Two days after she went missing on Mount Kanchenjunga, Nepal Police confirmed on Thursday that Chhanda Gayen, a 35-year-old climber from West Bengal, and two of her Sherpa guides are dead.
Two days after she went missing on Mount Kanchenjunga, Nepal Police confirmed on Thursday that Chhanda Gayen, a 35-year-old climber from West Bengal, and two of her Sherpa guides are dead.
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Gayen, who scaled Everest last year, and three other clumbers from her state had successfully summited Kanchenjunga (8586 metres) last Sunday.
On Tuesday, she and the sherpas were climbing down from a lower (8,505m), Yalung Kang, peak of the world's third-highest mountain when an avalanche struck at 5,500 metres, officials said.
"The weather deteriorated while the climbers were at 7,300 metres. They were caught in incessant snowfall and got buried," inspector Krishna Dev Chaudhary of Sankhuwasabha district told Republica daily.
Police say the three climbers were trying to get back to a lower camp on the mountain due to bad weather when they got buried around 11 am on Tuesday.
Attempts to recover the bodies buried under snow have proved futile due to inclement weather. Officials say they will resume the search on Friday.
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Temba Sherpa, 24, and Dawa Wanju Sherpa, 28, are the two Sherpa guides who have died with Gayen. Two other Sherpa guides and another Indian climber, who is yet to be identified, are reported to be safe.
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Temba Sherpa, 24, and Dawa Wanju Sherpa, 28, are the two Sherpa guides who have died with Gayen. Two other Sherpa guides and another Indian climber, who is yet to be identified, are reported to be safe.
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Sixteen Sherpa guides were killed in an avalanche on Everest last month. The incident, the single biggest accident in the mountain's history, ended the spring climbing season on the world's tallest peak.
A seasoned senior journalist, I have nearly three decades of experience across print, digital, and online platforms, covering political transitions, insurgencies, environmental issues, and development stories in India and Nepal. I am skilled in breaking news, leading editorial teams and launch of newspaper editions. I am adept at leveraging digital trends and social media to expand global reach, with a strong ethical foundation and a reputation for impactful journalism. An alumnus of Asian College of Journalism, I joined Hindustan Times in New Delhi as a trainee reporter in May 1997. Over the years, I have been posted in Dehradun, Kathmandu (Nepal) and Guwahati. Currently, as Senior Assistant Editor at Hindustan Times, I lead a team reporting on India’s northeastern states. My work involves in-depth analysis, and engaging multimedia storytelling across formats, including text, photo, video, and interactive content. I am skilled in producing timely, shareable content, leveraging digital platforms and social media to engage global audiences. Throughout my career with the Hindustan Times, I have led diverse editorial teams, designed capacity-building activities, and supported reporters in developing strong story ideas, ethical reporting practices, digital skills, and fact-checking techniques. As Senior Assistant Editor for Northeast India, I have been responsible for guiding correspondents through complex political, humanitarian, and community-level stories using multimedia formats. Earlier, as Foreign Correspondent in Nepal, I produced extensive reporting during Nepal’s democratic transition and the 2015 earthquake and its aftermath.
