Coal India is developing a policy to provide financial support to future mountaineers
The chairman of Coal India Limited (CIL), PM Prasad, stated that a policy to support future mountaineers financially is being considered. Through video conferencing, Prasad addressed the 'Everest Summit's opening session from Kolkata. The event was organized at the convention center of Central Coalfields Limited (CCL), Ranchi, to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Everest summit.
Prasad said mountaineering is not only a difficult task but also a costly one. "There should be some funds for the purpose, whether from the government or from our CSR. We are working on that for future mountaineers," Prasad said. As many as 14 climbers, who have successfully conquered Mount Everest, were felicitated during the inaugural session to celebrate their achievements. On the occasion, the climbers shared their experiences of summitting Mount Everest and inspired employees and other stakeholders.
Speaking on occasion, CCL chairman-cum-managing (CMD) director Dr. B Veera Reddy said there are quite a number of similarities between a climber and a miner. "As mountaineers, miners also face many challenges such as high temperatures and humidity when they go 600-700 meters deep and sometimes even a kilometer," he said. Mountaineers go through various difficulties that need physical fitness, mental peace and endurance to achieve the feat. "Once they reach the peak, they forget all the problems they faced," he said.
Detailing CCL's contribution to promoting sports, Reddy said it maintains and operates the academy of Jharkhand State Sports Promotion Society (JSSPS) in Ranchi's Khelgaon, where around 400 sportspersons are getting training. They have so far won 900 medals. "CCL spends around Rs 550 crore on CSR activities," he said. During the interaction session, mountaineers expressed concern over untrained and unprepared climbers going for mountaineering. Premlata Agarwal, who is the first Indian woman to scale the seven summits, said, "Many people try to become climbers without any training or preparedness. They are polluting the mountains and creating troubles not only for themselves but for others."
She said, "When we return from a mountain, we also bring down the human waste in a bag." Jharkhand's first tribal woman to climb Mount Everest, Binita Soren and other climbers such as Manisha Waghmare, Satyarup Siddhanta, Ranveer Jamwal, Kuntal Joisher, Priyanka Mohite, Bhagwan Chawale, Hemant Gupta, Aditi Vaidya, Anuja Vaidya, Jamling Tenzing, Megnha Parmar and Rudra Prasad Halder were also present to share their experiences.
