Scaling heights one after the other

Colonel  Ranveer Singh Jamwal, VSM, made the country proud when on Jan 4, 2019 he summitted Mount Vinson Massif (16,050 ft) in Antarctica. This real youth icon completed the record of seven summits on January 4 this year and right after this went ahead to celebrate this accomplishment by sumitting six above 6,000m peaks in Chile within 10 days. This included the highest mountain of Chile (also highest volcanic mountain of the world), Ojos-del-salado. 

jamwal has sumitted worlds highest peak Mount Everest (8,848m) thrice. 
Out of 1.3billion Indians there are only eight who have sumitted seven highest points of the seven continents.  As a young boy, Jamwal only dreamt of leading a good life upon growing up. He had a burning desire to do something extraordinary. 

So, in 1994, he joined Army as a soldier. “Army life instilled dedication in me,” he says. Later, he got commissioned as an officer. That was in June 2002.Jamwal’s life changed direction when he was given the opportunity to learn rescue and life-saving operations.

“I was not even aware of the big names like Tenjing Norgay, Edmund Hillary, Captain Kohli. My first Mountaineering expedition was climbing Mt Machoi, a 5,000m-high mountain near Jozila in 2007. I have now met the legends like Rehinald Messner and David Breashers,” he says. 

A veteran of 39 expeditions (in 15 years), Jamwal believes every mountain is different and difficult but each one teaches you to be a good human being.

While he lost his one of his fingers in a near-death experience he faced in an expedition, the bigger test to inner strength came when he had a humbling experience in 2015 — an earthquake of 7.9 on Richter  scale struck when he was with Army mountaineering team at the Everest Base Camp. 

The Indian Army’s rescue team, under the leadership of Colonel Jamwal, managed to evacuate 22 fatal mountaineers and rescue 60, drawing admiration from one and all. The near-death experience did not break his spirit. In 2016,  he sumitted the Everest for the third time. His planning, motivation and leadership has led to 100 per cent success in the three expeditions he undertookl and 48 people have sumitted Everest under his leadership. 

Colonel Jamwal believes  that adventure as a passion is fine but it is our responsibility to work towards cleaning our environment. He is waging a war against the non-biodegradable waste left on the mountains. Nepal government acknowledged his good work twice, in 2013 and 2015, and gave him commendation certificates. 

Jamwal motivates the youth of his village Bhadori in Samba to get into sports and fitness. He also encourages them to join the  armed forcesThis man of many achievements is a man of frugal needs. Indispensables in his luggage are Hanuman Chalisa along with Indian Tricolor and Indian Army flag. “Whenever I get time I try to spend it with the family as they are my biggest channel of motivation. I love eating butter chicken and  butter naan. And after every climb I feel I am a survivor,” he says.