Nearly 30 years later, India moves to bring down iconic 'Green Boots' from Everest
NEW DELHI (AP) — More than a quarter-century after one of Mount Everest’s most infamous tragedies, India has quietly begun planning to bring home the climber known around the world simply as “Green Boots.”
The Indo-Tibetan Border Police, a paramilitary force that operates along India’s Himalayan frontier, has started hiring high-altitude recovery specialists to retrieve what officials believe are the remains of Dorje Morup, an Indian climber who perished on Everest in May 1996. His body, clad in distinctive bright-green mountaineering boots, has long served as a grim landmark for climbers on the mountain’s northeastern ridge, lying in the so-called death zone above 8,000 meters (26,247 feet).
The 1996 disaster remains one of the worst in Everest’s history, claiming eight lives across multiple expeditions in a single storm that also killed renowned climbers Rob Hall and Scott Fischer. Morup was part of a six-member Indo-Tibetan Border Police team. Three of his teammates turned back as conditions worsened near the summit, but Morup and two colleagues pushed on. None survived.
In the years since, “Green Boots” became a somber reference point — a visible reminder of the mountain’s perils. But the decision to recover the body now reflects shifting attitudes toward Everest’s dead, as well as growing pressure from families and government authorities to bring closure.
“Technically, it’s not impossible, but getting Chinese permission is the first real obstacle,” said Pemba Sherpa, founder of Kathmandu-based Xtreme Climbers Treks and Expedition. “Then the team has to deal with extreme altitude, avalanche risk, and the fact that no helicopter can land there. Everything has to be done on foot.”
Because the remains lie on the Tibetan side of Everest, the operation requires approval from Chinese authorities, who tightly control access and climbing permits. China unexpectedly closed the mountain to foreign climbers during the 2026 spring season without public explanation, adding to the uncertainty surrounding the recovery.
No timeline has been set, and it remains unclear whether the recovery would be carried out by an Indian, Nepali, or Chinese team. Chinese officials have not publicly commented on India’s plans.
Nearly 350 people have died on Everest since it was first summited in 1953, and most bodies remain on the mountain because retrieval is extraordinarily dangerous and expensive. In the death zone, even the simplest physical tasks become exhausting under oxygen levels a third of those at sea level. Sherpas and high-altitude climbers must carefully cut bodies free from ice and rock, then drag or lower them down steep, exposed faces, often during short weather windows.
The preservation of bodies in the deep freeze has also sparked ethical debates. Some climbers argue that leaving the dead in place honors their final resting place and serves as a cautionary landmark for future expeditions. Others, including Indian officials, say that after nearly three decades, the remains should be repatriated for proper cremation, in line with Hindu traditions.
Morup’s case has become a symbol of the broader challenge facing mountaineering authorities: how to balance the high cost and risk of body recovery against compassion for the dead and the wishes of families.
As the first steps are taken to bring down “Green Boots,” the mountain’s most famous silent sentinel may finally be brought home.
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Gurubacharya reported from Kathmandu, Nepal.