Miracle for Sadpara

One of the most valiant sons of Pakistan Muhammad Ali Sadpara has been missing since last Saturday on the slopes of K2. The missing mountaineer and his two fellow climbers were trying to scale the daunting peak of the second highest mountain in the world, Godwin Austen peak commonly known as K2. As every day that goes by without news regarding their whereabouts, rescue operations have been trying to locate the missing mountaineers. M A Sadpara’s son, Sajid, has remained candid and courageous through it all, explaining the dire nature of surviving at 8, 000 metres after two to three days. Sajid had accompanied his father with John Snorri from Iceland and Juan Pablo from Chile, during the first leg of their ascent to the peak, but Sajid lacked oxygen supply and had to abort his attempt. The other three continued their climb and reached the most technical portion of their journey called the Bottleneck. After that, the correct situation is not clear as their GPS stopped working and there was no further communication with them.

Ali Sadpara is no ordinary mountaineer; he is the only Pakistani to have climbed eight of fourteen 8, 000-metre peaks. He achieved his best-known feat in 2016 when he made a world record with his Italian and Spanish fellows by scaling the first winter summit of Nanga Parbat. He received accolades from the world over and his fellow climbers hold him in high esteem. Sadly, since Pakistan is too obsessed with cricket there is hardly any appreciation for other sports. Mountaineering is always an uphill task and is one of the most dangerous passions that anyone can have. It is unfortunate that Pakistan, being home to five 8, 000-metre peaks – including K2, Nanga Parbat, Broad Peak, Gasherbrum I and II – still lacks world class facilities to train its climbers. Pakistani mountaineers such as the Sadpara family are mostly self-trained without any major financial or technical support from the government of Pakistan. Born in 1976 near Skardu, Ali Sadpara had by the age of 40 trained himself to be a match to any well-trained climber from anywhere in the world. And it is not only his technical skills but also his congenial temperament that has endeared him to anyone he has interacted with.

Sadpara is also known to have helped the Pakistan army when it was locked in a battle on Siachen Glacier, the world’s highest battleground. He is reported to have supplied Pakistani soldiers with much-needed ration and other wherewithal in the dead of night across remote passes. The fact that most of these porters and climbers from Pakistan remain under constant financial constraints should serve as a reminder to the government. For now, the nation waits for a miracle that will bring Ali Sadpara and his colleagues back from the mountains – alive and safe.