Mamta Sodha

Last updated

Mamta Sodha
Personal information
Main discipline Mountaineer
Born (1979-11-01) 1 November 1979 (age 44)
Kaithal, Haryana, India
NationalityIndian
Career
Starting disciplineHandball player
Notable ascents Mount Everest in 2010
Mount Elbrus in 2012

Mamta Sodha is an Indian sportsperson, known for her successful 2010 attempt to scale Mount Everest. [1] She was honoured by the Government of India, in 2014, by bestowing on her the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award, for her services to the field of mountaineering sport. [2]

Contents

Biography

Everest North Face toward Base Camp Tibet Luca Galuzzi 2006 Everest North Face toward Base Camp Tibet Luca Galuzzi 2006.jpg
Everest North Face toward Base Camp Tibet Luca Galuzzi 2006

Mamta Sodha was born on 1 November 1979, [3] at Kaithal, in the state of Haryana, in India, in a family with poor financial resources, as the eldest of three girls and two boys. [4] [5] [6] She lost her father, Laxman Dass Sodha, who worked as an inspector with the Haryana Food and Supplies Department, in 2004, [4] [5] and her mother, Mewa Devi, [5] had to support the family with the help of her brothers. [6]

Mamta did her schooling at a local school in Kaithal and college studies at the RKSD College, Kaithal from where she secured her graduate degree, getting high grades. [6] Subsequently, she earned her master's degree in Physical Education (MPhEd) from Kurukshetra University, in 2005 [3] [4] and joined the same university at the Shaheed Baba Deep Singh College of Physical Education, Haryana, as a lecturer. [7] [5]

After the successful Everest climb, the Government of Haryana absorbed her into the Haryana Police Force. Mamta Sodha is now a Deputy Superintendent of Police with Haryana Police since 11 August 2010. [3]

Sporting achievements

Mamta had a passion for rock climbing early on, [4] [6] a trait encouraged by her father. [4] Soon, she made up her mind to climb Mount Everest one day for which she joined the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering, in the state of Uttarakhand. [5] Prior to embarking on the project, she scaled a few other peaks. She was a member of the IMF Golden Jubilee expedition team that scaled Phawararang Peak in July 2008. [3] [8] Two months later, in October, she climbed the Mun Peak with another team, while on an expedition at McLeod Ganj. [3] [8] In August 2009, she summited Shri Kanth Peak with an all-women team. [3] [8]

She has also scaled other peaks of varying heights such as Morni Peak, Khüiten Peak, Inderhara Pass [4] and Island Peak [8] on various occasions. This was followed by an attempt on Island (Imja-tse) Peak which she successfully accomplished in April 2010, just prior to the Mount Everest expedition. [3]

The total financial outlay for the Everest project was around ₹1.8 million. [6] Mamta collected the money by way of contributions from several agencies and individuals such as Haryana state government (₹300,000), PWD Minister, Randeep Singh Surjewala (₹51,000), Kurukshetra member of parliament, Navin Jindal (₹500,000}, District Police Commissioner Amneet P Kumar (₹250,000) and various others [4] [6] and the project started in April 2010, with the encouragement of previous Everest climbers Bachendri Pal and Santosh Yadav. [7] The expedition team consisted of 13 members, of which nine mountaineers were from United States, Denmark, Switzerland and Australia and the remaining four from India, including 16-year-old Arjun Vajpai. [9] The team was led by the legendary Apa Sherpa, who held the world record of 19 successful climbs of [10] Mount Everest. The team spent 40 days at Khumbu Glacier, where the team had set up their base camp, for acclimatisation. The route was the traditional South Col route in Nepal. The team, after periodic stop overs at three or four camps en route, finally reached the top around 20 May 2010. At 10.24 am, on 22 May, 2010, Mamta Sodha summited Mount Everest. [3] [9]

After the Everest triumph, Mamta scaled the highest peak in Europe, Mount Elbrus, in 2012. [11]

Apart from being a mountaineer, Mamta Sodha excelled in handball, too. [5] She was a member of the Haryana state girls team which secured runner up position at the 21st Junior Girls' National Handball Championship, held at Agra in November 1998. [3] As a member of the Kurukshetra University team, she was a winner at the All India Inter-University Handball tournament in December 1998. [3] In 2003, she was selected as a B1 grade sportsperson in Handball by the Sports and Youth Welfare department of Haryana Government.

