Two Indian children reach Everest base camp in Nepal

Kathmandu: A five-year-old Indian boy and his eight-year-old sister might have set a new record by becoming the youngest climbers to reach the base camp of the world's highest peak, the Mount Everest.

Gwalior-based Kandarp Sharma and Ritvika successfully reached the base camp situated at an altitude of 5,380 metre in northeast Nepal on Monday, according to Thupden Sherpa, general manager of Arun Treks and Expedition, that organised the expedition.

The siblings were accompanied by their parents to the base camp, according to Sherpa.

Apart from their individual records of being the youngest boy and girl to trek to the base camp, they have also become the youngest brother and sister to reach the height, their father Bhupendra Shara said.

The family might also have become the first to reach the base camp on the 8,848 metre tall Everest.

First-grader Kandarp and fourth grader Ritvika are students of Little Angels High School in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh. Kandarp is 5 years and 10 months old while her sister Ritvika is 8 years and 11 months old.

In 2014 too, Harshit, another climber from India, had reached the base camp at the age of 5 years and 11 months, setting a record.

Bhupendra's wife Mamta and the two children also reached Kalapathar peak situated near the base camp with an altitude of 5,555 metre. All the four reached the Everest base camp and three of them reached Kalapathar, Sherpa said.

Kalapathar is higher than the highest peaks of three continents - Mont Blanc (4,810 m) in Europe, Vinson Massif (4,810 m) in Antarctica, and Puncak Jaya (4,884 m) in Australasia.

The children flew to Lukla on August 2 to embark on the trek.

They have started descending from the base camp and are now heading towards Kathmandu, where they are expected to organise a press meet.

The expedition was undertaken to send a message to the world climbers that Everest trekking route was not damaged by the earthquakes that devastated other parts of the country, said Thupden Sherpa.

Sherpa said they would try to get the children's names in the Guinness Book of World Records and India's Limca Book of Records for becoming the youngest climbers to reach the base camp.