History was created when the first ever Mount Everest Expedition of NCC cadets scaled the world’s highest peak in two teams on 19-20 May. The first team led by Subedar Jagat Singh, one NCO and five NCC cadets scaled the peak at 7:30 am on May 19 and the second team of two NCOs and three NCC cadets scaled at 6:35 am on May 20.
The team was led by Col SC Sharma, SC, VSM, a renowned mountaineer and comprised 18 members which included 14 climbing members and four support members.
The team was flagged off by the minister Jitendra Singh on April 3 from Delhi. The team had earlier carried out extensive training at Himalayan Mountaineering Institute (HMI) Darjeeling and undertaken two pre Everest expeditions to Mt Deo Tibba and Mt Kamet. The team had also carried out winter acclimatisation training at the Siachen glacier before embarking on mission “Mount Everest”.
The cadets which scaled the peak were cadets Khimi Ram, Ashwani Kumar, Rajat and Karma Dawa of Himachal Pradesh, cadets Phairembam Bidya Chand Singh and Chirom Shangkar Singh from Manipur, cadet Arvind of Uttrakhand and cadet Sandeep Rai from West Bengal.
The army personnel who scaled the peak were Sub Jagat Singh of Dogra Scout, Hav Rafiq Ahmed Malik of JAK lI, Hav Raghuveer Chand, SM of Garhwal Rifles and Rifleman Ramesh Bahadur Thapa Magar of 3rd Gorkha Rifles.