Mamta Sodha is also a member of National Adventure Club. [5] [12]

Awards and recognitions

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Everest</span> Earths highest mountain

Mount Everest(also Mount Sagarmatha or Mount Qomolangma) is Earth's highest mountain above sea level, located in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas. The China–Nepal border runs across its summit point. Its elevation of 8,848.86 m was most recently established in 2020 by the Chinese and Nepali authorities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sherpa people</span> Tibetan ethnic group

The Sherpas are one of the Tibetan ethnic groups native to the most mountainous regions of Nepal and Tibetan Autonomous Region of China.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tenzing Norgay</span> Nepalese-Indian mountaineer (1914–1986)

Tenzing Norgay, born Namgyal Wangdi, and also referred to as Sherpa Tenzing, was a Nepalese-Indian Sherpa mountaineer. He was one of the first two people known to certainly reach the summit of Mount Everest, which he accomplished with Edmund Hillary on 29 May 1953. Time named Norgay one of the 100 most influential people of the 20th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jamling Tenzing Norgay</span> Indian mountaineer (born 1965)

Jamling Tenzing Norgay is an Indian Sherpa mountaineer based out of Darjeeling.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Apa Sherpa</span> Nepalese mountain climber

Apa, nicknamed "Super Sherpa", is a Nepalese Sherpa mountaineer who, until 2017, jointly with Phurba Tashi held the record for reaching the summit of Mount Everest more times than any other climber. As part of The Eco Everest Expedition 2011, Apa made his 21st Mount Everest summit in May 2011 then retired after a promise to his wife to stop climbing after 21 ascents. He first summited Everest in 1990 and his last time to the summit was in 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timeline of Mount Everest expeditions</span>

Mount Everest is the world's highest mountain, with a peak at 8,849 metres (29,031.7 ft) above sea level. It is situated in the Himalayan range of Solukhumbu district, Nepal.

Tashi Wangchuk Tenzing is an Indian-born Australian Sherpa mountaineer. His maternal grandfather, Tenzing Norgay, made the first ascent of Mount Everest on 29 May 1953.

Lopsang Tshering Bhutia was an Indian Sherpa mountaineer who died on Mount Everest and the nephew of Tenzing Norgay. His death made international headlines because he died on the 40th anniversary expedition of his uncle's summiting. His uncle, Tenzing Norgay, had died at home of natural causes in 1986 at the age of 72. Tenzing Norgay was the first person to summit Mount Everest in 1953 along with Sir Edmund Hillary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chandraprabha Aitwal</span> Indian mountaineer

Chandraprabha Aitwal is an Indian mountain climber and one of the pioneers of Indian women mountaineers. She was awarded 2009 Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award for Lifetime Achievement, given by the Indian Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. She has climbed Nanda Devi, Kangchenjunga, Trishuli and Mt. Jaonli.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Premlata Agrawal</span> Indian mountaineer

Premlata Agrawal is the first Indian woman to scale the Seven Summits, the seven highest continental peaks of the world. She was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India in 2013 and Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award in 2017 for her achievements in the field of mountaineering. On 17 May 2011, she became the oldest Indian woman to have scaled the world's tallest peak, Mount Everest (29,032 ft.); at the age of 48 years at that time while Sangeeta Sindhi Bahl hailing from Jammu and Kashmir broke Premlata's record on 19 May 2018 and became the oldest Indian woman to scale Mount Everest doing it at the age of 53.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tashi and Nungshi Malik</span> Indian mountain climbers (born 1991)

Tashi and Nungshi Malik are the first siblings and twins to climb the Seven Summits and reach the North and South Poles and complete the Adventurers Grand Slam and Three Poles Challenge.

