9-Year-Old Andhra Girl Becomes Asia's Youngest to Conquer Mount Kilimanjaro

Kadapala Rithvika Sri, a nine-year-old girl from the village name Agraharam in the Tadimarri Mandal district of Andhra Pradesh was the first youngest soul to reach Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania on Friday which is Africa's highest peak.

On 25th February, she reached Gilman point which is 5681 meters above sea level and managed to become the youngest girl from Asia and the world's second youngest to scale the peak.

She belongs from a village named M Agraharam in Tadimarri Mandal, she is a student of the second standard in St Vincent De Paul English Medium School of Anantapur. Her father named Shankar is a cricket coach and coordinator of sports in the Special Olympics Bharat wing of RDT, Anantapur.

She was trained in level 1 in mountaineering at Rock Climbing School which is in Telangana while in Ladakh she acquired level 2 training. Her father said that " Rithvika Sri took part in the mountaineering expedition with enthusiasm and she could make it in her first attempt."

Shankar also said that when he climbed Mount Kilimanjaro on 26th January last year he seeks financial help from District Collector Gandham Chandrudu. The collector was very grateful to release 2.98 lakhs for his expedition. Mr Chandrudu congratulated the girl for her achievements and also said he has always encouraged the family for their determination.

Mount Kilimanjaro:

Mount Kilimanjaro is situated in Tanzania which is African's highest mountain of about 19,340 feet. It is not a part of any mountain range rather it the free-standing mountain which is the tallest. This mountain is also termed stratovolcano as it is mostly known for its snow-covered peak. It possesses three volcanic cones i.e. Kibo, Mawenzi, and Shira.

Hans Meyer German Geographer and Ludwig Purtscheller, an Austrian mountaineer in 1889 became the first climbers to touch the Kilimanjaro's summit. From that time, it has turned into a famous hiking destination for several tourist and localists. Around thousands of climbers reached the mountain every year.

The mountains and the forest surrounding were named Kilimanjaro National Park in the year 1973 for the purpose of preserving its natural environment. In 1987, the park was termed UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) as a World HMandaleritage Site. Blue Monkey along with several species are found in this region.

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