Climbing in India

The story of climbing in India

Rock climbing in India is about seventy years old. It began as training for the Himalaya, and became a sport of its own on the crags near the big cities. This is how the 66 areas on the map came to be, in 6 parts. Most dates link to an outside source.

Part 1 · 1950s to 1960s

Clubs and courses

Indian rock climbing began as training for the Himalaya. Clubs in the big cities took their members to the nearest hills, and the first courses taught rock as a step to snow and ice.

  1. 1954Girivihar, one of Mumbai's oldest hiking and climbing clubs, is founded in Bombay. Girivihar
  2. 1954The Himalayan Mountaineering Institute is set up, and rock climbing is taught as part of its mountaineering course. The Tribune
  3. 1960sRock climbing starts around Bengaluru, with Govind Raju (Deccan Mountaineering League, Mysore) and Usha Ramaiah (Karnataka Mountaineering Association) named as pioneers. Adventure Wildlife
  4. 1961The Indian Mountaineering Foundation becomes a permanent body. The Himalayan Journal
  5. 1965West Bengal's first organised rock-climbing course is held at Susunia Hill. The Tribune
Part 2 · 1970s to 2001

Home crags

Then some climbers stayed on the rock. Near Delhi, Mumbai, Pune and Bengaluru they opened lines on their home crags, with their own rules about how to climb them.

Most of it was not written down. The first guidebook to the rock around Delhi came out in 2001.

  1. 1970sClimbers of the Climbers and Explorers Club, led by MS Bawa, start climbing at Dhauj. The Outdoor Journal
  2. 1983–1985Climbing at Dhauj near Delhi takes off under Robert Chambers, who climbed there often until he left India in 1985. A young Mohit Oberoi followed him up Bharat Natyam in December 1983. The Outdoor Journal
  3. 1984Kanhai Datta, Charu Sharma and Mandip Singh Soin make the first ascent of the main south face of Savandurga in October and name the route Deepavali. American Alpine Journal 2017
  4. 1985In December a team led by Vasant Limaye makes the first ascent of the south face of Kokankada. It takes 17 days. The Outdoor Journal
  5. 1985British climber Doug Scott and K.V. Mohan put up hard crack climbs (Scott's Crack) at Savandurga and Ramanagara. Adventure Wildlife
  6. 1986Goonda Srinivas makes the first ascent of the Mezzanine Roof at Mayanganahalli Betta near Bengaluru. Adventure Wildlife
  7. 1989The first bolted route near Bengaluru is put up. The same article links it to two French climbers who opened a route at Handi Gundi. Adventure Wildlife
  8. 1989The Government of Karnataka sets up GETHNAA (General Thimayya National Academy of Adventure) to promote adventure sports. It later hosts climbing workshops and a climbing wall at Kanteerava Stadium. Adventure Wildlife
  9. 1990Jean-Francois Hagenmuller and K.V. Mohan open five Ramanagara classics in one month: Namaste, Shanti, Beladingalu, Simple Monkey Day and Super Deluxe. Adventure Wildlife
  10. 2001Mohit Oberoi publishes the first guidebook to climbing around Delhi. The Outdoor Journal
Part 3 · 1990s to 2010

Visitors and boulders

From the 1990s, travelling climbers found the boulders of Hampi and the sandstone of Badami, and later the high valleys of Himachal. Films and magazine stories put these places on the world map.

The visitors did not work alone. In each place, local people showed the way, gave them a room and often started to climb.

  1. 1990sVisiting climbers start to explore Hampi's boulders in 1992. The Outdoor Journal
  2. 1990sClimbers develop routes on Badami's sandstone. New Lines Magazine
  3. 2002Pil Lockey spends his first summer in Himachal, and goes on to develop the bouldering at Chattru and Chota Dhara. The Outdoor Journal
  4. 2003The film Pilgrimage, with Chris Sharma in Hampi, comes out and puts its granite boulders on the world map. Reel Rock
  5. 2010Elie Chevieux, Fred Nicole and Bernd Zangerl find the Baspa valley's boulders. American Alpine Journal
Part 4 · 1991 to now

Walls, bolts and medals

Sport climbing came to India in 1991, through the national federation. The first national championship followed in 1996. City gyms followed, and a climber could now start indoors.

  1. 1991The IMF introduces sport climbing in India. The Himalayan Journal
  2. 1996India's first national sport climbing championship is held in Delhi. VCAN
  3. 2001Pimpri-Chinchwad opens a municipal climbing wall, run by the Pimpri-Chinchwad Mountaineering Association. In 1997 the nearest wall in western India was in Bikaner. Shyam G Menon blog
  4. 2007The IMF is a founding member of the International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC). Vertige Media
  5. 2007–2008Bolts for Bangalore: Austrian climber Gerhard Schaar and Indian friends bolt 50 new sport routes at Badami and Ramanagara, most of them 6a to 6c, and teach local climbers to bolt. bergsteigen.com
  6. 2012Manikandan Kumar wins gold at the IFSC Para Climbing World Championship in Paris. The Outdoor Journal
  7. 2015Chingkheinganba Maibam, aged 13, wins Asian Youth gold in speed and silver in bouldering. The Logical Indian
  8. 2016India hosts its first IFSC World Cup, in Navi Mumbai. Scroll.in
  9. 2016Fitrock Arena opens in Chennai, described as Tamil Nadu's first indoor climbing gym. DT Next
  10. 2018BoulderBox, a bouldering gym, opens in New Delhi. BoulderBox
Part 5 · 2012 to now

Whose rock is it

Rock in India is on forest land, next to monuments, in village fields and inside wildlife sanctuaries. As more people climb, more crags have rules, and some have closed.

