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| Poorna Malavath and Anand Kumar, teenaged mountaineers who recently scaled Mt. Everest, calling on the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, in New Delhi on June 06, 2014. |
HYDERABAD: Malavath Poorna, aged just 13 years and 11 months, from Nizamabad district became the youngest girl ever to conquer the Mt Everest when she reached the highest peak in the world at 6 a.m. Sunday.
On the 52nd day of her expedition, an excited Poorna ran the last 100 meters to create history. Sadhanapally Anand Kumar (18) from Khammam, who was accompanying her, followed in her footsteps 45 minutes later. The duo, both students of the AP Social Welfare Residential Education Institutions’ Society (APSWREIS), belong to weaker sections. Poorna’s parents work as agriculture labourers, while Anand’s father is a cycle mechanic. Secretary of APSWREIS, RS Praveen Kumar told reporters, “The students’ achievement is a morale booster to all kids who are below the poverty line. Even the poorest will excel if given an opportunity.”
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| Poorna Malavath and Anand Kumar, teenaged mountaineers who recently scaled Mt. Everest, calling on the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, in New Delhi on June 06, 2014. |
Visibly happy, Praveen Kumar recalled that upon meeting Poorna, locals at the expedition’s base camp were convinced she would make it to the top. “About 100 mountaineers participated in the trek but only 13, including our students, continued the journey. Poorna spoke for only a few seconds to inform that they are close to the peak,” he said and revealed that Anand had hoisted the tricolour and placed photos of Dr BR Ambedkar and former IAS officer late SR Sankaran atop the Mt Everest. “Poor students should not consider themselves inferior to anybody. Society should not treat them as inferiors.” said Praveen Kumar. Poorna and Anand began their journey on April 10. They are scheduled to return to their base camp on Wednesday and will reach the city on June 2.
The duo were selected from among 150 children who were initially chosen for adventure sports as part of the society’s initiative to promote excellence. Twenty of them were sent to a prestigious mountaineering Institute in Darjeeling for training and nine among them were sent on expedition to the Indo-China border earlier. The Centre for Dalit Studies in a release congratulated Poorna and Anand on their incredible achievement.
News Item Courtesy : The New Indian Express
Photos Courtesy : PMO India
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