Lhakpa Sherpa is a Nepali Sherpa mountain climber. She has climbed Mount Everest ten times, the most of any woman in the world. Her record-breaking tenth climb was on May 12, 2022, which she financed via a crowd-funding campaign. In 2000, she became the first Nepali woman to climb and descend Everest successfully. In 2016, she was listed as one of BBC's 100 Women.

Aparna Kumar is an Indian mountaineer. She was awarded the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award in 2018 for land adventure by the President of India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anshu Jamsenpa</span> Indian mountaineer

Anshu Jamsenpa is an Indian mountaineer and the first woman in the world to scale the summit of Mount Everest twice in a season, and the fastest double summiter to do so within five days. It is also the fastest double ascent of the tallest crest by a woman. She is from Bomdila, headquarters of West Kameng district, Arunachal Pradesh - the state that holds the most north-eastern position in India. She was awarded India's fourth-highest civilian award the Padma Shri in 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award</span> Indian adventure sports award

The Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award, formerly known as the National Adventure Awards is the highest adventure sports honour of the Republic of India. The award is named after Tenzing Norgay, one of the first two individuals to reach the summit of Mount Everest along with Edmund Hillary in 1953. It is awarded annually by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. The recipients are honoured for their "outstanding achievement in the field of adventure activities on land, sea and air" over the last three years. The lifetime achievement is awarded to individuals who have demonstrated excellence and have devoted themselves in the promotion of adventure sports. As of 2020, the award comprises "a bronze statuette of Tenzing Norgay along with a cash prize of ₹15 lakh (US$18,000)."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sunita Singh Choken</span> Indian activist and mountaineer

Sunita Singh Choken is an Indian mountaineer and activist. She climbed Mount Everest in 2011. Afterwards she did two long-distance cycle trips to promote both the environment and the "Save, educate the girl child" campaign. She has received several awards including the 2016 Nari Shakti Puraskar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Narender Singh Yadav</span>

Narender Singh Yadav is an Indian mountaineer. He is best known for his controversial climbing expedition to Mount Everest in May 2016, where he claimed to have summitted the mountain but had recognition of this attempt stripped years later after discrepancies were noticed which indicated he had faked the summit, leading to his 2020 Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award being revoked and a ban from the mountain for six years from the climbing date by the Nepali government in 2021. In May 2022, soon after his ban expired, he again went to Everest and successfully reached the summit with ample proof that he had actually done so.

References

  1. ↑ "Everester Mamta Sodha to be appointed DSP in Haryana Police". Web India. 16 June 2010. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  2. 1 2 "Padma Awards Announced". Circular. Press Information Bureau, Government of India. 25 January 2014. Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 23 August 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "Haryana Police profile". Haryana Police Department. 2014. Archived from the original on 9 February 2014. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Satish Seth (22 May 2010). "Kaithal girl scales Mt Everest". The Tribune. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "The Contemporary Dalit Heroes – Ms. Mamta Sodha". diplomatic titbits. 23 May 2010. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "A dream come true for Kaithal girl". The Hindu. 31 May 2010. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  7. 1 2 Sumit Sehgal (22 May 2010). "Haryana teacher Mamta scales Mt Everest". All India News Site. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 "Tenzing Norgay Award". Haryana Police. 29 August 2011. Archived from the original on 28 December 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  9. 1 2 Shirish B Pradhan (22 May 2010). "Delhi boy becomes youngest Indian to climb Mt Everest". Rediff.com. Retrieved 3 September 2014.
  10. ↑ "Apa Sherpa". Apa Sherpa Foundation. 2014. Archived from the original on 27 July 2014. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  11. ↑ "Mt. Elbrus". facebook page. 18 September 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  12. ↑ "Young woman from Haryana scales Mt Everest". Zee News. 22 May 2010. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  13. ↑ "Tensing Norgay Adventure Award". Lead the Competition.in. 2011. Archived from the original on 13 August 2014. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  14. ↑ "Hooda announce Rs 21 lakh to Mamta Sodha". The India Post. 3 June 2010. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.