Narendra Kumar Biography 
Narendra Kumar is an Indian soldier, best known as a mountaineer. Most of his expeditions have been related to the service of Indian military. In 1978, at the age of 45, he took his team to Teram Kangri, Siachen Glacier and Saltoro Range as a part of mountaineering reconnaissance expedition. He led an expedition in 1977 to a glacier high in the Karakoram Mountains, but that trip later triggered a 34-year territorial dispute costing thousands of lives. His expedition to Siachen Glacier is remembered most. The highest point where Indian soldiers guard mother nation, the area would have been lost to Pakistanis if he had not taken that expedition. There is a Siachen Battalion HQ in Glacier named as "Kumar Base".
For his contributions towards mother nation and military nation, government of India honoured him with Padma Shri. He is also a recipient of numerous honours such as Arjuna Award for sports, MacGregor Medal, Param Vishisht Seva Medal, Kirti Chakra and Ati Vishisht Seva Medal. With United Nation's fellowship for Ski Teaching, he got training from Switzerland and Austria.
Narendra Kumar was born in Rawalpindi, British India in 1933. His birthplace now belongs to Pakistan. His three brothers worked in Indian army. His youngest brother lost his life while scaling Mount Everest. In 1947, at the age of 13, he represented Punjab state at a scouts jamboree in Paris. It was during the time of partition, and when he was on his return, Muslims were asked to disembark in Karachi and as he is a Hindu, he landed at Mumbai, a very much unknown place to him. He was only 13 then. He went to Shimla and his family migrated there.
He joined Indian Army in 1950. As a part of training he learnt boxing, riding and cycle-polo. He was commissioned in Kumaon Rifles in June 1954. He later got interested in winter sports and mountaineering. He earned the nickname ‘Bull’ after his first boxing match. His meeting with Tenzing Norgay at Himalayan Mountaineering Institute proved to be a major turning point of his career. He made his first expedition in 1958, which was only a beginning.
Published: February 03, 2019
Updated: February 03, 2019
