MajorHari Pal Singh Ahluwalia (6 November 1936 – 14 January 2022) was an Indian mountaineer, author, social worker and Indian Ordnance Factories Service (IOFS) officer.[2] During his career he made contributions in the fields of adventure, sports, environment, disability and social work.[3] He is one of six Indian men and the twenty first man in the world to climb Mount Everest. On 29 May 1965, 12 years to the day from the first ascent of Mount Everest, he made the summit with the fourth and final successful attempt of the 1965 Indian Everest Expedition along with H. C. S. Rawat and Phu Dorjee Sherpa. This was the first time three climbers stood on the summit together.
Hari Pal Singh Ahluwalia was born on 6 November 1936 and brought up in Shimla along with his two sisters and two younger brothers. His father was employed as a Civil Engineer in the Indian Central Public Works Department.
After his graduation Ahluwalia joined the Indian Army as an officer, receiving a commission as a second lieutenant in the Army Electrical-Mechanical Engineering branch on 14 December 1958.[1] He was promoted to lieutenant on 14 December 1960 and to captain on 14 December 1964.[12][13] Seeing action during the 1965 war with Pakistan, he was wounded by a bullet in his spine, which left him confined to a wheelchair. He received an early discharge from the Army on 8 January 1968,[14] with the honorary rank of major.[15]
Ahluwalia has also been the President of the Indian Mountaineering Foundation and Delhi Mountaineering Association. He was also the Chairman of Special Ability Trust (created to assist young achievers with disabilities with fellowships and scholarships), Youth Exploring Society (with its chapters in Ireland, West Germany and Italy), Rehabilitation Council of India (a statutory body under the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment), Chairman of Planning Committee of Persons with Disability of 12-year plan and Chairman of the Committee of Drafting Country Report.
Professional career
Realizing the needs of persons with spinal injuries, Ahluwalia, with the support of his friends, set up the Indian Spinal Injuries Centre (ISIC) in Vasant Kunj, New Delhi, India in 1993. He also served as an IOFS officer. His experiences have appeared in school books such as in the NCERT Class 8 Englishtextbook. He met many great achievers such as Indira Gandhi, APJ Abdul Kalam et cetera.
Positions
Chairman – Indian Spinal Injuries Centre.
Chairman – Planning Committee of Persons with Disability of 12 year plan and Chairman of the committee of drafting country report.
Former president – Indian Mountaineering Foundation.
Former president – Delhi Mountaineering Association.
Former chairman – Special Ability Trust (created to assist young achievers with disabilities with *fellowships and scholarships).
Former chairman – Youth Exploring Society (with its chapters in Ireland, West Germany and Italy).
Former chairman – Rehabilitation Council of India (a statutory body under the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment).
Member – Indira Gandhi Memorial Trust.
Member – Planning Commission – Steering committee of the Social Welfare and other special groups.
Member – National Consultation on National Policy for PwD.
Member – CII Core Group on Disability.
Member – National Finance and Revenue Committee constituted by Ministry of Finance.
Member – CBR (Community Based Rehabilitation), in collaboration with AISPO-ITALY.
Member – International Spinal Cord Society
Personal life and death
Major Hari Pal Singh Ahluwalia died in Delhi on 14 January 2022, at the age of 85.[16][10]