The Calcutta VHF Amateur Radio Society participates in Ganga Sagar Mela, a festival at Sagar island (AS-153) on the 2nd week of January every year when close to half a million people visit the island from all corners of India.

Radio Amateurs of the society set up their Amateur Radio stations at all the points at the bus stand and jetty towers at all the cross over points on the mainland and the island. The Amateur Radio network at Sagar is utilised to locate people who get   lost/separated from their families at the various points and also to maintain a second back up emergency line of communication from the island to the mainland. This year the ham operations at Sagar assumes special significance after the recent Tsunami disaster which has wrecked havoc and affected almost every country in South Asia. The administration at Sagar and the Calcutta VHF Amateur Radio Society is taking special precautions in maintaining special communication on the HF Amateur Radio Frequencies. CVARS has already set up a Tsunami control station at
Kolkata which is relaying emergency messages from Andaman to the mainland and handling hundreds of personal welfare messages daily. The HF station at Sagar would be maintaining links with the Disaster Operation Stations at Andaman and Nicobar islands as well as its control in Kolkata.

HF IOTA operations are scheduled this year from Sagar island AS-153 from 10th-15th January, 2005. However the recent Tsunami disaster will possibly affect IOTA operations from Sagar island this year. Thus the fate of AS-153 IOTA 2005 remains undecided. CVARS Radio Hams will try to make IOTA contacts from AS-153 subject to smooth operations  and traffic involved in the Tsunami relief work.

If QRV, the AS-153 IOTA station will be primarily operating on HF SSB on 14.260 MHz / 21.260 MHz / 28.460 MHz & 7.060 MHz and some CW operation on 7.030 MHz / 14.040 MHz / 21.040 MHz may be expected. The HF station from Sagar  would be operated by some of  the following Radio Amateurs who will be using their personal callsigns :

HF IOTA 2005 FROM SAGAR WILL BE OPERATED BY 3 TO 4 OPERATORS AMONGST THE CALLSIGNS MENTIONED BELOW. THEY WILL BE USING THEIR INDIVIDUAL CALLSIGNS.

VU2DPM (Deepak)
VU2HFR (Horey)
VU2KFR (Kitchu)
VU2SKD (Skid)
VU2JSH (Joy)
VU2EWS (Som)
VU2NKI (Nikhil)

QSL MANAGER FOR SAGAR 2005 - N6AWD.

FRED K STENGER (N6AWD)
6000 HESKETH DR
BAKERSFIELD CA 93309, USA
www.qrz.com/n6awd

ALL QSLs FOR SAGAR 2005 TO BE SENT TO N6AWD

OTHER QSL FOR VU2SKD IS TO BE SENT DIRECT & CONTAIN RETURN POSTAGE.

PLEASE SEND NEW REPLY COUPONS (NOT OLD ONE).