Bhubaneswar: A 20-year-old tribal woman from Jajpur district has been selected for an expedition to Mt Everest.

Swarnalata Dalai, from the tribal girl community in Kalinga Nagar will leave for her journey to the top of the world on March 27. The expedition is being organised by Tata Steel Adventure Foundation and includes three youngsters selected from among a number of aspirants from across the country.

Dalai will be joined by Poonam and Sandeep Toliya. Everester Bachendri Pal is training the trio for the expedition.

Dalai had taken part in an expedition to Mt Rudugaira in 2017 under the Biju Patnaik Himalayan Expedition. She had also take part in a few other expeditions, including the Roopkund trek in Garhwal - considered to among the toughest treks - and the Indian Women's Gokyo-Everest Grand Circle Expedition.

The trio aim to scale the peak in the last week of May. "There will a lot of challenges on the way, including extreme weather conditions and uneven terrains, but I am confident. Hoisting the national flag at the peak would be extremely fulfilling," said the Plus Three student of Jenapur Degree College.

Among six siblings in a family of eight, Dalai admits that mountaineering makes her mother the most anxious.

"She is always worried and every time I set out on a journey, she would start crying," she said.

Dalai, who wants to take up mountaineering as a career, added: "I am very excited to be a part of the expedition. I wish more and more youth from our state would take part in sports and adventure activities."

"We are proud of Swarnalata Dalai and would like to congratulate her for being selected in the team," said Chanchal Rana, the sports and youth services department's officer on special duty.

He added that the state government was taking several initiatives to involve rural youths in trekking and mountaineering activities.

"The objective is to develop their spirit of adventure and leadership qualities, motivate the larger populace to pursue different sporting disciplines and provide them with the platforms available to showcase their talent," added Rana.