Hari Budha-Magar who was banned from climbing the Mount Everest because he is a double amputee had to fly back to the UK from Nepal after the government refused double amputees, blind people and solo climbers from tackling the world's highest peak.
38 year old Magar who was very disappointed, in communication on his way to Kathmandu told Asian Voice exclusively, “I will dig out what is the exact rules and take action accordingly. I wouldn’t give up on climbing as its also rights of disable.”
Upon returning to the UK, he told the Daily Telegraph, “I am working on what we can do about it. Everyone who has supported me is very positive and helping me to see what we can do to change the Nepal government's mind.”
The amputee Gurkha who fought along side Prince Harry in Afghanistan was banned from climbing the Mount Everest, despite training for five years. It is believed that the Nepalese tourism ministry has ruled that double amputees and blind people are to be banned from climbing to try reduce death figures.
Magar who served in the 1st Royal Gurkha Rifles, and lost both his legs in a bomb blast in April 2010. The father of two lives in Canterbury, Kent with his wife, two young boys and a daughter, dreamed of climbing the world's tallest peak since he was a child. If he was allowed to climb the peak, he would have been the first person with above knee amputations to do so.
Hari joined the British Army when he was 19. He served the Crown with the Royal Gurkha Rifles for 15 years. He was a part of the Conquering Our Dreams team that consisted of Hari, alongside some of his friends. In this particular case, his friends include Royal Gurkha, U.S. Marine Corps and other special forces veterans Krishna, Christopher, and Mingma. Though he was aware of the harrdships, he created a crowd sourcing page before the climb and wrote, “this is my dream and I believe this is possible with the right help and support."
Since his injury, Hari has learnt or relearnt to skydive, Alpine and Nordic skiing, kayaking and many other such great sports.
