Navy veteran, legendary mountaineer Capt MS Kohli dies at 93

Navy veteran and legendary mountaineer Capt MS Kohli (retd), who had the singular honour of leading India's first successful expedition to Mt Everest in 1965, has died.

He was 93.

The Indian Navy shared the update in a post on X on Tuesday night.

"With profound grief and a heavy heart, we regret to inform the sad demise of Capt MS Kohli, AVSM (Retd), Age 93 yrs, on 23 Jun 25 at New Delhi. He was commissioned in the #IndianNavy on 08 Mar 54, and retired on 02 Aug 74," it posted.

"India's legendary mountaineer and the pioneer of adventure training in the Navy, Capt Kohli, had the singular honour of leading India's first successful Everest Expedition in 1965. This expedition saw nine men summit Mt. Everest, a world record which stood for 17 years," it said.

The Navy said he had participated in 20 major Himalayan expeditions, including India's first ascent of Nanda Kot and the maiden ascent of Annapurna III.

"For his distinguished achievements, he was bestowed with the Padma Bhushan and Arjuna Award, amongst many others. @NAVYESM @SpokespersonMoD," it posted and also shared a portrait of Capt Kohli.