Lord Jagannath has been a great source of strength in the past few years during my climbs and especially during my climb of Mount Everest. I took statuettes of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Goddess Subhadra with me to the peak. In 2013, too, when I climbed Mount Plateau Peak (7,300m) in the Eastern Karakoram range, I placed an idol of Lord Jagannath on top of the mountain.

My family, especially my mother, have always been strong believers in Lord Jagannath. In fact, before we undertook the journey to Mount Everest this time, we went to Puri to offer prayers.

Even though I have no plans to go to Puri this year during rath yatra, the festival is an important event in my family and we offer our prayers throughout. My mother prays to Lord Jagannath every evening.

During my climbs, I always carry an idol of Lord Jagannath in my rucksack, He is in my tent and we carry him everywhere we go during our travels. The Lord has had a big role in my life as a climber as well as in my personal life.

When I was working in Joda, a mining city in the Keonjhar district of Odisha, I was chief of the Tata Steel mines division, and the workers had built a Jagannath temple there. I used to regularly take part in the activities at the temple.

My children, too, are believers in the Lord and go with us every time we visit Puri.

This September, we will be celebrating my mother's 75th birthday. To celebrate the day, our entire extended family of 80 people will go to Puri to have the Lord's prasad or abhada.

In our childhood, we used to accompany our father to an ashram in Puri during the summer holidays.

Right now, I am in Siliguri and will be back in Calcutta on July 6. So, I take part in rath yatra celebrations at places near my home.

AS TOLD TO KAJARI BHATTACHARYA