DA Diary
Major HPS Ahluwalia
Major H.P.S. Ahluwalia is an Indian mountaineer. He climbed Mt Everest on 29 May 1965 with his friends Rawat,Phu Dorji and Edmund Hillary. Being the Chairman of the Indian Spinal Centre in India, he currently lives in New Delhi and advocates for paraplegics through the Indian Spinal Injury Society.
He was shot in the Indo-Pak war in 1965 right after his summit of Everest and has been in a wheel chair since.
He was awarded the Padma Bhushan award in 2002. Major Ahluwalia is also the chairman of the Rehabilitation Council of India and is a recipient of several awards like Padma Sri, Arjuna award, the National Award for the best work done in the field of Disability, the Order of the Khalsa (Nissan A Khalsa).
He has written several books like Higher than Everest, Beyond the Himalayas, Everest is within you. He won the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award for lifetime achievement on August 29, 2009.
Major H. P. S. Ahluwalia has written his autobiography in Higher Than Everest: Memoirs of a Mountaineer where in addition to his account of Everest, the story includes details of his recovery and life after an injury that brings him to the brink of death. He includes several adventures from his early life as well.
His tale of his rehabilitation puts the struggle of Everest in perspective. While a lofty goal and a major undertaking, ascending Everest is a voluntary goal and a relatively short effort compared to the gradual and painful recovery of Ahluwalia's spinal injury.
“Climbing Mt. Everest is one of the achievements that I can never forget. The climb to the summit is still fresh in my mind. Life is all about a climb to the other summit – the mind. While climbing the world’s highest peak was about crossing glaciers, crevasses and the joy of reaching the summit, in real life I have had to break mental barriers to conquer the summit of the mind.”
He was shot in the Indo-Pak war in 1965 right after his summit of Everest and has been in a wheel chair since.
He was awarded the Padma Bhushan award in 2002. Major Ahluwalia is also the chairman of the Rehabilitation Council of India and is a recipient of several awards like Padma Sri, Arjuna award, the National Award for the best work done in the field of Disability, the Order of the Khalsa (Nissan A Khalsa).
He has written several books like Higher than Everest, Beyond the Himalayas, Everest is within you. He won the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award for lifetime achievement on August 29, 2009.
Major H. P. S. Ahluwalia has written his autobiography in Higher Than Everest: Memoirs of a Mountaineer where in addition to his account of Everest, the story includes details of his recovery and life after an injury that brings him to the brink of death. He includes several adventures from his early life as well.
His tale of his rehabilitation puts the struggle of Everest in perspective. While a lofty goal and a major undertaking, ascending Everest is a voluntary goal and a relatively short effort compared to the gradual and painful recovery of Ahluwalia's spinal injury.
“Climbing Mt. Everest is one of the achievements that I can never forget. The climb to the summit is still fresh in my mind. Life is all about a climb to the other summit – the mind. While climbing the world’s highest peak was about crossing glaciers, crevasses and the joy of reaching the summit, in real life I have had to break mental barriers to conquer the summit of the mind.”