nuclear tests carried out by China. The plan to install a snooping device was devised far away in Washington, D.C., in the offices of the National Geographic Society. Barry Bishop, a photographer with the magazine, interested General Curtis LeMay of the US Air Force in the idea. The actual efforts called for the placement of a permanent ELINT device powered by a nuclear SNAP 19C power pack fuel cell. The first attempt to place this device on Nanda Devi, by a Kohli-led SFF team under the cover of a mountaineering expedition, failed as the team had to retreat in the face of adverse conditions and left the device in a small unmarked mountain cave after having hauled the device just short of the 25,645-foot peak. When another Kohli-led expedition returned the following year to recover the device, it was found to be missing. In the meantime the Chinese not only kept testing not only nuclear weapons but also ballistic missiles at regular intervals. The urgency to gather information was never greater. Another mission was launched in 1967 to place a similar device on the Nanda Kot. This mission was successful but a couple of years later another problem cropped up: snow would pile up over the antenna and render it blind. So Kohli and a SFF team were sent once again to bring it down; this time they retrieved it successfully. In October 1967 the Chinese began testing an ICBM capable of reaching targets 6000 miles away. There was renewed urgency to find out more. So SFF mountaineers went off on one more mission in December 1969 to successfully place a gas-powered device on an undisclosed mountain, supposedly in Chinese-controlled areas. However, by the following year, the US had the first generation of TRW reconnaissance satellites under Defense Support Program in place and did not have to rely on the old ELINT devices. 2020–2021 China–India skirmishes During conflict with troops from PLA Western Theater Command Ground Force, Indian Army Northern Command initiated Operation Snow Leopard. SFF which formed the core team, was reported to have conducted joint operation with Indian Army around Gurung Hill, Rezang La including the capture of heights in South Pangong Tso range. In another incident, an official statement by the Indian Army read: "Indian troops pre-empted this PLA activity on the southern bank of Pangong Tso, undertook measures to strengthen our positions and thwart Chinese intentions