Scaling New Heights

She became the first woman from the Northeast to summit the world's highest peak in May 2011. Now, she is giving back to society by promoting adventure sports and providing a livelihood option for village women, reports Prasanta Mazumdar

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TINE Mena was at a loss thinking about how she would fund her costly Mount Everest expedition, but fellow villagers in her native Lower Dibang Valley district of Arunachal Pradesh had come forward to help her in whatever little way they could.

The odds were against her, but Mena summited the world's highest mountain peak in May 2011 to become the first woman from the Northeast to achieve this rare feat.

Call it the cycle of life that she is now giving back to society by promoting adventure sports and providing a livelihood option for village women.

For the past decade, the 39-year-old adventure instructor in Arunachal Pradesh's Department of Youth Affairs has been working to promote mountain biking, trekking, and rafting in Lower Dibang Valley and adjoining Anjaw districts. She often sets out for remote villages to organise mountain biking events for scouting talents, shelling out her own money.

She brings select candidates to Roing, the headquarters of the Lower Dibang Valley district, for a five-day training session, during which the Department of Youth Affairs further evaluates their performance. They then get trained to participate in national events. Rubi Lombo, one of her proteges, is currently a coach of the National MTB Cycling team under the Sports Authority of India.