The Everest expedition team 7 left for Kathmandu from Delhi by air on March 7. A strong advance team had already gone ahead so that they could clear the treacherous icy paths for our arrival before we reached our ‘base camp’.

Namche Bazaar is the most prosperous urban area in Sherpa land. Most Sherpas live in this town and the surrounding villages. It was from Namche Bazaar that I first saw Everest, which is famous among Nepalis as ‘Sagarmatha’. I liked this name.

Looking at Everest, I saw a large snow flower (plume) that looked like a flag waving on the mountain peak. It was told that this sight was caused by air moving at a speed of 150 kilometers or more per hour around the upper surface of the summit, because dry ice from the mountain was lifted by the fast wind. This snow flag on the mountain could be as long as 10 kilometers or more. Every climber who goes to the summit has to endure these storms on the southeast side of the mountain, especially during bad weather. This was enough to scare me, but I was strangely attracted to Everest and wanted to face its most difficult challenges.

When we reached Pharech on March 26, we received the sad news of the death of a Sherpa porter caused by an avalanche. A huge block of ice from the Khumbu glacier had slid down the steep slope towards the direction of our route, killing one of the 16 Sherpa porters and injuring four.

Seeing the gloom on the faces of the expedition members because of this news, our leader Colonel Khuller said clearly that in a great expedition like Everest, dangers and even death should be accepted calmly by a person.

Subedar Prem Chand, who was leading the advance team, returned to Pharech on March 26. He informed us about our first major obstacle, the situation at the Khumbu glacier. He said that his team had cleared the route up to Camp I (6,000 m), which is right above the glacier. He also said that all the major difficulties have been accepted by building bridges, tying ropes, and marking the route with flags. He also pointed out that the glacier is a river of ice and that snowfall is still ongoing. Due to the irregular and unpredictable changes in the ice, all the work done so far could be wasted, and we may have to clear the route again.

Before reaching the base camp, we received another death news. A cook assistant had died because of the climate not being suitable for him. We were definitely not in a hopeful situation.

I had seen Everest twice before, but from a distance. The next day, after reaching the base camp, I saw the Everest mountain and its other ranges. I stood there with my mouth open, staring at Everest, Lhotse, and Nuptse, surrounded by high peaks, with a frozen, wavy, and uneven river flowing between them.

The icefall was itself a kind of uncontrolled falling of ice blocks. It was told that the movement of the glacier often caused ice to shake, leading to large ice blocks falling immediately, and due to other reasons, it would suddenly create almost dangerous situations. The thought of a crack appearing on the ground and turning into a deep and wide ice gorge was very frightening. Even more terrifying was the information that during our entire journey, the icefall would almost touch a dozen crevasses and icefalls every day.

The next day, the new arrivals carried most of their belongings up to the halfway point to the icefall. Dr. Meenu Mehta taught us how to build temporary bridges using aluminum ladders, use ropes and snow walls, and gave us detailed information about the engineering work of the advance team.

On the third day, we were determined to practice carrying supplies from the icefall to Camp I. Ritu Gombu and I climbed together. We had a walkie-talkie, through which we informed the base camp about every step we took. At that time, Colonel Khuller became happy when we told him that we had reached Camp I, because only two women had reached there.

Angad Dorjee, Lopsang, and Gagan Bissa finally reached South Col and set up Camp IV on April 29 at 7,900 meters. This was a satisfactory progress.

When I was in the base camp in April, Tenzing came to us with his youngest daughter Deci. He emphasized that every member of the team and every Sherpa porter should have a conversation. When it was my turn, I introduced myself by saying that I am completely new and that Everest is my first expedition. Tenzing laughed and told me that Everest is also his first expedition, but he also made it clear that he had to go to Everest seven times before reaching the summit. Then, placing his hand on my shoulder, he said, “You look like a real mountain girl. You should have already reached the summit in your first attempt.”

On May 15-16, 1984, on the day of Buddha Purnima, I was in Camp III, which was set up on the beautiful colorful nylon rope on the frozen straight slope of Lhotse. There were 10 people in the camp. Lopsang and Tasharing were in my tent, N.D. Sherpa, and

Eight other strong Sherpas who lived in high altitudes were in other tents. I was sleeping deeply when, around 12:30 at night, my sleep suddenly woke up because something hard hit the back of my head, and there was a loud noise. Then I felt that something cold and very heavy was crushing me from above. I was also having difficulty breathing.

What had happened? A long ice ball had broken off from the Lhotse glacier right above our camp and formed a huge ice avalanche. This massive avalanche of ice blocks and frozen ice, with the speed of an express train and a terrible sound, swept down our camp as we descended the straight slope. In fact, everyone was injured. It was a miracle that no one had died.

Lopsang successfully cleared the path of our tent with his Swiss knife and immediately tried to save me as quickly as possible. A few seconds of delay would have meant death. With great difficulty, he removed the hard ice around me and successfully pulled me out from under the ice coffin.

