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Three Indian girls scale Everest; two mountaineers found dead

Stanzlin Laskit, Tashi Laskit and Tsering Angmo, all 18 years old, were part of the first-ever all girls expedition of the National Cadet Corps (NCC) that scaled the highest peak of the world.

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The three 18-year-old J&K girls atop the Mount Everest
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There was both ecstasy and agony for India from Mount Everest. While history was scripted when three Class XII girl students from Ladakh scaled the Mount Everest last week, a 58-year-old Indian mountaineer, who went missing nearly a week ago, was found dead on Friday.

Attempts were also being made to locate another Indian climber whose body was reportedly lying above 8,000 metres on the world's highest mountain.

Stanzlin Laskit, Tashi Laskit and Tsering Angmo, all 18 years old, were part of the first-ever all girls expedition of the National Cadet Corps (NCC) that scaled the highest peak of the world.

"Hundred cadets were selected in trials held pan-India. These cadets then underwent a special mountain course at HMI, Darjeeling," said Colonel SD Goswami, defence spokesman at Northern Command.

"Fifteen cadets were selected for the next phase based on their performance. In August 2015, the team set off on the second pre-Everest expedition to Mount Trishul (23,360 ft), and selected 10 girl cadets for the Everest Expedition," said Colonel Goswami.

Later, the cadets underwent a month-long intensive winter training at the world's highest battlefield in Siachen Glacier, at the Indian Army's Siachen Battle School, before setting course for Nepal.

The team was divided into two and the first attempted to scale the Everest on May 21, 2016, and succeeded. The second team scaled the Everest the next day.

Major General SS Jakhar, additional director general of NCC, said that by their outstanding achievement, these girls "will be suitably felicitated and rewarded on their return."

Meanwhile, according to Wangchu Sherpa, managing director at Trekking Camp Nepal, a team of six Sherpas retrieved the body of Paresh Chandra Nath above Camp IV. His body is being brought to Camp II, Sherpa said.

However, they could not move ahead from the higher camp to locate another missing climber, Goutam Ghosh, whose body was reportedly lying on the high mountain. Five people have died so far during this Himalayan climbing season, which saw about 400 mountaineers summit the world's highest peak, officials have said.

A Dutch and an Australian woman died of altitude sickness last Friday and Saturday, respectively. A Nepali guide died on Thursday after he slipped and fell 2,000 metres. Another Indian climber had died a few days ago.

More than three dozen other climbers have developed frostbite or become sick near the summit in the past few days. Nearly 40 climbers, including an Indian woman, have developed frostbite during this Himalayan climbing season. Last year, devastating earthquake caused the climbing season to be cancelled and climbing attempts were largely abandoned in 2014 after an avalanche above the base camp killed 16 Sherpa guides.

At least 19 climbers were killed in the avalanche triggered by the earthquake.

—With Agencies

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