Adventure Training and Camp Life
Why adventure training
Adventure training develops courage, endurance, decision-making and teamwork. Typical activities: trekking, mountaineering, rock climbing and rappelling, cycling and motorcycle expeditions, parasailing, scuba diving, river rafting and jungle craft.
The camps
- Annual Training Camp (ATC) - usually about ten days: drill, firing, games, lectures and a cultural night.
- National Integration Camp - cadets from many states together.
- Advanced Leadership Camp, Thal Sainik Camp, and attachment camps with regular units.
- Republic Day Camp (RDC), New Delhi, in January - the NCC contingent marches in the Republic Day parade and the Prime Minister's Rally is held.
Camp routine runs: Reveille (wake-up), PT, roll call, breakfast, drill, weapon training and lectures, lunch, rest, games, retreat/flag lowering, dinner, cultural programme, lights out. Cadets learn tent pitching, water and latrine discipline, and camp hygiene.
Worked example
"A cadet is selected for the Republic Day Camp. In which city and month is it held, and why is the selection prized?" New Delhi, January - it coincides with the Republic Day celebrations, and the best cadets compete for honours such as the Prime Minister's Cadet and take part in the parade. The reasoning matters: the answer links the camp to the national event.
Traps
Mixing the local ATC with the national RDC. Answering that a camp is only "fun" - marks are for discipline, hygiene and teamwork. Forgetting that a cadet may not leave the camp area without permission and must never move alone.