The latest release of declassified UFO files by the US government has revealed that several aerial sightings were reported over India and neighbouring Himalayan regions during February and March 1968.
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The reports are contained in a six-page CIA document that forms part of a wider release of previously classified Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP) records made public by the Pentagon on Friday. The disclosure includes documents, photographs, videos and audio recordings from agencies including the CIA, FBI, NASA and the Pentagon.
One of the earliest incidents detailed in the document occurred on February 19, 1968 in North Sikkim. Witnesses in Lachung, Lachen, Trangu, Muguthang and Chholhamu reported seeing an object travelling from north-east to south-west. According to the report, the object emitted light from its tail and was bright enough to illuminate the surrounding area. A thunder-like sound was heard shortly after the sighting.
Several more incidents were recorded in Ladakh the following month. On March 4, 1968, observers in the Chang La, Fukche and Koyul regions reported seeing a white light moving from east to west. The report says two blasting sounds were heard simultaneously, followed by the appearance of a reddish light and white smoke. Another sighting on the same day in the Ane La area described an object moving in a circular path while leaving a trail of smoke behind it.
Later that month, on March 25, witnesses in Fukche, Koyul and Demchok reported seeing a rocket-like object travelling through the sky. The object reportedly left a white-yellow trail stretching around 200 yards and was estimated to be flying at an altitude of between 20,000 and 25,000 feet.
The document also records a striking incident in neighbouring Nepal on March 27, 1968. In the Kaski region, witnesses observed a blazing object moving from north to south while flashing intermittently and producing a loud sound. According to the report, a large metallic disc-shaped object was later discovered in a crater at Baltichaur, about five miles north-east of Pokhara. The object was described as having a six-foot base and standing roughly four feet high.
