Mountains are really very beautiful and refreshing landscape to look at. They are the store house of natural resources and occupies about 26.5% of the earth surface. Most of our fresh water comes from mountains.
When it comes about India, 30% of its land is covered with mountain. Some of the world’s highest mountain ranges like Himalayas and Karakorum range which forms the northern boundary of India and houses many Highest Mountain in India. This Highest barrier not only protects India but also responsible for varied climate of India. Some of the highest peaks are located in these ranges and it remains snow-caped throughout the year. Now the question arises Which is the highest mountain in India?
In this article we will get to know about top highest mountains of India.
LIST OF 10-HIGHEST PEAK IN INDIA
- MOUNT KANCHENJUNGA: 8,598m
- MOUNT NANDA DEVI: 7,816m
- MOUNT KAMET: 7,756m
- K10/SALTORO KANGRI: 7,742m
- K22/SASER KANGRI I: 7,672m
- K35/MAMOSTONG KANGRI: 7,516m
- SASER KANGRI II E: 7,513m
- SASER KANGRI III: 7,495m
- TERAM KANGRI I: 7,462m
- JOGSONG PEAK: 7,462m
1. MOUNT KANCHENJUNGA: 8,598m
Mount Kanchenjunga is the highest peak in India and third highest in the world. K2 lies in the Kanchenjunga Himal section of Great Himalaya in the border between Nepal and Sikkim and is the highest mountain in India. Although it receives lighter snowfall during winter and heavy during monsoon season, it remains ice-caped throughout the year. The name Kanchenjunga is of Tibetan origin which means ” the five treasures of the high snow “.
Mount Kanchenjunga is considered sacred by the people of Sikkim therefore any attempt to climb its summit was considered disrespectful towards their religion. Two British mountaineer Joe Brown and George Band became the first climbers to successfully climb its peak on 25th May,1955. Many wildlife sanctuaries have been built to protect the unique Kanchenjunga ecosystem.
2. MOUNT NANDA DEVI: 7,816m
Mount Nanda Devi is the second highest peak in India and the highest mountain situated entirely within the country. Mount Nanda Devi is located in the Chamoli Garhwal district of the Indian state Uttarakhand and ranks 23rd in the highest mountain peak of the world. Besides, Nanda Devi is a part of Kumaon Himalaya with two peaks popularly refereed as the peak of the Goddesses Sunanda and Nanda. Therefore, it is considered scared by the Garhwal and Kumon peoples. This highest point in India is covered with snow throughout the year and the melting ice and glaciers feeds the river Ganga which is considered sacred by Hindu religion.
On 29th August,1936, two Englishman Noel Odell and Bill Tilman became the first to climb the summit. Settlements, cattle rearing, and terrace farming is seen at the lower elevation of Nanda Devi. Hence, to protect its outstanding scenic beauty and mountain’s fragile ecosystem, the government of India established the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserves in 1982.
3. MOUNT KAMET: 7,756m
Mount Kamet is the third highest mountain peak and 29th highest mountain in the world. This one of the highest mountain peaks in India is situated near Tibetan plateau and hence, it is highly remote which is not accessible like other Himalayan mountains. Kamet is located in Garhwal Himalayas in the Chamoli district of Indian state Uttarakhand. As, it is surrounded by three other neighboring peaks, so it appears like a giant pyramid with a flat summit area with two peaks and is a house of several glaciers that feeds many rivers in India.
Many attempts in past had been made to climb Kamet but in the year 1931 it was successfully climbed by British mountaineers Frank Smythe, Eric Shipton along with Lewa Sherpa. Before the Nanda Devi ascent, Kamet holds the record of first Himalayan summit of more than 7,620m that was ever climbed by humans.
4. SALTORO KANGRI/K10: 7,742m
Mount Saltoro Kangri is the fourth highest mountain peak in India and ranks 31st in the world. This highest mountain in India lies in the Saltoro Range which is a sub mountain range of Karakoram range. It lies between the Indian territory of Siachen in the east and Pakistan territory in the west. Vertically rising Mount Saltoro is inaccessible for tourist as it lies within the military zones of both the country.
