Geeta Samota becomes first CISF personnel to summit Mount Everest

Geeta Samota, a sub inspector with the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), has become the first personnel from the paramilitary force to climb Mount Everest, a CISF spokesperson said on Tuesday.

Samota summitted on Monday and this marked the first time that someone from CISF - a 56-year-old establishment which is the largest industrial security force in the world - has achieved the feat.

“Geeta stood on the ‘roof of the world’, a triumphant moment symbolising not just a personal victory, but the incredible resilience and strength fostered within the CISF and the Indian nation,” the spokesperson said in a statement.

“The CISF director general and force members have extended their profound congratulations to Samota. Her extraordinary journey and successful summit, shine as a beacon of inspiration for the youth of India and stand as a moment of immense pride for the entire CAPFs fraternity,” he added.

Who is Geeta Samota

Hailing from Chak village in Rajasthan’s Sikar district, Samota played hockey when in college.

She joined the force in 2011 and the 35-year old is now posted at the Udaipur airport unit of the CISF.

Shedding light on her life’s journey, the spokesperson said, an injury led her to move away from hockey, and upon joining the force, she found CISF did not have a mountaineering team then, and she saw a sporting and adventure opportunity here.

This was not the first time Samota tried to summit. In early 2021, Samota was part of the CAPF contingent for a Mount Everest expedition but was called off due to technical reasons.

She took specialised training in mountaineering and in 2019 she became the first woman from any Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) to scale Mount Satopanth (7,075 meters) in Uttarakhand and Mount Lobuche (6,119 meters) in Nepal, he said.

Between 2021-2022, she summited four of these formidable peaks: Mount Kosciuszko (2,228 m) in Australia, Mount Elbrus (5,642 m) in Russia, Mount Kilimanjaro (5,895 m) in Tanzania and Mount Aconcagua (6,961 m) in Argentina.

Geeta achieved this feat in a span of just six months and 27 days, making her the fastest Indian woman to do so, he said.

Samota, the spokesperson said, also became the first and fastest woman to climb five peaks in Ladakh's Rupshu region in just three days, including three peaks over 6,000m and two over 5,000m.