By morning, the entire security team had arrived, and by 8 a.m. on May 16, we had almost reached Camp II. The Sherpa whose leg bone had broken was carried down on a stretcher made by himself. In the words of our leader Colonel Khuller, “This was a dangerous and brave task of security work at such a high altitude.”

All nine male members had to be sent back to the base camp due to injuries or broken bones. Then Colonel Khuller turned towards me and asked, “Were you scared?”

“Yes.”

“Would you like to go back?”

“No,” I answered without any hesitation.

As soon as I reached the South Col camp, I started preparing for my important climb the next day. I collected food, cooking gas, and some oxygen cylinders. When Bissa came at half past noon, he saw me warming water for tea. Jay and Meenu were still far behind. I was worried because I had to climb with them the next day. They were coming slowly because they were carrying heavy loads and climbing without oxygen.

In the afternoon, I decided to go down to help other members of my team and fill my two thermoses, one with juice and the other with hot tea. I stepped out of the tent into the cold air. As soon as I was outside the camp area, I met Meenu. Jay and Jai were still behind. Jay Jeneva had met me right below her shoulder injury. She politely drank tea and other things, but tried to stop me from going further. But I had to meet Jay. When I went a little further down, I saw Jay. He was stunned to see me.

“Why did you take such a big risk, Bachhendri?”

I firmly told him, “I am also a mountaineer like others, which is why I joined this team. Physically, I am fine. So why shouldn’t I help my team members?” Jay laughed and quenched his thirst with drinking things, but did not let me take his kit.

A little later, Lhatu and Bissa came down to meet us from the South Col camp. And all of us returned to South Col, which had whatever safety and rest facilities were available there. South Col is famous as a place on Earth that is ‘very harsh’.

The next day, I woke up at 4 a.m. I melted the snow and made tea, and after having some biscuits and half a chocolate as a light breakfast, I came out of my tent around 5:30 p.m. Angad Dorjee was standing outside, and there was no one around.

Angad Dorjee was the one who climbed without oxygen. But because of this, his feet would get cold. So he did not want to stay in the open for a long time at high altitude or spend the night at the summit camp. So he had to either climb to the summit that day and return to South Col or give up his attempt.

He wanted to start climbing immediately… and asked me if I wanted to go with him? To go from South Col to the summit and come back in a single day is very difficult and laborious! In addition, if Angad Dorjee’s feet got cold, there would also be a risk in returning. Still, I believed in Angad Dorjee, and at the same time, I was also confident about his climbing ability and skill. No other person was ready to climb with him at this time.

At 6:20 in the morning, when Angad Dorjee and I came out of South Col, the day had already risen. The air was light, but the cold was also very high. I was quite safe and warm in my climber’s suit. We climbed without any ropes. Angad Dorjee climbed upwards at a steady pace, and I had no difficulty in climbing with him.

The straight and sloping ice rocks were so hard and crumbly, as if glass sheets were spread. We had to use ice axes to cut through the ice, and I had to swing my ice axe so hard that its teeth could cut into the frozen ice ground. I carefully stepped on these dangerous places.

In less than two hours, we reached the summit camp. Angad Dorjee turned back and saw me and asked if I was tired. I answered, “No.” When he heard this, he was very surprised and delighted. He said that the previous team had taken four hours to reach the summit camp, and if we kept climbing at this pace, we would reach the summit by 1 p.m.

Lhatu was following behind us, and when we rested under the southern summit, he reached us. After having a little tea, we started climbing again. Lhatu had brought a nylon rope. So Angad Dorjee and I climbed with the help of the rope, while Lhatu walked in the middle, holding the rope with one hand. He had held the rope for our balance instead of for his own safety. Lhatu pointed out that I was climbing at a rate of almost two liters of oxygen per minute, which is usually necessary for these heights, compared to four liters of oxygen. As soon as he increased the oxygen supply on my regulator, I felt that the flat and difficult climb had also become easier now.

The wind speed had increased above the southern summit. The strong wind gusts at that height were throwing crumbly ice particles in all directions, making visibility zero. Many times, it was seen that there was no high climb just a little distance away. The slope had become completely straight downwards.

My breath seemed to have stopped. I felt that success was very close. On May 23, 1984, at 7:05 p.m., I stood on the summit of Everest. I was the first Indian woman to reach the summit of Everest.$ \qquad $ There was not enough space on the cone-shaped summit of Everest for two people to stand together. Looking at the thousands of meters long straight slope in front of us, our question was about safety. First, we secured ourselves safely by cutting through the ice with ice axes. After that, I sat on my knees, placed my helmet on the ice, and kissed the fresh summit of ‘Sagarmatha’. Without getting up, I took out the picture of Goddess Durga and Hanuman Chalisa from my bag. I wrapped them in the red cloth I had brought with me, performed a small puja, and buried them in the ice. In this moment of joy, I remembered my parents.

