sehra. His dream would come true sooner than he expected.
The timing for cooperation was favorable in 1971: the Soviet Union was planning a two-year expedition to circumnavigate Antarctica and was simultaneously testing new research rockets to study the upper atmosphere. Relations between India and the Soviet Union were also friendly at the time. However, India was once again in conflict with Pakistan, which made obtaining suitable equipment difficult.
Although India had no Antarctic ambitions at the time, Parmjit Singh Sehra managed, with the approval of his parents and university, to travel to Australia and board the Soviet research vessel Akademik Viese. From there began his 18-month expedition to Mirny Station.
The young scientist’s first impression was overwhelming. Fascinated by the many icebergs, he later wrote in his diary, published under the title A Visit to the South Pole:
“It is truly a fairyland where even fairies would not dare to live.”
Even the rough seas did not discourage him; he enjoyed the journey across the Southern Ocean and focused intently on his research.
After arriving in Mirny, he spent a total of 18 months in Antarctica. Together with Soviet colleagues, he undertook an expedition to the geographic South Pole and accompanied a difficult 1,500-kilometer supply journey to Vostok Station, carried out using tractors and dog sleds. Aboard the icebreaker Navarin, he became the first Indian to circumnavigate Antarctica. During this journey, the team visited not only Soviet stations but also research stations from other nations, allowing Sehra to collect valuable data and establish important international contacts.
His journey ended at the then main station Molodezhnaya in East Antarctica, where he spent an entire year. There, he continued his research and gathered extensive datasets. Together with Soviet colleagues, he launched 60 rockets into the atmosphere. Among other findings, he was the first to demonstrate that unusual warming events during the Antarctic winter are linked to vertical energy flows from the Earth’s interior, as well as radioactive and photochemical processes in the upper atmosphere. These discoveries earned him not only his doctoral degree but also international recognition as a meteorologist and atmospheric physicist, as well as an expert for organizations such as the World Meteorological Organization and NASA.
During his time in Antarctica, Singh Sehra experienced not only the continent’s breathtaking beauty but also its harsh realities: survival struggles, hunger, depression, and death. During the supply journey to Vostok Station, the team lost two members due to illness and accident. The exhausted sled dogs ultimately had to be killed and used as food to ensure survival.
Sehra himself faced life-threatening situations multiple times: he fell into a glacier crevasse and was only saved thanks to the quick response of his colleagues. On another occasion, he fell from a ridge about 200 meters high and escaped relatively lightly, with a few lost teeth and a broken leg. His most frightening experience, however, was an independent expedition to an iceberg near the station, where a sudden snowstorm and insufficient supplies nearly caused him to starve.
The extreme light conditions also took a heavy toll on him. In his diary, he wrote:
“I must say that six months of continuous darkness followed by six months of daylight at the South Pole is an extremely monotonous natural phenomenon.” Later, he emphasized how much he came to appreciate the normal 12-hour day-night cycle in India.
His time in Antarctica transformed the young meteorologist into a passionate polar researcher. He recognized the continent’s central importance for meteorology and atmospheric physics and dreamed that India would become part of international Antarctic research. On the 25th anniversary of Indian independence, he sent a letter from the South Pole to New Delhi addressed to Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. In it, he proposed that India should join the Antarctic Treaty, conduct its own expeditions, and establish research stations.
Dr. Singh Sehra considers this letter, dated August 15, 1972, as the birth of the Indian Antarctic program. Nevertheless, it took another nine years before the first Indian expedition was launched and other scientists received the recognition for it.
When asked whether he feels overlooked by history, he replied:
“We humans love to dream. And I dreamed of opening an Indian research station. At the time, I did not think that the source of my dream would no longer be alive. But my Antarctic experience sparked great interest in further exploration in India, including the establishment of research stations and regular expeditions since 1982. That is a very great reward for me. My greatest dream has come true.”
Editorial Note
When researching the first Indian in Antarctica, Syed Zahoor Qasim is often mentioned. He led the first Indian Antarctic expedition in 1981, during which the Dakshin Gangotri station was established. He is therefore considered the first Indian officially sent to Antarctica on behalf of the state.
However, Singh Sehra had already been on the continent in 1971 for 18 months as part of a Soviet research team. Therefore, he can very likely be regarded as the first Indian to actually set foot in Antarctica.