India plans Everest mission to bring home ‘Green Boots’ body after 30 years

The Story in Brief

India is planning a daring mission to retrieve the body of Lance Naik Dorje Morup from Mount Everest's death zone, 30 years after he died during a 1996 expedition. Morup, a member of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), was part of a six-member team attempting to summit via the northern route. He made a vow to his wife in Ladakh before departing to return victorious. After a snowstorm forced three team members to turn back, Morup pressed on with two colleagues, Tsewang Smanla and Tsewang Paljor; all three perished during their descent. The body long known as 'Green Boots' was widely mistaken for Paljor, but recent evidence from recovered clothing and equipment has led authorities to identify it as Morup, according to an unnamed ITBP official who spoke to BBC News Hindi. The recovery mission is perilous, as bodies in the death zone can weigh several times their original weight due to freezing, and costs for such operations range from $40,000 to $80,000, often beyond family means. The ITBP is funding the effort, aiming to bring Morup back to India by September, with DNA testing to confirm identity. His wife, now 75, says she could never fully accept his death without seeing his body.