03 July,2011 07:42 AM IST | | Eesha Patkar
In what came as a shock to the mountaineering fraternity in Mumbai, one of the city's giants in the field, Jagadish Nanavati passed away on Wednesday.
Nanavati was 83, and suffering from ailments related to age. Vice President of the Himalaya Club Tanil Kilachand remembered Nanavati as an "absolute pioneer in the mountaineering scene in India".
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Kilachand knew Nanavati well, with the latter having been an honorary secretary of the club for 21 years.
As Kilachand pointed out, after the British left India, the club, which was founded in 1928, lost its impetus until stalwarts like Nanavati took the initiative to save it.
Harish Kapadia, one of the many youngsters he groomed, said of Nanavati's involvement with the club, "He nurtured the club for 30 years."
Nanavati's love for mountaineering and the Himalayas, in particular, began at a young age. It was Swami Anand of Baroda who introduced him to the Himalayas.
In 1961, Nanavati was in charge of the climbing camp, sponsored by the Mountaineering Committee, Bombay (now Climbers' Club) that successfully scaled the Nilgiri Parbat (21,240 feet) in Garhwal Himalaya, a sub range of the Himalaya.
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In 1970, he was part of the Bethartoli Himalaya Expedition that attempted to climb the celebrated peak Trisul (23,360 feet).
Not only was he a climber, he also did much to inculcate the spirit of mountaineering in Mumbai. He invited Nowang Gombu, the former trainer at the world-famous Himalayan Mountaineering Institute in Darjeeling who successfully summited Mount Everest twice, and other sherpas to Mumbai and hold rock climbing courses.
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Nanavati foresaw all activities and facilitated climbs when he was part of the Himalaya Club and after his retirement, he was granted the prestigious President Emeritus title in 2000.
He was also known for his skill at recording mountain data. Several of his studies were controversial, with him refuting claims of successful mountain expeditions.
For instance, according to Nanavati's evidence, the Neelakant (a peak in the Himalayas) expedition led by AVM Apurba Kumar Bhattacharyya in 2007 was unsuccessful, although the latter claimed success.
Nanavati hailed from a pious, business family that followed the Gandhian philosophy.
