ITBP 8th Battalion Officers' Mess: Gauchar

To give you the other side (the other one is featured) of ITBP 8th Battalion, Gauchar Officers' Mess, here it is...taken from the ground when it was about winter. I haven't counted all the rooms in it but I guess there's about 10 rooms for guests of ITBP personnel's friends and families. Booking is required, of course, especially during Badrinath, Hemkund Sahib Yatra.

Only officers ranking from assistant commandant to Director General and their friends and families, and other "VIPs" are allowed to stay here. Slippers are not allowed inside so one has to wear a sandal or shoe. Crazy huh! Lol!

Some formal and informal parties are being held here from time to time like send-off party or a party of an officer who just got promoted, a party to welcome New Year. No special dishes are served during parties, though. Very rarely, depends on the cook, a few new items are made for such occasions.

If you are a guest, someone who is just passing by, a night stay will not cost you much. Rooms and foods are affordable, free even sometimes. You can also choose whether to dine in your room or at the dining hall.

~ Inside the Officers' Mess ~

ITBP 1st Battalion Officers' Mess: Joshimath

~ ITBP 1st Battalion Officers' Mess at Joshimath ~

ITBP 1st Battalion is situated along the Joshimath - Auli road, about 3 kilometers from Joshimath proper. The battalion is built in hilly areas. One can expect to find buildings in a ladder form accessed through curvy road (like the below picture) and steps. This one is almost at the top of the ITBP area. Along with this building are residential areas for officers (Assistant Commandant grade). Below it is a small ground for physical activity. Then below it is the administrative building.

What I like in this campus is that it is covered with trees and plants aside from its curvy features - taking the steps up and down would be a great exercise. What I don't like is where it is situated. It's along the Joshimath - Auli highway which, during skiing season, could be very busy. Add to it is the entrace where one can notice a not-so-well-managed road - pretty narrow and bumpy, and a zero garbage/waste disposal - plastics all around and sewage canal is heavy with plastics, too. 

ITBP 8th Battalion Campus Ground

What you can see is a road that leads to Officers' Mess from the main gate through the Administrative building. On the left is the gym (building not visible), to the right is the ground where you can see a paved area which is also used as a helipad. That ground is mainly for PT and other activities in the campus.

This is ITBP - Gauchar (8th Battalion) campus ground.

ITBP Gauchar Residential Areas

Those buildings are family quarters of ITBP personnel and their family and SO's Mess, the  first long building (middle) right at the visible road. The above flats and the lower ones are separated by Rishikesh-Badrinath highway -you can even see half of the bus just on the power lines. 
There are two gates here. 

The first gate (from Rishikesh to Gauchar direction) goes directly through the Officers' Mess, Commandant's House and Type 4 family quarters where officers of assistant commandant rank are housed. 

The main gate, a few meters ahead the first gate -on the same direction, directs you to the ITBP Administrative Block on the left and to the Unit Hospital, SO's Mess, and Type 3-1 family quarters on the right, which is shown in this photograph. 

The last buildings are of Kendriya Vidyalaya School. There was a huge old tree at the middle of the school which the forest department got it cut, for what purpose, I can't say. All you can see in this picture are logs cut from the said tree.

The river is almost always dry all throughout the year except during the rainy season.

ITBP Gauchar, is the 8th Battalion of the ITBP Force Organization. It is situated around 2 kms. outside Gauchar.

More pictures of ITBP will be posted here so keep visiting. My goal is to show to readers how places look like so that they'll get ideas of what and how they are before they decide to come permanently or temporarily.

ITBP - 8th Battalion Administrative Building

This is the left rear view of Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) Force, 8th Battalion, administrative building located at Gauchar, Chamoli District, Uttarakhand, India.  The road visible leads towards Officers' Mess. The building is best accessed from the main gate where you need to present your ID and state your purpose of visit.

~ The back side (towards ground) of ITBP Administrative Building ~

~ This is how the ITBP, Gauchar Adminstration Building looks like from above ~

Choco Saying Namaste!

This is Choco, a military dog. He's about three years old. We met him at ITBP Gopeshwar unit. He is trained to sit, lie down, roll and do Namaste (Hello!) although he missed where to face the camera this time (lol). He eats at least 10 chapatis (Indian bread) and meat. He's not allowed to eat rice during winter, he might get some colds -they say (some old traditional belief).

ITBP 8th Battalion Unit Hospital

This is the rear right side of ITBP (8th Battalion) Unit Hospital in Gauchar,  Chamoli District, Uttarakhand, India as seen from our house building. As of this time, there are two permanent doctors and one in contract. It is mostly OPD sessions from 9:30 am to 1:30 pm and 3:30 pm to 6:30 pm, Monday to Saturday. Admission happens every once in a while, especially during emergency cases. All deliveries are referred to Srinagar, Garhwal. 

This hospital has 3 doctors' chambers.  

~ Backside of the unit hospital ~
~A guard is seen at the gate~
~Villagers can pass through this gate. We also used this road
towards Gauchar market -shortcut and as an exercise on the side~

Newly joined doctors will undergo training for 3 months at Mussoorie, Dehradun and then come back for general duty. Sometimes a doctor visits the posts as a routine. Sometimes, medical camps are held in various villages around Chamoli District (depending on the location of the battalion).
Once, in October, my husband, though a locum doctor, was sent to Ghamsali post, near Malari for a visit. I was allowed to go with him, of course.  Thanks to the CO at that time!
We trekked to Niti Valley until Bimlas where a few ITBP soldiers are posted.
We stayed at Ghamsali guest house.
The Ghamsali post has one AC posted all the time and other officers to constables.

Then he was also sent to do a 5-day medical camps in the Joshimath - Badrinath areas, where we halted at ITBP Joshimath guest house at night.

On the thrid year of working at ITBP, he was sent again to various medical camps around Gopeshwar areas where we stayed at Kotiyal sen.