After a break of nearly two and a half years, largely due to travel restrictions imposed during the COVID 19 pandemic, the Caving in the Abode of the Clouds Project exploration resumed in Meghalaya. With the exploration taking place from 6th November to 30th November this year’s visit was particularly special in that it marked two significant milestones regarding the cave exploration.

The first being the 30th year of the Caving in the Abode of the Clouds Project that first visited Meghalaya in November 1992. The second being 100 years since the pioneering biological study of Siju Dhobakol Cave was made by Kemp and Chopra of the Kolkata based Zoological Survey of India. Their report, published in 1924, is arguably one of the most significant factors in stimulating interest in cave exploration in Meghalaya.

The expedition comprised of two distinct phases with a one week pre-expedition in the Jalaphet Area in the Central Jaintia Hills, followed by a two and a half week main expedition in the Muallian/Thlang Moi area in the East Jaintia Hills. Over the course of the 2022 expedition a further 13.4km of new cave passage was explored and mapped taking the total of the mapped passage in Meghalaya to over 531km since systematic cave exploration began back in 1992.

Read the full report.