One of Karnataka’s oldest female climbers among nine killed in trekking accident in Uttarakhand | News from Bangalore

Asha, a grandmother whose son lives in the US, was also one of the oldest active members of the KMA, which was founded in Bengaluru in 1965. Her husband S. Sudhakar, deputy secretary of the KMA, survived the blizzard.

“Asha is a very old member of the Karnataka Mountaineering Association. She was part of my expedition to Kalanag. She has undergone training. Her age might have been a factor in the trek. We have to wait for the details,” said Veena Ramaiah, 83, one of Karnataka’s first female mountaineers and founder of the KMA.

Ramaiah said all the trekkers were members of the Karnataka Mountaineering Association, but the Sahastra Tal trek was not organised by them. “It was organised by a local agency in Uttarakhand,” the KMA founder said.

“Asha was the eldest and I am not a proponent of such treks for the elderly. She was physically active and trekked frequently,” she said. “Unfortunately, Sudhakar survived and Asha died,” she said.

“We need to find out what happened. When there is a sudden fog or a whiteout, you cannot see even half a meter ahead. It seems that the women were with two men who accompanied them. This is very unfortunate. It is not a very challenging peak and is only about 4,400 meters high. People climb this peak even without training,” Ramaiah said.

The KMA was founded by Ramaiah and others after she completed training with the Bharat Scouts and Guides in Pachmarhi in 1962. She was part of the first women’s expedition to the 22,400-foot Mrigthuni peak in the Nanda Devi range of the Himalayas in 1964.

“When I came back in 1965, India’s first expedition team to Mount Everest was in Bangalore and Captain Kohli (Mohan Singh Kohli) suggested that we form an association. Later, Asha and everyone else joined,” said Ramaiah, who has led two women’s expeditions to Kalanag and Hanuman Tibba.

Others killed in this week’s trekking accident include Sindhu Wakelam, 44, Sujata Mungurwadi, 52, and her husband Vinayak B Mungurwadi, 52, Chitra Praneeth, 48, Venkatesh Prasad K, 53, Padmanabha KP, 50, Anitha Rangappa, 55, and Padmini Hegde, 34. All the fatalities were from Bengaluru.

Sujata and Vinayak Mungurwadi were graduates of BV Bhoomaraddi Engineering College, Hubbali and founder members of an NGO called Uttara Kannada Sneha Loka. They leave behind two children – a daughter and a son.

According to officials, five bodies were recovered earlier, those of Padmanabha, Prasad, Rangappa and Hegde were recovered early on Thursday. All other members of the team have been rescued, they added.