The Tata Steel Adventure Foundation (TSAF) has planned an acclimatisation trip for Asmita Dorjee who has been selected for next year's Mount Everest expedition.

The 37-year-old Jamshedpur-based climber will trek an 18,000-ft plus peak in Garhwal Himalayas in December to tune herself up for the arduous 29,029 ft challenge ahead.

Asmita had been making preparations for the Everest expedition at Kaflon, the base camp of the premier adventure outfit, near Uttar Kashi in Uttarakhand.

She has come back to her home in the steel city a couple of days back.

Sources in the know revealed that selection of the 18,000 ft-plus peak would be made in August-September. "We will be planning our year-long programme, including the summer and winter outdoor leadership programme and Asmita's acclimatisation trip for the Everest expedition in August-September. The Covid-related situation has now improved and we can chalk our list of programmes," one of the sources said on condition of anonymity.

The Everest-bound Asmita had been climbing mountains, running and stretching exercises at a height of 4,500 ft above sea level during her preparations in Kaflon. Legendary climber Bachendri Pal had been giving her confidence boosting talks as part of preparations.

Asmita, daughter of Sherpa Ang Dorjee who was part of Pal’s Everest expedition in 1984, trained alone at Kaflon by climbing nearby mountains with a load of 20 kg, running and a bit of stretching exercises.

Hemant Gupta, head of TSAF, confirmed the acclimatisation schedule for Asmita. "She needs to acclimatise for the Everest expedition. We have planned a trip to Garhwal Himalayas where she will trek an 18,000 ft-plus peak," he added.

According to Gupta, an Everester, an experienced climber from the TSAF stable, would accompany Asmita for the acclimatisation trip. "She (Asmita) would not be preparing under the guidance of Bachendri Pal who will be leading the five month long Fit@50 Plus Women's Trans Himalayan Expedition starting October," he informed.

Asmita, a senior instructor at the TSAF, has been part of summer and winter outdoor expeditions in the Garhwal Himalayas. She was also one of the members of an all women team comprising employees of Tata Steel and Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) which went for an expedition to Kedarkantha (12,500 ft) in Gahwal Himalayan range of Uttarakhand in early March last year.

She was also a part of an expedition to Leh-Ladakh organised by TSAF in 2018.

So far, 11 TSAF candidates have climbed Mount Everest. They include Bachendri Pal, Premlata Agarwal, Rajender Singh Pal, Binita Soren, Meghlal Mahto, Susen Mahto, amputee Arunima Sinha, Hemant Gupta, Sandeep Tolia, Swarnalata Dalai and Poonam Rana.