Warangal: Students of NIT Warangal were thrilled to take part in the rock climbing festival held at the historic Pandavula Gutta on Saturday. Many students, both boys and girls, who were climbing rocks for the first time, participated excitedly in the event.
Mountaineering experts from Bhongir Rock Climbing School like Arjuna Awardee Shekhar Babu Bachinepally, S. Anand Kumar and Paramesh explained to the students about the various instruments and items used for rock climbing.
After the briefing, the students got a chance to climb rocks using ropes, harness and mountain climbing shoes. The students learnt various rock climbing techniques during the session. While one batch of students were climbing rocks the other batch were taken on a trekking trip around Pandavula Gutta.
“I have always been interested in adventures since childhood. When I came to know about this rock climbing festival, I got excited. We were taught various techniques of rock climbing here. We are happy to interact with renowned mountaineers. We thank the Bhupalapalli forest department for organising this event,” said Apurva Chandravanshi, an NIT student.
Located in Regonda mandal of Jayashankar Bhupalapalli district, Pandavula Gutta is a pre-historic heritage site with murals from the 7th century.
Apart from that it is a great location for trekking and camping. Trekking is currently an official activity at this place. The Jayashankar Bhupalapalli district forest department took steps to set up the rock climbing facility for adventure enthusiasts.
District Forest Officer T. Ravi Kiran said they intend to develop Pandavula Gutta as a hub for adventure sports. “Adventurers and tourists are visiting several tourist spots in the district. Trekking, cycling and camping were introduced at many of the locations. After the rock climbing school in Bhongir, this place will be the next destination for adventure sports,” he said.
“We have got good response from the students and members of adventure clubs in Hyderabad. Initially, we will make rock climbing available to tourists during weekends,” he added.
Warangal Urban DFO, Arpana Syal, district Eco tourism coordinator K. Suman, Mulugu FRO Nageshwar Rao and others were also present.
