The Hindu : 'Confronting the Everest' contest

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jan 23, 2003

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'Confronting the Everest' contest

New Delhi Jan. 22. The Army today joined the adventure-oriented National Geographic channel in offering a ``once-in-a-lifetime'' opportunity to the country's youth to scale the world's highest summit Mount Everest, to mark the golden jubilee of its conquest by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay.

``Everest to us is about daring to dream and on the 50th year of the first Everest climb, we bring the dream of Everest to all our countrymen,'' the Director- General of Military Training, Maj. Gen. Vasudeva, told reporters here.

Titled ``Everest Se Takkar'' (Confronting the Everest), the nationwide contest would witness selection of 200 persons from Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Bangalore out of which 20 would be shortlisted for the final round.

Those selected would be trained by the Army at the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering in Uttarakashi.

Thereafter, five out of the 20 amateurs would accompany the joint Indo-Nepal Army Everest Expedition scheduled in May, which would also attempt the 8516 metre Mount Lhotse, hitherto unconquered by Indians.

``They are likely to be taken upto the base camp and beyond,'' said Maj. Gen. Vasudeva.

The National Geographic Channel (NGC), which would be extensively covering the event right from selections, hopes to reach out to youth through the venture and expand its advertiser base while the Army expects attracting fresh talent by projecting its image as an adventure-loving force. The NGC, which entered the Indian market in 1998, looks at increasing its advertising revenuesby 50 per cent.

PTI

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