Radhika, a Teacher Who Became Top Cop and Acclaimed Mountaineer
Radhika is an all-India topper among 71 trainee IPS officers who went through their Induction Training Course at the National Police Academy in Hyderabad during August-September 2024.
Anantapur: G.R. Radhika is a superintendent of police-rank officer and currently principal of the Andhra Pradesh Police Training College at Ongole. One gets a realistic perspective about her on knowing that she is the first woman IPS officer who has worked for the anti-terrorist wing in Andhra Pradesh.
What can make some blink is that Radhika has extraordinary achievements as a mountaineer. She has climbed the highest peaks in all the seven continents of the world.
Not only that, she is the first Indian woman to climb Mt. Kun, first Indian woman police officer to climb the Mt. Everest, first Indian police officer to complete the Aussie 10-Peak Challenge and the first police officer from India to climb Mt. Elbrus in Russia from the North route.
Radhika started as many women do. Born in Anantapur of Andhra Pradesh, she graduated from Kadapa district. She completed her post-graduation in English from Sri Venkateswara University in Tirupati. She worked as a government lecturer for five-and-a-half years before writing her Group 1 exams in AP. She joined as deputy superintendent of police in 2007, before becoming an IPS officer.
Radhika is an all-India topper among 71 trainee IPS officers who went through their Induction Training Course at the National Police Academy in Hyderabad during August-September 2024.
GFX
Till date G.R. Radhika has climbed:
1. Mt. Golep Kangri 5,995 metres, Zanskar range, Ladakh, in September 2013
2. Mt. Menthosa, 6,443 metres in Himachal Pradesh in July 2014
3. Mt. Kun, 7,007 metres in Kargil, Ladakh, in September 2015
As part of Seven Summits Challenge, Radhika climbed the highest peaks of Asia, Africa, Australia, Europe, South America, North America and Antarctica.
*The international peaks the IPS officer has climbed are:
1. Mt. Everest, 8,848 metres / 29,030 feet, the highest peak of the world on Asian continent) on 20th May 2016
2. Mt. Kilimanjaro, 5,895 metres / 19,341 feet, the highest peak on African continent on 14th August 2016
3. Mt. Kosciuszko, 2,228 metres / 7,310 feet, the highest peak of Australian continent and nine other top peaks of Australia in Aussie 10 Peak Challenge on 17th and 18th March 2017
4. Mt. Elbrus, 5,642 metres / 18,510 feet, the highest peak of European continent, on 8th September 2017
5. Mt. Aconcagua, 6,962 metres, the highest peak of South American continent on 30th December 2017
6. Mt. Vinson, 4,892 metres, the highest peak of Antarctica continent on 16th December 2018
7. Carstenz Pyramid, 4,884 metres / 16,024 feet, the highest peak in Australasia on 20th March 2019
8. Mt. Denali, 6,190 metres / 20,310 feet of North American continent on 2nd June, 2021, reaching to a height of 5,791 metres
9. Island Peak, Nepal, 6,165 metres / 20,226 feet of Asian continent 4th April, 2021
Posts held by Radhika include:
> Greyhounds assault commander, DSP, Nellore; Addl. SP, Adilabad; OSD (Officer on Special Duty) Anti-Red Sandal Smuggling, Chittoor district; SP Octopus, SP Cybercrimes, CID, Andhra Pradesh; Election Observer, Kedarnath Assembly Constituency, Uttarakhand
Awards secured by Radhika include:
> Adventure Award on Telangana State Formation Day on 2nd June 2016 for climbing Mt. Everest; Women Icon of India National Award for climbing five highest peaks in seven continents on International Women's Day 2018; Best Woman Police Officer on International Women’s Day on 8th March 2019; Special Recognition Award in Mountaineering 16th October 2019; South India Women Achievers Award 2020
G.R. Radhika is also a poetess. She has written around 150 poems in English and Telugu.
“I want to become part of a society where women are safe and educated, and youth are law-abiding and empathetic to the needy,” Radhika told Deccan Chronicle.
