Wansuk becomes first Meghalaya woman to scale Everest

Wansuk Myrthong Saturday became the first woman from Meghalaya to conquer the 8,848 ft Mount Everest.

This is the second time that a Meghalayan scaled the highest peak of the world after Gary Jarman Lamare, a photographer with Discovery Channel, became the first from Meghalaya to summit it last year.

The 30-year-old Wansuk, a woman armed police constable in the 1st Meghalaya Police battalion, is one among the 16 climbers of the first Northeast India Top of the World Mount Everest Expedition, 2013 which was flagged off by President Pranab Mukherjee from Rastrapati Bhavan on March 20. She made the ascent at 8.30 a.m. Saturday.

The expedition team was divided into two teams.

Ningthoujam Bidyapati Devi, one among the three climbers of Team One, scripted history Friday, becoming the first woman from Manipur to scale Mount Everest, at 9.30 a.m. Anand Gurung was the first to scale the summit at 7.35 a.m. while Nima Lima scaled the height at 8.30am.

Wansuk is in the Team Two along with six other climbers -- David Zohmanggaiha of Mizoram, Kazi Sherpa of Sikkim, N. Chingkheinganba of Manipur, Tarun Saikia of Assam and two-time-Everester Anshu Jamsenpa of Arunachal Pradesh.

"It is a proud moment not only to the family but for the people of Meghalaya. Wansuk has added another feather in her cap because of her hardwork and her adventurous skill," Wansuk's mother Angela Myrthong told IANS.

To her credits, the tribal Khasi everester had participated in the pre-Everest expedition on Kolahai Peak (5,425 metres) and also took part in the high altitude physical conditioning Mt. Papsure (6,451 metres) in Himachal Pradesh.

She had also bagged two gold medals and one silver in the North East Zone Sports Climbing Committee.

Congratulating the new state Everester, Chief Minister Mukul Sangma said: "She has proven that there can be no obstacle for anybody to achieve one's goal."

"Wansuk has made us all proud and we are all proud of her achievement," Sangma told IANS.

Elated with the news of the state's woman police constable with her achievement, Home Minister Roshan Warjri said a "suitable reward" will be given to Wansuk.

"It is also because of her hard work and preservances. It is our proud moment for her and a red letter day for the woman folks of Meghalaya," Warjri, the first woman home minister in India's northeastern state, told IANS.

Wansuk, who was enlisted in Meghalaya police in 2006 had undergone basic mountaineering course at Mountaineering and Skiing Institute , Indo-Tibetan Border Police, in Uttarkhand's Auli and secured high grades.