A brave Amputee, Hari Budha Magar has created history and became the first climber as a double above-the-knee (DAK) amputee in the world for climbing the world's tallest mountain, Mt. Everest. Now, he is the record-breaker mountaineer.
The tourism entrepreneurs and Nepalese media welcomed and honored him at the Tribhuwan Domestic Airport in Nepal on 26th May 2023 after his succession of the Mt. Everest Expedition.
Due to the succession of Hari Budha, it has been assumed that the craze for Mt. Everest climbing is going to be increased in the coming future. As a result, there will be an increment for the Everest base camp trek as well.
According to his team, he reached on top of Mt. Everest along with four Sherpa climbers at almost 3 o'clock on Friday, 19th May 2023 during the daytime. His Mount Everest Expedition was led by a former Chief Mountain Instructor, named as Krishna Thapa, a troop leader of SAS (Special Air Service) in the UK. After climbing down, he came back to Kathmandu by Helicopter from Everest base camp.
Hari Budha, a former British Gurkha Soldier, his dream came true. Finally, at the age of 43, he stepped on the summit of Mt. Everest and conveyed a message over a satellite phone call about his succession. As per him, it was tough to carry on and push for the top, but he gets succeeded by ignoring such difficulties. He is able to prove that differently-abled people also can reach the elevation of 8848.86 meters above sea level and they should also be respected in the community equally as others.
His succession has become the inspiration for others to turn their dreams into reality. His main goal is to summit Mt. Everest has changed the perception that disability can not limit a person's aspiration. Everything is possible with the right mindset whether they are disabled physically or not.
Following Mt. Everest Expedition, Hari Budha climbed numerous high-elevated mountains like Mera Peak, Thorung La Pass, Surya Kunda, and others with artificial legs.
He was born in the Rolpa district, the Himalayan region of Western Nepal in a small village, known as Thawang. He always dreamt to climb the mountains that could be seen from his town. He went to school by walking for about 45 minutes per day with bare feet. There was not any pen and paper during that time and he learned to write by chalk (a white soft earthy limestone) on a wooden slab.
Hari Budha joined the Gurkha Recruitment at nineteen years old. He engaged in different kinds of Army training and underground operations on different five continents. He lost his both legs in Afghanistan in 2010 while working as a British soldier. From then, he suffered mentally and started to feel like his life was no more. But he regained his confidence through the thought of his family member. He took part in different adventure activities like rock climbing, skiing, and so on, and decided to climb Mt. Everest.
Hari Badha had planned to climb Mount Everest in 2018, but it was postponed because the Nepal government had banned handicapped, blind, solo, and differently-abled people from climbing Mt. Everest in 2017. Then, he himself involved in a campaign and fight against this discrimination. Due to the collective efforts of a senior journalist, Madhav Chamlagain, Hari Budha, and other disability organizations, the Nepal government resumed its decision. So, Hari made a plan again and conquered Mount Everest. However, in May 2023, he became able to be the first double above-the-knee amputee by reaching Mount Everest.
