Puri: Odia mountaineer Chinmaya Maharana has successfully scaled the Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest peak of African continent, on Thursday and displayed the Patachitra of Lord Jagannath’s Nagarjuna Besha at the peak.
Maharana, a young mountaineer from the artistic village of Raghurajpur in Puri, set his foot on the Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania holding the national flag and patachitra of Lord Jagannath.
At 5,895 metres or 19,341 feet above sea level, Kilimanjaro is the highest mountain in Africa.
With the financial support from the State Government, OMC and Puri District Administration, Chinmaya started his trek on June 3 and reached Uhuru peak of Mount Kilimanjaro yesterday.
He hoisted the national flag at the peak of Mount Kilimanjaro
Puri Collector Samarth Verma has congratulated the mountaineer for the rare feat.
Chinmaya has participated in various adventure activities and has brought laurels to the State.
He has successfully climbed Mt Yunam (6111mtr/20049ft) Himalayan Range, Mt Rudugaira (19000ft) Uttarkashi, Mt Palung II (18000ft) Kikkim Himalaya, Mt Stock Kangry (6153mtr/20187ft) Ladakh, Mt Ranisui (13123ft) Manali, Lambaduag (11482ft) Manali, Shetadhara Peak (15700ft) Manali, Himachal Pradesh.
He has completed Basic Mountaineering Course form Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Mountaineering and Allied Sports (ABVIMAS) and Advance Mountaineering Course from the renowned The Jawahar Institute of Mountaineering and Winter Sports (JIM & WS), and Himalayan Mountaineering Institute (HMI) Darjeeling, India.
He is the first person from Odisha to have hoisted Long Maharprabhu Jagannath Flag (Baana) on the Top of the Mt Yunam peak last year.