Mumbai:
A dozen civilian mountaineers from Pune today reached the summit of Mount Everest, the world's highest mountain at 8,848-metres.
The mountaineers from the city, who were a part of two separate expeditions, reached Mount Everest's peak in batches starting early this morning.
Sagarmatha Giryarohan Sanstha and Giripremi - the two Pune groups - announced success of their respective expeditions on their Facebook pages.
However, it was a bittersweet success for Sagarmatha group though as it lost one of its members, Ramesh Gulave, to altitude-related sickness at an earlier stage of the expedition a few days ago.
Eight climbers from Giripremi, including Tekraj Adhikari and Krishna Dhokale, and four from Sagarmatha Giryarohan - Shrihari Tapkir, Sagar Palkar, Balaji Mane and Anand Bansode - reached the summit from the 'South Col' route, from Nepal.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan congratulated the two teams, saying that it was a proud moment for the state, which has a vibrant mountaineering culture.
This is not the first time that civilian mountaineers from Maharashtra have scaled the peak. In 1998, two climbers summited Everest from 'North Col' route, which starts in Tibet, under the leadership of Hrishikesh Yadav. This was the first successful Indian civilian expedition.
While congratulating the twelve mountaineers today, Mr Yadav told PTI that "Indian mountaineers were as good as or better than the best in the world."
He also appealed the mountaineers not to take the 'South Col' route in future attempts.
The route, taken by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay for their maiden ascent, is criticised by several mountaineering experts due to commercialisation which has led to "adventure tourists" taking undue risks.
The mountaineers from the city, who were a part of two separate expeditions, reached Mount Everest's peak in batches starting early this morning.
Sagarmatha Giryarohan Sanstha and Giripremi - the two Pune groups - announced success of their respective expeditions on their Facebook pages.
However, it was a bittersweet success for Sagarmatha group though as it lost one of its members, Ramesh Gulave, to altitude-related sickness at an earlier stage of the expedition a few days ago.
Eight climbers from Giripremi, including Tekraj Adhikari and Krishna Dhokale, and four from Sagarmatha Giryarohan - Shrihari Tapkir, Sagar Palkar, Balaji Mane and Anand Bansode - reached the summit from the 'South Col' route, from Nepal.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan congratulated the two teams, saying that it was a proud moment for the state, which has a vibrant mountaineering culture.
This is not the first time that civilian mountaineers from Maharashtra have scaled the peak. In 1998, two climbers summited Everest from 'North Col' route, which starts in Tibet, under the leadership of Hrishikesh Yadav. This was the first successful Indian civilian expedition.
While congratulating the twelve mountaineers today, Mr Yadav told PTI that "Indian mountaineers were as good as or better than the best in the world."
He also appealed the mountaineers not to take the 'South Col' route in future attempts.
The route, taken by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay for their maiden ascent, is criticised by several mountaineering experts due to commercialisation which has led to "adventure tourists" taking undue risks.
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