Purple Cheetah had its share of adventure in Sikkim by way of ice-skating, a few km after Thambi View Point, Zuluk, East Sikkim.
We were on our way to the Old Silk Route from Gangtok on 9 April 2015. At Ranipool, I saw a group of riders of Royal Enfield from Karnataka, overtaking me in the morning. I met them at Lingtam check-post in the afternoon, where the police verified our inner-line permits and entered the details in their register. I introduced myself to them and we had tea together. Later, we overtook each other at many places including Padamchey check-post and Thambi View Point.
After Thambi View Point, the road was covered with snow. I drove very carefully until I saw a Tata Sumo cab parked facing us. I asked the cab driver, where I could take a U turn as the road was very narrow. He informed me that a few hundred metres ahead, the road was very wide, where I could easily do U turn. After this, I started driving in the first gear very slowly, slightly turned towards my left so as to leave a gap between our vehicles. At that point of time, Purple Cheetah left my control and started sliding towards left. No amount of manoeuvre could change the direction and Purple Cheetah straight away went to the road-side drain filled with snow upto the brim with two wheels on the left in deep snow and the remaining two on the road.
I tried my best in pulling out Purple Cheetah from the deep snow, but in vain. I did forward and reverse driving, but Purple Cheetah won't budge. Then, the cabbie tried his best; even he could not rescue Purple Cheetah. Then, I took out the nylon rope with tow-hook. He attached it to Purple Cheetah and his Sumo. But, Sumo could not pull out XUV 500 either from the front or back. Then, I thanked and requested him to carry on as he had a lot of passengers including ladies and kids.
Then, the Samaritans came in the guise of Royal Enfield riders from Karnataka, whom I had been meeting frequently from the morning! All the eight of them pushed from behind with me behind the wheel. But, again, Purple Cheetah did not want to come out of the snow-pit. Before departing, the cab driver informed us to seek the help of Indian Army, whose check-post was just a km away from where we got stranded. The leader of the group volunteered to ride to the Army post to seek their assistance and left the place on his Royal Enfield.
By that time, it started snowing heavily. I asked my wife to sit inside Purple Cheetah, so that she would not freeze in the sub-zero temperature. Purple Cheetah was idling with ACC set at 26 deg C. After a half-hour or so, the riders' leader came back with the bad news that there was no towing truck available in the Army post. Any help could be expected by the next day morning only. The riders' leader offered us lift upto Zuluk, where we could stay for that night and rescue Purple Cheetah in the next morning. So, I sat pillion in one Royal Enfield, my wife sat in the other and we rode towards Zuluk, the nearest village.
En route, while crossing an Army post near Thambi View Point, we stopped by to explore the possibilities of any assistance there. There were 3 Army personnel guarding that check-post. One Mr Prakasa Rao told us that they were not equipped with towing truck and suggested us to go to Zuluk Army base and try there. While we were discussing, we heard a sound and turned only to see a big Army truck approaching us!
The officer, who was seated in the front asked the riders' leader as to who was the driver of a XUV 500 that got stranded a few km away. Then, I stepped out and introduced myself. His second question was, why there were nobody near the stranded vehicle after lodging a request. The riders' leader replied to him about the non-availability of rescue vehicle, so we were returning to Zuluk. The officer informed us that they received our SOS by wireless, arranged a rescue-truck, visited the place where XUV 500 got stranded and started enquiring all the cabbies about our whereabouts. Luckily, one cabbie informed them that a group of riders just passed by a few minutes back, so they started chasing and caught us, when we were discussing the action plan at the Army check-post.
Then, the officer instructed the check-post Army personnel to see that my wife remained comfortable there and asked me to hop into their rescue-truck. I shook hands and thanked the Royal Enfield riders and went with the Army personnel to the place where Purple Cheetah got straned.
En route, they asked a cabbie to accompany us, while his passengers clicked photographs.
We reached the place where Purple Cheetah got stranded. They had only a chain and did not have a rope. I gave my nylon rope with a tow-hook. They attached it to Purple Cheetah and the rescue-truck. I was asked to sit behind the wheel of Purple Cheetah, start the engine keeping it in neutral with hand-brake released. The rescue operation lasted barely a few seconds. It was as easy as taking out a book from a row of stacked books in a shelf!
Purple Cheetah was towed for a few hundred metres by the rescue-truck, where the road became wide. There, the nylon rope was detached and handed over to me. The Army personnel clicked a photograph of me and Purple Cheetah for their record. I requested the accompanying cabbie to click a pic of me, Purple Cheetah with the Army personnel for this thread! The Army officer requested the cabbie to drive along with me until the snow cleared to ensure safety of me and Purple Cheetah! I shook hand with all the Army personnel and thanked them.
I took a U turn, dropped the cabbie at the place where his cab was parked with his passengers clicking photographs, stopped at the Army check-post, thanked Mr Prakasa Rao and his colleagues including one Stalin from Dindigul for all their help, picked up my wife, who was very comfortable there after having tea with them and continued my drive to Rangpo
en route Guwahati.
Hats off to the Indian Army and the Royal Enfield riders from Karnataka for rescuing me, the missus and the stranded Purple Cheetah without any injury, bruise or damage!