<div>After three days of frantic search, a rescue team recovered the body of mountaineer Rajiv Bhattacharya on Saturday. The climber collapsed while returning from the summit of Mount Dhaulagiri that he scaled last week. <br /><br />While two climbers are missing, two Darjeeling girls managed to touch Mount Everest’s summit on Sunday in what has been the most challenging and tragic few days for mountaineers. Bhattacharya’s body was recovered from Dhaulagiri, the world’s seventh highest peak, and brought down to the Nepali capital Kathmandu on Wednesday. Sherpas had to make an arduous descent as they began early Wednesday from Camp 3, where his body was found. <br /><br />Rajiv, who started for Dhaulagiri on May 11 from Kathmandu, reached the summit on May 19 but suffered snow blindness on his way back and ran out of oxygen. He died after collapsing from fatigue. <br /><br />State administration sources said Bhattacharya’s remains will be cremated with state honours in Kolkata once it arrives back. <br /><br />Meanwhile Gautam Ghosh and Paresh Nath, who successfully completed an Everest expedition, remained untraceable from Saturday amid fears by experts that they could run out of oxygen. <br /><br />The body of Subhash Pal, the third member of their team declared dead on Monday, could not be recovered as rescue team hampered rescue operations on the peak. <br /><br />A special rescue team from Bengal comprising seasoned mountaineers reached Kathmandu on Tuesday and engaged the services of six Sherpas to trace the two and bring back Pal’s body.<br /><br />Rescue operations could not be started till the sky cleared, Nepalese daily The Himalayan Times said quoting local authorities. Bengal government sources said that the rescue team started its journey on Wednesday morning and is expected to bring back Pal’s body on Friday. <br /><br />Pal is believed to have collapsed while descending the Hillary Step ice wall, few hundred meters from the peak. <br /></div>
<div>After three days of frantic search, a rescue team recovered the body of mountaineer Rajiv Bhattacharya on Saturday. The climber collapsed while returning from the summit of Mount Dhaulagiri that he scaled last week. <br /><br />While two climbers are missing, two Darjeeling girls managed to touch Mount Everest’s summit on Sunday in what has been the most challenging and tragic few days for mountaineers. Bhattacharya’s body was recovered from Dhaulagiri, the world’s seventh highest peak, and brought down to the Nepali capital Kathmandu on Wednesday. Sherpas had to make an arduous descent as they began early Wednesday from Camp 3, where his body was found. <br /><br />Rajiv, who started for Dhaulagiri on May 11 from Kathmandu, reached the summit on May 19 but suffered snow blindness on his way back and ran out of oxygen. He died after collapsing from fatigue. <br /><br />State administration sources said Bhattacharya’s remains will be cremated with state honours in Kolkata once it arrives back. <br /><br />Meanwhile Gautam Ghosh and Paresh Nath, who successfully completed an Everest expedition, remained untraceable from Saturday amid fears by experts that they could run out of oxygen. <br /><br />The body of Subhash Pal, the third member of their team declared dead on Monday, could not be recovered as rescue team hampered rescue operations on the peak. <br /><br />A special rescue team from Bengal comprising seasoned mountaineers reached Kathmandu on Tuesday and engaged the services of six Sherpas to trace the two and bring back Pal’s body.<br /><br />Rescue operations could not be started till the sky cleared, Nepalese daily The Himalayan Times said quoting local authorities. Bengal government sources said that the rescue team started its journey on Wednesday morning and is expected to bring back Pal’s body on Friday. <br /><br />Pal is believed to have collapsed while descending the Hillary Step ice wall, few hundred meters from the peak. <br /></div>
