New Delhi, May 30
The Indian Air Force (IAF) has once again lived up to its credo of “touching the sky with glory” by successfully conquering the 8848 metres high Mt. Everest on Monday.The first ever IAF expedition to Mt Everest, which was flagged off by Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal S.P. Tyagi, on March 22, climbed the summit between 5:15 am and 6:30 am today morning, said a report from the Ministry of Defence.
Wg Cdr Amit Choudhary led the 19-member team, and Wg Cdr R.C. Tripathi, Sqn Ldr Chaitanya and Sgt N.R. Choudhary conquered the summit.
The team is expected to be back in Delhi by June 10. Air Marshal H.S. Garkal complimented the team over satellite phone for its successful conquest.
KATHMANDU: Of the 35 mountaineers touching the Everest peak on Monday from Nepal, the triumph of Moni Mulepati also lay in her being the first non-Sherpa Nepalese woman to scale the 8,848-metre peak.
An exultant Mulepati, 24, called up her father from the top. “She was overwhelmed,” the Kantipur web site reported. “She couldn’t talk. She started crying.” While at least three Nepalese women
belonging to the Sherpa community - the people of Tibetan origin famed for their mountaineering skills - have scaled the peak in
the past, Mulepati belongs to the Newar community.
The Newars are the original residents of Kathmandu valley, known for their business acumen and mastery over the fine arts.
Mulepati led a three-member Rotary Centennial Everest Expedition. Along with Pem Dorjee Sherpa, she reached the top around 11.30 am, while another member, Kami Sherpa, had reached the summit a few hours earlier, at around 7.30 am.
Monday saw this climbing season’s first victory with the 35 determined mountaineers, who battled bad weather, scaling the peak.
— ANI, IANS
