A newspaper clipping titled "CIA reportedly lost nuclear generator in India", is being shared on social media platforms.
Why?: Sharing the clipping, social media users have said that in the 1960's, the US' Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) had lost a plutonium-powered nuclear generator on Nanda Devi while trying to install it there.
The claim: Those sharing this image have claimed that one of the team members was Sonam Wangyal, identifying him as the father of jailed Ladakhi activist and innovator, Sonam Wangchuk, was a part of the expedition.
Some users have called this 'Sonam Wangchuk's shocking CIA connect'.
Though they share the same name, Sonam Wangchuk's father was a politician and was not a part of the CIA and Intelligence Bureau's (IB) Nanda Devi mission.
What did we find?: A keyword search for 'Nanda Devi plutonium generator' led us to a 2024 report by The Week, which recounted parts of the mission to set up listening devices in the Himalayas.
It noted that the goal was to set up a plutonium-powered machine in a collaborative exercise between the CIA and India's Intelligence Bureau (IB), and not ONLY the CIA.
Additionally, it mentioned that a team of Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel, led by Captain MS Kohli, had first planned to plant the device on the Nanda Devi glacier.
His team included mountaineers Sonam Wangyal, Sonam Gyatso, Harish Rawat, and GS Bhangu, some of whom were trained at a CIA facility in Alaska.
Providing details about the mission, it noted that the team had to return during the first attempt due to a blizzard, leaving the device in a crevice with the intention of installing it at a later date.
However, when the recovery team went to retrieve the device, they found that the plutonium-powered battery was missing.
The report refers to Sonam Wangyal as an ITBP officer while carrying a photograph of him receiving the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award from former President Ram Nath Kovind.
The same photo can also be found on the President of India's official X account, which shared it in 2018.
A report by Wired mentioned a similar story about the joint operation between the CIA and IB, while the CIA's declassified files show communication between New Delhi and Washington about this mission.
A subsequent search for 'Nanda Devi plutonium Sonam Wangyal' showed us more reports about the mission, including one by The Wire where they spoke to Wangyal, mentioning that he was also awarded the Arjuna Award and the Padmi Shri.
This report, too, carried details about Wangyal retiring as the Assistant Director of the ITBP in 1993, and his involvement in the Nanda Devi mission.
During this search, we came across a special issue of the Indian Police Journal, published the last quarter of 2012.
This issue carried detailed information about Wangyal's training and involvement in the Nanda Devi mission, including additional training by the CIA in Alaska.
None of these reports mention any connection between Wangyal and Wangchuk, as claimed.
We then looked for information about Sonam Wangchuk's father and found that he had passed away on 10 November 1998.
Conclusion: The Sonam Wangyal who was a part of the CIA-IB joint Nanda Devi mission is not Sonam Wangchuk's father.
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