MUMBAI: Infotainment broadcaster Discovery has announced that it will produce a programme on the Indian Army?s Women Expedition to Mount Everest. The show will air later this year.

Discovery?s production team will follow the expedition to capture the summit, attempted by a group of seven Indian Army Women officers. The cameras will follow the contingent as they endeavour to reach the summit and achieve the ultimate mountaineering goal. For the first time, an Army Women Contingent is scaling the summit from the South ridge route. This route was used by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay in 1953.

Discovery South Asia senior VP, GM Rahul Johri said, "Discovery Channel is delighted to cover this unique and distinguished expedition by Indian Army?s Women Officers. We are committed to present stories of success and achievement from India to audiences around the world."

Johri adds that Discovery has been working on this project for a few months. "The adventure wing of the army has given us support. We have been following the progress of these women who were trained for months. This year we have done a few local shows already. We did one on the evolution of Indian television. We also did another on the making of Ra.One. So local shows are an important part of what we do."

Indian Army AVSM, Director General of Military Training Lt Gen SP Tanwar said, "Indian Army has appreciated the efforts of Discovery Channel to undertake the coverage of such an expedition for the first time. Such coverage besides projecting the unique and glorious feat of the Indian Army, will be a boon to the large international audience that watches this esteemed channel and will provide a platform for future joint ventures with the Discovery Channel on issues related to sports and adventure in the Indian Army."

The team is led by Col Ajay Kothiyal, KC, SC, VSM, and includes seven Indian Army Women officers: Capt Deepika Rathore (Rajasthan), Capt Namrata Rathore (Uttarakhand), Capt Prachi R Gole (Maharastra), Maj N Linyu (Nagaland), Maj Neha Bhatnagar (Rajasthan), Capt Poonam Sangwan (Haryana), and Capt Smitha (Karnataka).

Meanwhile, Discovery has also soft launched its kids channel Discovery Kids. Johri said, "35 per cent of this country is under the age of 14. That is why we are confident about the scope of this genre. The official launch will take place in the second half of this year. An announcement will be made shortly."