Indian Institute of Skiing & Mountaineering Government of India, Ministry of Tourism
IISM is modern and the most popular ski training institute of our country which was established by the Ministry of Tourism, Govt. of India at Gulmarg in 1968 as a temporary project called Gulmarg Winter Sports Project (GWSP). The initial project envisaged development of Gulmarg as an international ski resort with desired infrastructure and to train ski guides to meet the requirement of tourists. The ski hire shop was established along with a chairlift and a ski lift in early 70’s to promote skiing and adventure tourism amongst domestic and foreign tourists. It also proposed to establish a cable car (Gandola) between Gulmarg and Kongdori. The project was started in the borrowed huts of Tourism department of J&K.
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On august 16th 2023, Col Ishwar Singh Thapa, a highly decorated veteran with accolades such as Sena Medal (SM)(G), Vishist Seva Medal (VSM), and Mentioned in Dispatches (MID)(G), assumed the role of Principal at the Indian Institute of Skiing and Mountaineering, Gulmarg. Col.Thapa an alumnus of Rashtrya Military School (BMS) Bangalore, National Defense Academy (NDA) khadakwasla and Indian Military Academy (IMA) Dehradun. Col Thapa was commissioned into the 4 Maratha light Infantry in June 1991. With a wealth of experience, he has previously served as the Principal of two prestigious national institutes, namely the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM) Uttarkashi and the Jawahar Institute of Mountaineering and Winter Sports (JIM & WS) Pahalgam. Additionally he held the position of Officer Commanding at the Siachen Battle School (SBS) in Siachen glacier. Col. Thapa has led two successful mountaineering expeditions to Mount Everest from both the North face and the South face showcasing his remarkable achievements in his more than 28 years of adventure experience.
The Institute under him is looking forward to excel more heights in further improvement in its infra structure, administration, training, adventure, skiing and mountaineering field.
