Kanchan Ugursandi
Kanchan Ugursandi is an Indian adventurer and motorcycle rider. She is affectionately nicknamed as Border Girl and Bike Girl. Kanchan ridden her bike to scale 22 Himalayan passes and also to zero points on borders across various states of India including Ladakh, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh.[1]
Biography
[edit]She hails from Adivasi tribal background in Saraikela, Jharkhand.[1][2] She saved her first salary as she was determined to buy a bike for her adventure aspirations, and she pursued her passion for motorcycling despite strong opposition against her desires from her family members.[2]
Career
[edit]She began her road adventure in 2019 by utilising her bike she bought using her first salary savings. She made a task of accomplishing numerous solo motorcycle trips across North Indian locations.[2] In June 2021, with the assistance and guidance of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO), she made ambitious efforts to pursue a solo motorcycle expedition to Umling La, in Ladakh, situated at 19,300 feet.[2] During her journey from Delhi to Umling La, she covered a record distance of 3,187km in 25 days, while also crossing 18 mountain passes across the Himalayan range.[3] She eventually became the first solo female biker to scale the Umling La.[4]
In November 2024, she successfully reached Lipulekh Pass by riding her bike all the way to the destination by starting her journey from Delhi, navigating through Pithoragarh in Uttarakhand.[1] It was during her third attempt, that she tasted success to scale Lipulekh Pass.[1] Kanchan also went onto become the first motorcyclist to scale the Lipulekh Pass on the India-China bordering region, at an elevation of 17,500 feet. She took the challenge of reaching Lipulekh Pass by acclimatising to the poor conditions of the Kailash Mansarovar road.[1] She made an appeal to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, pleading him to consider about implementing an action task force to form a corridor to Kailash Mansarovar, as she drew an example of the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor in Pakistan.[1] In an exclusive with India Today, she revealed that she had made two previous unsuccessful attempts to reach Lipulekh Pass and she insisted that she had to back out from her expedition due to landslides which were reported near Dharchula.[1]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g "Jharkhand woman creates history as 1st biker to scale Lipulekh Pass". India Today. 2024-11-02. Retrieved 2024-12-01.
- ^ a b c d Roy, Dyuti (2022-01-24). "Kanchan Ugursandi: Woman motorcyclist from Jharkhand hits road with a cause". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2024-12-01.
- ^ PTI (2021-07-08). "Kanchan Ugursandi finishes world's first solo motorcycle expedition covering 18 passes of Himalayas". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2024-12-01.
- ^ "Kanchan Ugursandi finishes world's 1st solo motorcycle expedition covering 18 Himalayan passes". The Tribune. Retrieved 2024-12-01.