The first attempt to climb the summit was made by the Japanese mountaineer Y Takamura and A Saito and the Pakistani climber RA Bashir on July 24th, 1962. Later, in 1982, the peak was ascent by an Indian Army expedition led by Colonel Narendra Kumar.
5. SASER KANGRI I / K22: 7,672m
Mount Saser Kangri I is India’s 5th highest mountain peak and ranks 35th in the world. One of the highest mountain in India lies within the territory of Ladakh and is the highest peak of Saser Muztagh a sub range of Karakoram range. Hence, it is comparatively unexplored mountain that lies between the river valley of Nubra and Shyok.
After many attempts it was first climbed by Indo Tibetan Boarder Police mountaineer team-Dawa Norbu, Da Tenzing, Nima Tenzing and Thondup on June 5th, 1973. The attempt was made from the Nubra Valley which is lower, more populated and hence, more easily accessible than the eastern side which faces the Tibetan Plateau.
6. MAMOSTONG KANGRI / K35: 7,516
Mamostong Kangri or K35 is the India’s 6th highest mountain peak and ranks 48th in the world.The mountain lies in the Indian union territory of Ladakh close to the Indo-China boarder. It is the highest peak of Rimo Muztagh a sub range of Karakoram range. Three glaciers reside on its southern slope namely The South Chong Kumdan Glacier, Kichik Kumdan Mamostong and South Terong Glaciers which heads downward.
The first attempt to climb this mountain was made by Indo-Japanese expedition team comprising N Yamada, K Yoshida, R Sharma, P das and H Chauhan through the Northern Ridge in the year 1984.
7. SESAR KANGRI II E: 7,513
Mount Sesar Kangri II E is India’s 7th highest mountain peak and ranks 49th in the world. Basically, it is situated within the Indian Union Territory of Ladakh and is one of the highest peaks of Sesar Muztagh an easternmost sub range of Karakoram Range. On the eastern slope of this mountain lies Shukpa Kunchang Glacier. And in the western side lies two glaciers-The Sakang and Pukpoche Glaciers which drain into Nubra river.
Sesar Kangri II East was first climbed by Mark Richey, Steve Swenson and Freddie Wilkinson on 24th August 2011. Until then it was the world’s second highest unclimbed mountain after Gangkhar Puensum.
8. SESAR KANGRI III: 7,495
Attempt to climb Saser Kangri III was first attempted in the year 1986 by the Indo-Tibetan Border Police expedition using eastern approach. The Summit party consisted of the mountaineers- Budhiman, Neema Dorjee, Sher Singh, Tajwer Singh, Phurba Sherpa and Chhewang Somanla.
9. TERAM KANGRI I: 7,462m
Mount Teram Kangari I is 9th highest mountain peak of India and it ranks 56th in the world. The highest peak of Himalaya in India is a part of remote Siachen Muztagh subrange of Karakoram Range situated along the border of India, China and the disputed Siachen Glacier region close to Pakistan border. Whereas the northeastern side of the mountain lies in the China controlled territory. While its southwestern side is located Siachen are which is under Indian territory.
The Japanese expedition team led by H Katayama were the first to climb the summit on 10th August 1975. They approached through Bilafond la and climbed through the SW ridge of Teram Kangri II and then took the east ridge to the top.
10. JOGSONG PEAK: 7,462m
The Jogsong Peak is the 10th highest mountain peak in India and ranks 57th in the world. One can find Jogsong peak in the Janak section of the great Himalayas whose summit is situated at the tripoint of Nepal, India and China near to Sikkim. Until the first ascent of Mount Kamet, Jogsong was considered as the highest climbed peak.
Jogsong Peak was first climbed by German expedition who were the members of the International Mountaineering Organization Himalayan Club. It was the year 2012 when a team from the Kolkata section of Himalayan club led by Pradeep Sahoo ascended the Jogsong’s east summit through a new route via eastern ridge of Jogsong peak.
