Good News! Five Students from Chandrapur Scale Mt Everest

These five tribal youth, who have been training for this for 18 months, scaled the peak on their first attempt.

Kavidas and Umakanat, two of the youth who scaled Mt Everest. 

(Photo Courtesy: Twitter @TribalAffairsIn)

Hardwired to deal with hardships, five tribal students from Chandrapur, Maharashtra, recently scaled new heights, literally. The group managed to summit Mount Everest in their first attempt itself.

According to The Times of India, these five tribal youth, aged between 18 and 21, scaled the world’s highest peak on 16 and 17 May. Kavidas Katmode, 18, and Umakant Madavi were the first to reach the summit on 16 May, followed closely by Pramesh Ale and Manisha Dhuvre. Vikas Soyam scaled the peak the next day.

Hailing from small ashram schools in Borada, Dewada and Jeevti, these youth were selected under the 'Mission Shaurya' initiative of the Maharashtra Tribal Development Department and the Chandrapur Collectorate. They have undergone rigorous training, both mental and physical, in order to be able conquer the mountain, reported The Times of India.

The five children at an event recognising their feat. (Photo Courtesy: Twitter @SMungantiwar)

The youth went through a basic mountaineering course in Darjeeling, followed by a 12-day winter mountaineering course in Leh in January. According to The Times of India, in order to be mentally strong for the weather and the sights they would encounter on the climb, they were shown movies and exposed to simulated weather conditions.

However, their trainer told reporters that these students are “hardwired to deal with hardship” by the circumstances they hail from.

The students will be felicitated by Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao at Raj Bhavan on Thursday, 31 May, and by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on 1 June.

(With inputs from The Times of India)