'He refused to turn back': 52-year-old Indian climber dies during summit push on Mount Kanchenjunga in Nepal

Narayanan Iyer died around 8,200 metres above sea level while trying to reach the 8,586 metre peak, the Reuters news agency reported.

A view of the Kanchenjunga mountain along the Himalayan mountain range on the frontier between Nepal and Sikkim (FILE PHOTO: REUTERS)

KATHMANDU: An Indian climber died during a summit push on Mount Kanchenjunga, the world`s third-highest mountain, a hiking official said on Saturday.

The death is the third to be reported on Nepal Himalayas during the current climbing season which started in March.

Narayanan Iyer, 52, died around 8,200 metres (26,900 feet), above sea level while trying to reach the 8,586 metre (28,169 feet) peak on Thursday, said Nivesh Karki, an official of the hiking company that organised the expedition.

"Iyer`s guide advised him to turn back after he was feeling unwell but he refused," Karki said while confirming the death.

Last month a Greek climber and a Nepali Sherpa guide died on other peaks.

Mountain climbing is the main tourism activity and a key source of income as well as employment in Nepal, which has eight of the world`s 14 highest mountains including Mount Everest.

More than 900 foreign mountaineers have received permits to climb 26 Himalayan peaks in Nepal, including Mount Everest, during the current season ending in May.