Paratroopers in Mountaineering
The Parachute Regiment has been active in the field of mountaineering for very long. The late Capt (later Col Retd) Avtar Singh Cheema, SM was the first Indian atop Mount Everest in 1965, followed by Capt. Abhijeet while Colonel Saurabh Singh Shekhawat, KC, SC, SM, VSM scaled the peak thrice (2001, 2003 & 2005) apart from scaling peaks in the French Alps and in Africa.
The Parachute Regiment scaled Nanda Devi in 1981 when they attempted both main and East peaks simultaneously. The southwest face of Nanda Devi East was climbed for the first time, but both summitters, Premjit Lal and Phu Dorjee, were killed in the descent. Three others – Daya Chand, Ram Singh, and Lakha Singh – also fell to their deaths, leading to the highest ever number of casualties on the mountain.
Maj Jai Bahuguna, a famous climber of the Corps of Engineers who died on Everest, also served with the 50th Parachute Brigade. Maj Gen (then Maj) Mohd Amin Nayak and Col (then Capt) Anand Swaroop, SM also of the Corps of Engineers, summitted Nanda Devi in 1993. Col DC Thakur SM, VSM, is also a paratrooper and the ex-commanding officer of 60 Para Fd Hosp. Maj N Linyu of 60 Para is the first lady officer paratrooper who is also a mountaineer having participated in numerous expeditions in the Himalayas. She summitted the Everest in May 2012. She is also an accomplished skydiver.
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