Legendary mountaineer Bachendri Pal, the first Indian woman to summit Mt Everest, celebrated the 40th anniversary of the landmark 1984 expedition by trekking up to the Everest Base Camp on May 23. Pal said that she was elated and privileged to have got the opportunity to inspire others, especially young women.
Pal, who also celebrated her 71st birthday on May 24, was joined by 81-year-old Brigadier Darshan Kumar Khullar at Namche Bazar, which is halfway to the Everest Base Camp. He was there to “bless Bachendri Pal”, as he declared, notwithstanding his age and the treacherous climb at such a high altitude.
Khullar, who was the principal of the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute (HMI) at Darjeeling then, had led the historic 1984 expedition to Mt Everest (peak height 8,848.86 metres).
The plan to commemorate 40 years of that Mt Everest climb and to “re-live” the expedition was initiated some months ago; it was decided to invite whosoever from the 1984 team was willing to join.
In 2008, Pal, a Padma Bhushan awardee, formed ‘WANI’, or the Women Adventure Network of India, along with Bimla Negi-Deoskar, one of her team members from the 1993 expedition, which Pal had led and created multiple records.
The WANI group was soon joined by women in their 40s, 50s, and even 60s, and from that came the members of trek this time.
Staying true to the 1984 experience, the 15-odd members of WANI and some from the old team started their trek from a place near Jiri, which was the original starting point for the traditional route from Nepal to the Summit — nowadays, mountaineers fly to Lukla and then start trekking.
They began on May 9 and reached the Everest Base Camp, approximately at 18,000 feet, on May 23.
Major Krishna Sharma, part of a pre-Everest expedition, and Sushma Bissa, wife of late Magan Bissa, a 1984 team member, were also in the group.
“The 1984 expedition changed our lives forever; not just for ourselves but for many others… all the women wanted to relive that. So we decided to go there again,” said Pal, who is still associated with the Tata Steel Adventure Foundation (TSAF), at Gorakshep.
Women inspired through mountaineering
Asserting that she was aware of her privilege — the fact that through her, “many more people were guided, inspired and mentored through mountaineering” — Pal added that she was “very happy to have inspired a whole lot of people through these years and [to] create awareness about the opportunities that this field offers, particularly to young women”.
The trek to the Everest Base Camp was organised by the TSAF.
Bikram Pandey, who had helped out in 1984, took care of the logistics.
Pal, who has kept in touch with almost all the people associated with the 1984 expedition, wrote a glowing tribute to Pandey, MD of HimEx Nepal, on her official Instagram account on Friday.
She wrote: “Thank you so much, Bikram Pandey MD HIMEX Nepal for your kind words and unwavering support to the EBC team as we celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Indian Everest expedition in 1984, led by Col. D K Khullar and deputy leader late Col Premchand in which you had played a crucial role as the logistics partner. Your support means [a] lot to all of us as we honor this remarkable milestone. Grateful for your continued support. Warm regards.”
In fact, Pal is still in touch with the family of Nepal’s late Sherpa Ang Dorjee, who was part of the 1984 expedition. His daughter, Asmita Dorjee, who climbed Mt Everest last year, was also part of this week’s Everest Base Camp expedition, “to be with her and sharing emotional moments and recollecting the memorable trip 40 years ago”.
The other members of the group were to return via Lukla two days later, but Pal and Negi-Deoskar planned to stay put at Namche Bazar for the ‘Everest Marathon’. This event will be held on May 29 to mark the first summiting of the world’s tallest peak in 1953.
The adventurous women would return to Kathmandu by month-end.
