It is the world's highest battlefield. Any soldier who spends time on the Siachen Glacier gives new meaning to the word tough.

Its dizzying heights and howling blizzards often rule out the use of air transport, at times for weeks, leaving troops stranded.

Commandos at Leh airfield get ready to be airlifted to forward posts on the glacier.

Photograph: Sondeep Shankar/Saab Press