Saser Kangri. A joint Indo-Taiwanese team led by Hukam Singh had eight Indian members, three of them women, and seven Taiwanese, of whom two were women. They got to the roadhead at Panamik on June 29. They set up Base Camp near the snout of the Phukpoche Glacier at 4600 meters on July 6. From there they followed the South Phukpoche Glacier for 12 kilometers over difficult moraine on the west side. Camp I was set up at 5400 meters on July 8. Bad weather ensued. Camp II was placed at 5900 meters at the foot of Saser Kangri I on July 12. It took them nearly a week to prepare the route to Camp III up very technically difficult terrain. Pasang Sherpa and Tsewang Smanla had to fix 1500 meters of rope. Camp III was established at 6950 meters on July 20. After being storm-bound for two days, on July 23 they set up Camp IV at 7250 meters. At six A.M. on July 24, Miss Deepu Sharma, Miss Santosh Yadev, Sunil D. Sharma, Smanla, Gurjant Sing and Pasang left Camp IV and despite a violent storm, they gained the summit (7672 meters, 25,170 feet) at three P.M. when it suddenly cleared. This was the second ascent for Pasang, who had done it last year too. On the 25th, Miss Suman Katyal, Sherdup Cholden, Sange Sherpa, Shuyeb Omar and Taiwanese Ya Sui Fang and Yu Lung Mu got to the top, followed the next day by Nima Sherpa, Mohsin Rashid and Taiwanese Liang Fang. On July 27, a fourth group summited, Lhakpa Sherpa and Taiwanese Miss Chin Hsiah Chen and the Taiwanese leader Mh Gau. Unfortunately both Miss Chen and Liang Fang suffered severe frostbite and had to be flown out by helicopter.

Kamal K. Guha, Editor, Himavanta, India