Intense cold, avalanches, fierce winds and lack of oxygen meet you at every step, but the magical feeling of conquering the 29,028-foot Mt Everest is inexplicable, said Madhya Pradesh’s first civilian to scale the tallest peak of the world Bhagwan Singh.
Singh reached Bhopal on Tuesday after short treatment for frostbite at AIIMS in New Delhi. Bhagwan was given a warm welcome as he reached the state capital.
The recent deaths — coming so quickly on the heels of one another — however, did not unnerve this climber. “I never felt uneasy during the ascent to Mount Everest. The news of deaths was quite depressing for climbers but we kept going on without losing heart,” Bhagwan said. One Indian has died and two more are feared dead attempting to climb Mount Everest this month.
“The area above 28,000 feet was really tough. We used oxygen masks there. In our team, there were eight climbers, but only five got success. When I reached the top of the Mount Everest, I felt like I conquered whole world. I can’t explain my feelings,” said the Gwalior resident.
Climber Ratnesh Pandey from Satna too achieved his dream to climb the Everest on May 21 and reached Kathmandu on Tuesday.
{{/usCountry}}Climber Ratnesh Pandey from Satna too achieved his dream to climb the Everest on May 21 and reached Kathmandu on Tuesday.
{{/usCountry}}Last year, Pandey could not scale the highest peak of the world because of the devastating earthquake in Nepal.
His father Jaichand Pandey told HT: “When last time he had gone for the expedition, he had to come back from the height of 24,000 feet as the Nepal earthquake hit the mountains. We were scared this year too, given the experience of the last year. But when he contacted us after reaching Kathmandu, we were on cloud nine.”
Chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and sports minister Yashodhara Raje Scindia have congratulated the both the state climbers.