Baljeet Kaur is a well-known Indian mountaineer from Solan, Himachal Pradesh. She was born on 29 November 1995 in the village of Palashta Panjrol, Tehsil Kandaghat, District Solan.
Her father, Amrik Singh, works as a bus driver with the Himachal Pradesh Transport Corporation, while her mother, Shanti Devi, is a homemaker. She also has two siblings.
Baljeet studied at her village school, where she managed her education alongside farming and household work. Within a short time, she achieved several remarkable milestones for India. One of her proudest moments was hoisting the Indian tricolor on Mount Everest. She also became the first Indian woman mountaineer to climb five 8,000-meter peaks in less than 30 days.
🎓 Education & Early Journey
- She completed her schooling at the Government Higher Secondary School.
- During school, she joined the National Cadet Corps (NCC), where she first experienced mountaineering at an NCC camp.
- At the age of 20, she was selected for an NCC expedition to Mount Dev Tibba.
- In 2015, she climbed Mount Trishul (7,120 m) with a 10-member NCC team.
🏔️ Mountaineering Career
- On May 17, 2022, at 10 am, Baljeet successfully climbed Mount Everest after five days of intense effort, fulfilling her long-time dream after two previous attempts.
- She also scaled Mount Pumori (7,161 m) near the Nepal-Tibet border.
- She became the first Indian woman to summit Mount Dhaulagiri (8,167 m).
- On 12 May 2021, she was the first Indian woman to conquer Pumori Peak.
- On 1 October 2021, she summited Mount Dhaulagiri.
- She is the first Indian to climb Mount Annapurna and Mount Kanchenjunga within 14 days.
- She created history by scaling Mount Everest, Mount Lhotse, and Mount Makalu within just 7 days.
- She became the first Indian to climb Mount Everest and Mount Lhotse within 25 hours.
- In November 2022, she achieved another milestone by becoming the first Indian woman to climb Mount Manaslu without oxygen.
đź—» Annapurna Survival Story (2023)
- Baljeet Kaur made global headlines when she went missing while returning from Mount Annapurna, the world’s 10th-highest peak.
- She endured nearly 19 hours in the snow, struggling for survival.
- On April 17, 2023, she reached Annapurna Peak with two guides but developed breathing problems on her way back to Base Camp.
- Radio contact was lost, but by the next morning, she managed to send a distress signal from Base Camp-4.
- A rescue operation was launched using her GPS location at 7,375 m altitude, involving three helicopters.
- She was finally rescued around 1 pm, airlifted to Kathmandu Hospital, and later brought back safely to Himachal Pradesh.
- After recovery, Baljeet expressed deep gratitude to everyone, crediting her survival to people’s prayers and God’s blessings.
🏅 Awards & Recognition
- Raksha Mantri Padak (2017): Awarded by the Government of India for participating in the 2016 Mount Everest Expedition.
- NCC Achiever Award (July 2022): Presented by Lieutenant General Gurbirpal Singh, Director General of the NCC.
🌟 Recent Achievements (After 2022)
âś… Gold Medal in Mountaineering (2023):
Honoured by the Indian Mountaineering Foundation with a Gold Medal for her outstanding performance and achievements in mountaineering.
âś… Sustainability Ambassador (January 2024):
In January 2024, Baljeet Kaur partnered with Tata Power as their Sustainability Champion. In this role, she actively promotes the company’s renewable energy mission, spreading awareness about clean energy sources like solar and wind power and encouraging people to choose eco-friendly solutions.
