JK Tyre Himalayan Drive 8 flags off at Siliguri

North Bengal Police Chief Devendra Prakash Singh and Siliguri Deputy Mayor Ranjan Sarkar kicked off the ninth edition of the JK Tyre Himalayan Drive from the City Center in Siliguri on Wednesday afternoon. From 2013 to 2019, the Himalayan Drive, a competitive TSD (Time-Speed-Distance) Car Rally, completed seven successful editions. Due to the Covid-19 epidemic, it was not present in 2020 or 2021.

This year’s Drive will include 22 qualifying teams (a driver and a navigator) from throughout the country, including seven All Ladies teams.

The competition isn’t simply about the driver’s ability to navigate the course’s many checkpoints. The navigators play an equally vital role in the three-day event, leading their companions through difficult terrains such as dirt tracks, river beds, and narrow and steep mountain roads in the pursuit of the Indian National Regularity (TSD) Rally Champions for 2021.

The Indian National Regulatory Run Championship (INRRC) Ladies Cup will also be contested by the All Ladies teams. In Himalayan Drive 8, the INRRC Qualifiers will compete in the Pro category, while another 8 teams will compete in the Adventure category.

Himalayan Drive Timesheet:

Day 1: On March 24 (Thursday) morning, following the ceremonial flag-off, the official flag-off will signal the commencement of the main competition. To get to Murti, a famous tourist attraction, the competitors would have to push through tea plantations, embankments, and riverbeds sprawled throughout different areas of Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri districts. This first leg also includes a night stage, giving the three-day Drive a thrilling twist.

Day 2: The second leg will begin on March 25 (Friday) AM from Murti. As the teams navigate their automobiles through small country roads, riverbeds, tea fields, and the Himalayan foothills, the competition will get more difficult. Murti will be the starting and finishing point for the second leg.

Day 3: The third and final stage will begin in Murti and take the teams into the mountains, passing through major tourist destinations such as Samsing and Gorubathan before crossing the Teesta River on the 80-year-old Coronation Bridge. The journey continues along mountain roads, passing through Jorebunglow and Ghoom before arriving at Darjeeling.

Day 4: The prize distribution event will take place on March 27 (Sunday) AM in Darjeeling.

Former National Champions S.K. Ajgar Ali and M.K Mohammed Mustafa won from North-East Zone, Sandip Mukherjee and Prakash M from West Zone, Adarsh Tiwari and Chirag Thakur from Central Zone, and Santosh Kumar V Nagarajan T from South Zone, while former National Champions S.K. Ajgar Ali and M.K Mohammed Mustafa won from North-East Zone, Sandip Mukherjee and Prakash.