Scaling new highs

of Mountaineering in Uttaranachal—was in Chandigarh on Monday where,as part of International Women’s Day celebrations,she was felicitated by Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda.

“The expedition has been organised by Tread Adventure in association with Asian Trekking and Asian Adventure Travel & Tours,who are well-known for organising treks to Mount Everest,” says Sauda,the only woman and one of four Indians who made it to the team. “After years of training,I have got my chance to scale Everest,” she says.

Sauda spent the last three months training for the big trek,simultaneously working as a lecturer in Fatehabad in Haryana. “Physical stamina is very important for success,” she says,spending several hours weight-training and trekking in Dhauladhar ranges around Dharamsala. “I have undertaken many expeditions put together by the Indian Mountaineering Federation. I have scaled the Friendship Peak situated in Pir Panjal range (5289 metres) as well as Srikanth Peak in Uttaranchal. This will be my ultimate test,” she says. Sauda is also into adventure sports like river rafting,skiing,kayaking and paragliding.

Sauda’s passion for mountaineering often took her family by surprise. “We would often wonder what’s gotten into her when she wanted to climb mountains,” says her mother Meerawati. Apart from training,Sauda invested a lot of energy in getting sponsors to fund the expedition,which runs into Rs 21 lakh. “Help has poured in from all corners. The government of Haryana has pitched in while MP Naveen Jindal has given Rs five lakh,” she says.

Silent rhythm
Locating Arjuna awardee Anju Dua in a sea of women at Haryana Niwas in Sector 3 on Monday afternoon was not a difficult task-she had the most expressive face. Dua,speech and hearing impaired from birth,gestured her pleasure at having being chosen by the Haryana Chief Minister Bhoopinder Singh Hooda for an award on International Women’s Day.

A former national gymnast who has won several awards,Dua is currently working as a gymnastics coach and is posted at Ambala. “She never let her disability come in the way of her passion for the sport,” says her brother Onkar Dua who accompanied her to the awards function. In 1989,Dua had been declared as the Best Gymnast at the senior national championships. Her interest in gymnastics developed when she was five years old. “We never realised that she was sneaking into a nearby coaching centre without informing us,” says her brother. When they did,Anju was already cartwheeling on the gymnastics floor. So how did she perform without being able to hear the music? Anju holds up her fingers and does an imaginary count for us. “She would remember the steps,” Onkar adds. On her future plans,Dua says she wishes to represent her state and students overseas.