Chandraprabha Aitwal (born 24 December 1941) is an Indian mountain climber and one of the pioneers of Indian women mountaineers. She was awarded 2009

Tenzing Norgay National Adventure 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 th ...

for Lifetime Achievement, given by the Indian

Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports is a branch of the Government of India which administers the Department of youth affairs and the Department of Sports in India. Anurag Thakur is the current Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports followed ...

. She has climbed

Nanda Devi Nanda Devi is the second-highest mountain in India, after Kangchenjunga, and the highest located entirely within the country (Kangchenjunga is on the border of India and Nepal). It is the 23rd-highest peak in the world. Nanda Devi was consid ...

Kangchenjunga Kangchenjunga, also spelled Kanchenjunga, Kanchanjanghā (), and Khangchendzonga, is the third highest mountain in the world. Its summit lies at in a section of the Himalayas, the ''Kangchenjunga Himal'', which is bounded in the west by the T ...

, Trishuli and Mt.

Jaonli Jaonli is a 6,632-metre peak in the Gangotri range of Garhwal Himalaya. It was first climbed in 1965 by The Doon School expedition team led by Hari Dang. See also *Role of The Doon School in Indian mountaineering The role of The Doon School i ...

Early life and background

Aitwal grew up in

Dharchula Dharchula is a town in Pithoragarh district in the northern state of Uttarakhand, India, situated at an elevation of 940 m above sea level, surrounded by peaks from all sides and Kali river cutting through the middle, dividing the area in ...

Pithoragarh district Pithoragarh district is the easternmost district in the state of Uttarakhand. It is located in the Himalayas and has an area of and a population of 483,439 (as of 2011). The city of Pithoragarh, located in Saur Valley, is its headquarters. T ...

of Uttarakhand.

Career

Over the years she has reached the summits of several of peaks, including

in 1981. She was also part of Indian Mountaineering Federation's sponsored Mount Everest campaign in 1984. In August 2009, at the age of 68, she reached the summit of Mount Srikantha in the Garhwal Himalaya, an elevation of 6,133 m, for the second time as part of an all-woman expedition of the Indian Mountaineering Federation.

Awards

Arjun Award The Arjuna Award, officially known as Arjuna Awards for Outstanding Performance in Sports and Games, is the second-highest sporting honour of India, the highest being the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award. The award is named after Arjuna, one ...

Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, ...

, India’s fourth highest civilian honors in 1990

References

External links

*http://pibmumbai.gov.in/scripts/detail.asp?releaseId=E2010PR1461 *http://www.apnauttarakhand.com/chandra-prabha-aitwal/ *http://www.himalayanclub.org/journal/men-and-womens-ascent-of-nanda-devi/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Aitwal, Chandraprabha Indian female mountain climbers Indian mountain climbers Living people 1941 births People from Pithoragarh district Indian summiters of Mount Everest Recipients of the Padma Shri in sports Recipients of the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award Sportswomen from Uttarakhand 20th-century Indian women 20th-century Indian people Mountain climbers from Uttarakhand Recipients of the Arjuna Award