"Tension nahi lene ka (Don't be tense)" -- this is the new mantra for troops deloyed on the Siachen glacier, better known as the world's highest and coldest battlefield.
The soldiers deployed along the Saltoro range to prevent any misadventure by Pakistani troops have been affected by hypoxia or shortage of oxygen that causes short-term memory loss, and the main factor for this is usually tension about their families back home, sources said.
Officially, army authorities maintain silence on this issue, but they have taken several steps for soldiers posted at camps at heights of up to 21,000 feet, including appointing medical officers or paramedical staff to prevent hypoxia from turning into a major problem.
Facing high-speed blizzards and other threats from mother nature, soldiers posted for tenures of 90 days are totally cut off from their families and the rest of the world.
"Though every facility has been provided at all posts, including TV sets, generators and satellite dishes, some still feel homesick at times," said a doctor who recently completed a posting at a high-altitude camp.
And this is worrisome for medical staff who have to double up as counsellors for the soldiers.
"At these moments we cheer them up by saying, 'Tension nahi lene ka bhai' (Don't be tense, brother)," the doctor said. "This is the standard drill or mantra for every medical and paramedical staff deployed in camps on the glacier.
Most of the time, we try to cheer up the soldiers in every way we can. It's the biggest sign of unity when we try to make someone smile and take him out of the hypoxia syndrome," the doctor, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said.
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