Gurdial Singh performing Shirshasana on the summit of Mt

Gurdial Singh (born 1 January 1924) is an Indian

mountaineer Mountaineering or alpinism, is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending tall mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas. Indoor climbing, sport climbing, an ...

who led the first mountaineering expedition of independent India to

Trisul Trisul is a group of three Himalayan mountain peaks of western Kumaun, Uttarakhand, with the highest (Trisul I) reaching 7120m. The three peaks resemble a trident - in Sanskrit, Trishula, trident, is the weapon of Shiva. The Trishul grou ...

(7,120 metres) in 1951. In 1958, he led the team that made the first ascent of

Mrigthuni Mrigthuni ( hi, मृगथूनी) is a mountain of Kumaon Himalaya in Uttarakhand, India. Mrigthuni standing majestically at 6855 meter 22,490 feet. Its joint 28th highest located entirely within the Uttarakhand, India. Nanda Devi is the hig ...

(6,855 metres). In 1965, he was a member of the first successful Indian expedition team to climb

Mount Everest Mount Everest (; Tibetan: ''Chomolungma'' ; ) 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 (snow heig ...

. Singh also led many expeditions at

The Doon School The Doon School (informally Doon School or Doon) is a selective all-boys boarding school in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India, which was established in 1935. It was envisioned by Satish Ranjan Das, a lawyer from Calcutta, who prevised a school mode ...

, where he was a teacher, and along with other Doon masters and students was instrumental in establishing a mountaineering culture in post-Independence India. Singh has been described as "the first true Indian mountaineer", and in 2020, the Himalayan Journal noted "Gurdial climbed for pleasure, to enjoy the mountains in the company of friends, to savour the beauty and grandeur of the high ranges, not to find fame or bag summits."

Life and career

Gurdial Singh joined

in 1945 and it was here that he was influenced by Englishmen such as

John Martyn Iain David McGeachy (11 September 1948 – 29 January 2009), known professionally as John Martyn, was a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist. Over a 40-year career, he released 23 studio albums, and received frequent critical acclaim. ...

R.L. Holdsworth Romilly Lisle Holdsworth, commonly known as R. L. Holdsworth, (25 February 1899 – 20 June 1976) was an English scholar, academic, educationalist, cricketer and a distinguished Himalayan mountaineer. He was a member of the first expedition ...

and

Jack Gibson Jack Gibson may refer to: * Jack Gibson (rugby league) (1929–2008), Australian player and coach * Jack Stanley Gibson (1909–2005), Irish physician * Jack Gibson (ice hockey, born 1880) (1880–1955), ice hockey player and executive * Jack Gibs ...

to take up mountaineering. The first headmaster of Doon

Arthur Foot Arthur Edward Foot Order of the British Empire, CBE (more commonly A.E. Foot) (21 June 1901 – 26 September 1968), was an English schoolmaster, educationalist and academic. He was a science master at Eton College from 1923 to 1932. In 1935, h ...

was a member of the Alpine Club. Together, they scaled many peaks including

Bandarpunch Bandarpunch (lit. Hindi: ''Monkey's tail'') is a mountain massif in the Garhwal Himalaya in Uttarakhand, India. The massif has 3 peaks: White Peak (6102 m), also called Banderpunch II, to the west above Yamunotri; almost 5 km east is Banda ...

Kamet Kamet ( hi, कामेत) is the second highest mountain in the Garhwal region of Uttarakhand, India, after Nanda Devi. It lies in the Chamoli District of Uttarakhand. Its appearance resembles a giant pyramid topped by a flat summit area wi ...

Abi Gamin Abi Gamin (also known as Ibi Gamin) is a Himalayan mountain peak mostly situated in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand state in India, northeast of Kamet. Its summit is on the border with Tibet and its northern slope is in the Ngari Prefe ...

and

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 ...

. He was the first Indian member of the famed

Alpine Club The first alpine club, the Alpine Club, based in the United Kingdom, was founded in London in 1857 as a gentlemen's club. It was once described as: :"a club of English gentlemen devoted to mountaineering, first of all in the Alps, members of which ...

, which was "a club of English gentlemen devoted to mountaineering". In 1965, Singh climbed

as a member of the first successful Indian expedition, led by

Mohan Singh Kohli Captain Mohan Singh Kohli (b. 11 December 1931 at Haripur) is an internationally renowned Indian mountaineer. An officer in the Indian Navy who joined the Indo-Tibetan Border Police, he led the 1965 Indian expedition which put nine men o ...

Awards

Apart from being the first Indian to be included in the

, Singh was given the

Arjuna 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 ...

in 1965 for his contributions towards Indian mountaineering. In 1967, Singh was awarded

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, ...

., the fourth highest civilian award in India. In 2007, Gurdial Singh was given a Lifetime Achievement Award and the

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 t ...

for his contributions towards Indian mountaineering.

References

;Notes ;Bibliography
''For Hills to Climb''
by Gurdial Singh, Nandu JayalPublished by Doon School Old Boys' Society, 2001.
An Indian Englishman
by Jack Gibson 2008 {{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Gurdial Recipients of the Padma Shri in sports The Doon School faculty Mountain climbers from Uttarakhand 1924 births Living people Indian mountain climbers People from Uttarkashi Recipients of the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award Recipients of the Arjuna Award

Life and career

Awards

See also

References