Bachendri Pal achieved the feat of climbing Everest in 1984.
As the mountaineering community celebrates the 70th anniversary of the conquest of Mount Everest, a look at Bachendri Pal, the first Indian woman to reach the summit of the mountain.
5 Facts About Bachendri Pal
- On May 23 in 1984, Bachendri Pal made history by becoming the first Indian woman to stand on the top of the world.
- According to BBC, Ms Pal never dreamt of conquering mountains but a chance meeting with a climber changed all that. She applied for a mountaineering course and was chosen to be part of India's first mixed-gender team to climb Mount Everest.
- In an interview with BBC, she revealed that the journey to the top of the world was fraught with danger as an avalanche destroyed the camp, injuring several of the team and almost crushing Bachendri. But despite the near-death experience, she was determined to continue.
- Ms Pal continued to be active after ascending to the highest peak in the world. She successfully led an "Indo-Nepalese Women's Mount Everest Expedition", an all-women team of rafters in "The Great Indian Women's Rafting Voyage" and the "First Indian Women Trans-Himalayan Expedition."
- The Celebrated Indian mountaineer was given the country's second-highest civilian award, Padma Bhushan in 2019.
