Forget Indian Idol, Arunachal has Everest Idols

For a long time, India's northeastern Arunachal Pradesh state had trouble naming home-grown celebrities who could be immediately recognised by other states and beyond

Forget Indian Idol, Arunachal has Everest Idols

For a long time, India's northeastern Arunachal Pradesh state had trouble naming home-grown celebrities who could be immediately recognised by other states and beyond.

There was Yukar Shibi, the weightlifter who set a new national record in the men's 62kg class, Gumpe Rime, the football player, author Mamang Dai who received the Padma Shri, and Yeshe Dorje Thongchi, Sahitya Akademi winner novelist.

But there were no famed cricketers, film stars or even reality show winners who are the new celebrities in India.

Things began to change from 2009 when 26-year-old Tapi Mara became the first person from Arunachal to summit Mt Everest, the highest peak in the world.

Now, two years later, the mountainous state is basking in the glory of Everest Idols with two more following in Mara's footsteps.

In May, 25-year-old Tina Mene became the first woman from northeastern India to reach the 8,848m summit, followed by Anshu Jamsenpa, 32.

Jamsenpa then chose to retrace her steps to the peak, summiting it for the second time within 10 days and becoming the only Indian to have achieved the feat.

Now Arunachal's Everest conquerors are trying to put their neglected state on the world map of adventure.

"Through Anshu's climbs we hope to draw adventurers' attention to Arunachal, the last part of the Himalayas that still remains undiscovered," says Tsering Wange, Jamsenpa's husband and president of the Arunachal Mountaineering and Adventure Sports Association.

"The Himalayas in Nepal, Sikkim and Ladakh have been explored and are well-known. But Arunachal has virgin peaks waiting to be conquered. There are the Kangto (7,090m), Nyagi Kangsang (7,050m) and Gorichen (6,488m) that have only once been climbed by the Indian Army."

This week Jamsenpa and Wange met Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh seeking the government's help to promote Arunachal as a climbing destination, not just for Indians but also for climbers from neighbouring countries, like China.

"Last year more than 100 peaks were opened for mountain expeditions in the Ladakh region alone," they told Manmohan Singh. "So the Arunachal Himalayas, with more than 1,000 km of virgin Himalayas lying unexplored, should also be opened immediately to countries sharing the same topography and border."

The pair has also urged Manmohan Singh to consider opening a Rural Tourism Training Centre in Arunachal Pradesh to develop and promote eco-tourism and rural tourism in the northeastern states.

The Director of Sports and Youth Affairs in Arunachal, Dorjee Khandu Dinglow, is excited by the state's Everest success stories.

"The Everest climbers are the new role models for youth in our state," he said. "We hope they will motivate more youngsters to take up adventure sports."

With few industries in the remote state and the private sector yet to enter in a big way, one-third of the youth population are unemployed, Dinglow said.

"Everybody is looking at the government for jobs," he sighed. "But the state can't provide so many jobs. However, if we can tap our adventure sports - climbing, trekking, rafting and high-altitude trekking - jobs can be created."

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