As I got up, I joined my hands and bowed respectfully towards my guide, Angad Dorjee. Angad Dorjee, who had encouraged me and brought me to the goal, I also congratulated him for climbing Everest for the second time without oxygen. He hugged me and whispered in my ears, “Didi, you did a good climb. I am very happy!”

After some time, Sonam Puljore arrived and started taking photos.

By this time, Lhatu had informed our leader that we four were on Everest. Then a walkie-talkie was given to me. Colonel Khuller was very happy about our success. While congratulating me, he said, “I will congratulate your parents for your unique achievement!” He said that the country is proud of you, and now you will return to a world that will be completely different from the world you left behind!

Practice Questions

#Oral

Answer the following questions in one or two sentences-

1. Who was leading the advance team?

2. Why did the writer like the name Sagarmatha?

3. What did the writer think looked like a flag?

4. How many people died and how many were injured due to the avalanche?

5. What did Colonel Khuller say when he saw the sadness of death?

6. How did the cook assistant die?

7. Where and when was Camp IV set up?

8. How did the writer introduce the Sherpa porter?

9. In what words did Colonel Khuller congratulate the writer on her success?

Written

(a) Write the answers (25-30 words) to the following questions-

1. What did the writer feel when she saw Everest up close?

2. What information did Dr. Meenu Mehta give?

3. What did Tenzing say in praise of the writer?

4. With whom did the writer have to climb?

5. How did Lopsang clear the path of the tent?

6. How did the writer start preparing for the important climb the next day after reaching South Col camp?

(b) Write the answers (50-60 words) to the following questions-

1. What situation did Subedar Prem Chand inform about?

2. How is the icefall and what changes does it cause?

3. How is the falling ice ball in the writer’s tent described?

4. Why did Jay become stunned when he saw the writer?

5. How many camps were made for climbing Everest? Describe them.

6. What was the situation of Everest’s summit during the climb?

7. How is the feeling of cooperation and assistance reflected in Bachhendri’s work in the combined expedition?

(c) Explain the meaning of the following-

1. In great expeditions like Everest, dangers and even death should be accepted calmly by a person.

2. The thought of a crack appearing on the ground and turning into a deep and wide ice gorge was very frightening. Even more terrifying was the information that during our entire journey, the icefall would almost touch a dozen crevasses and icefalls every day.

3. Without getting up, I took out the picture of Goddess Durga and Hanuman Chalisa from my bag. I wrapped them in the red cloth I had brought with me, performed a small puja, and buried them in the ice. In this moment of joy, I remembered my parents.

Language Study

1. Explain the following words used in this passage with reference to the text-निहारा है, धसकना, खिसकना, सागरमाथा, जायज़ा लेना, नौसिखिया

2. Use appropriate punctuation marks in the following sentences-

(क) उन्होंने कहा तुम एक पक्की पर्वतीय लड़की लगती हो तुम्हें तो शिखर पर पहले ही प्रयास में पहुँच जाना चाहिए

(ख) क्या तुम भयभीत थीं

(ग) तुमने इतनी बड़ी जोखिम क्यों ली बचेंद्री

3. Use the following word pairs in a sentence as per the example-

Example: हमारे पास एक वॉकी-टॉकी था।

$ \begin{array}{ll} \text { टेढ़ी-मेढ़ी } & \text { हक्का-बक्का } \\ \text { गहरे-चौड़े } & \text { इधर-उधर } \\ \text { आस-पास } & \text { लंबे-चौड़े } \end{array} $

4. Make opposite words as per the example-

Example: अनुकूल - प्रतिकूल

नियमित - …………. विख्यात -

आरोही - ………….. निश्चित - ……………

सुंदर

5. Add appropriate prefixes to the following words-

जैसे: पुत्र - सुपुत्र

वास व्यवस्थित कूल गति रोहण रक्षित

6. Fill in the blanks with the appropriate verb adjectives-

अगले दिन, कम समय में, कुछ देर बाद, सुबह तक

(क) मैं ……………………. यह कार्य कर लूँगा।

(ख) बादल घिरने के ……………………. ही वर्षा हो गई।

(ग) उसने बहुत ……………………. इतनी तरक्की कर ली।

(घ) नाङक्केसा को ……………………. गाँव जाना था।

Competency Expansion

1. Select ten English words from this passage and write their meanings.

2. Write the names of ten things related to mountaineering.

3. Get information about Tenzing Sherpa’s first climb.

4. Get information about why this mountain was named Everest.

Project Work

1. Collect pictures related to the following Indian women who are continuing to advance and write short information after reading their books-

(क) P.T. Usha

(ख) Arati Saha

(ग) Kiran Bedi

2. Read the essay ‘Courage and Life’ by Ramdhari Singh Dinkar from the library.

3. Organize a discussion in the class on the topic ‘Lost in the Mind, Won in the Mind’.

Word Meaning and Notes Notes