This is why each area page says what is allowed, and why local clubs matter.

  1. 2012The Ramadevarabetta hills at Ramanagara become a vulture sanctuary. A study later finds that temple crowds, climbers and bikers disturb the breeding birds. Wikipedia
  2. 2019Access gets harder around Bengaluru: the Turahalli boulders are shut late in the year. New Lines Magazine
  3. 2019In late November, forest officials stop local climbers near Bengaluru, order them off the rock and take all their gear. The cliffs on forest land are declared off limits. Mad Rock blog
  4. 2020On 11 February the Supreme Court upholds the order to demolish guest houses and restaurants on Virupapura Gaddi (Hampi Island), the base for most visiting boulderers, within one month. LiveLaw
Part 6 · 2013 to now

A scene of its own

In the last ten years or so, Indian climbers have repeated the hardest lines in the country and opened their own. Local clubs run festivals and look after access.

This part is still being written.

  1. 2008Hyderabad Climbers starts as the rock climbing wing of the Great Hyderabad Adventure Club. It later runs the Hyderabad Climbing Championship. Hyderabad Climbers
  2. 2013Ajij Shaikh climbs The Diamond in Hampi, the first 8A boulder by an Indian. The Outdoor Journal
  3. 2013Tuhin Satarkar climbs Ganesh (8b+) at Badami, the first Indian to climb it. The Outdoor Journal
  4. 2014Samiran Kolhe, Rohit Vartak and photographer Sharad Chandra make the second ascent of Kokankada in January, 28 years after the first. The Outdoor Journal
  5. 2014Outdoor climbing around Bengaluru revives after a quiet spell. More than 90 new routes go up in the next few years. Adventure Wildlife
  6. 2015Keerthi Pais and Sohan Pavuluri develop the Varlakonda crag north of Bengaluru. Mountain Project forum trip report
  7. 2016The first Suru Boulder Fest is held in Ladakh. 4Play
  8. 2016Samiran Kolhe and TT Niranjan climb the 425 m Deepavali route on Savandurga with a new direct finish on 30 December, placing no bolts. American Alpine Journal 2017
  9. 2017Tenzing Jamyang runs the first Kareri Rock Trip in the Dhauladhar, where the group opens about 30 boulder problems. The winter before he opened about 15 problems at Zion in South Delhi. The Outdoor Journal
  10. 2017A bolted sport crag on basalt opens to the public at Dighe near Thane in February. Mountain Project
  11. 2018Gowri Varanashi and four other women climbers, among them BoulderBox co-founder Vrinda Bhageria, hold the first CLAW (Climb Like A Woman) in Hampi in December: India's first women's outdoor climbing meet. The Bridge
  12. 2018Gowri Varanashi becomes the first Indian woman to climb French Indian Masala (7b+) at Badami on 19 January. The Bridge
  13. 2018Siddhi Manerikar redpoints Samsara (8a) at Badami in November. The Outdoor Journal knew of no other Indian woman who had climbed the grade. The Outdoor Journal
  14. 2019The Suru Boulder Fest wins the UIAA Rock Climbing Festival Award. UIAA
  15. 2019Spiti holds the first Piti Dharr International Ice Climbing Festival in January. Alpinist
  16. 2021After spending the COVID lockdown there, BoulderBox co-founder Yaduraj Bhageria publishes a first introductory guidebook to Sethan's boulders. Sethan on the map
  17. 2021The first long routes go up on Bansa Hill in Purulia. American Alpine Journal
  18. 2022–2023A Giripremi team from Pune climbs 41 rock pinnacles across the Sahyadri between February 2022 and February 2023. Giripremi
  19. 2023Mohit Oberoi, Todd Swain and Donette Swain add three more long bolted slab routes (240 to 260 m) on the southwest side of Bansa Hill in January. American Alpine Journal 2024
  20. 2023Suraj Kushwaha and Nikhil Bhandari climb two new six-pitch routes on Rathan Thadi Dome above Sethan in October. American Alpine Journal 2024
  21. 2023A Basque team climbs many new rock routes in the Suru and Shafat valleys, up to 1,000 m long and up to 8a. American Alpine Journal 2024
  22. 2025Bernd Zangerl publishes the Rakchham guidebook: 560+ problems in 14 sectors. Bernd Zangerl
  23. 2025Arlo, aged 11, climbs Premium Gravity (8A) at Rakchham. The Outdoor Journal

Some of the people

Local and visiting climbers, in no order of rank. The list is not complete, and we add to it. A person is quoted from the source named.

  • Dhauj

    Mohit Oberoi

    Delhi climbing pioneer since the 1980s; author of the first Delhi guidebook (2001)

    “we had a strong ethic to only lead the routes, no top roping”
    Source: The Outdoor Journal
  • Suru valley

    Tenzing “Jammy” Jamyang

    Ladakhi climber and co-founder of the Suru Boulder Fest

    “the catalyst for the rock climbing movement in India” (on the fest, accepting the 2019 UIAA award)
    Source: UIAA
  • Rakchham

    Nand Kishore “Johnny” Negi

    Rakchham local who helped start the Rakchham Mountaineering and Adventure Club (RMAC)

    “The point is to involve local people”
    Source: adidas
  • Bengaluru

    Sohan Pavuluri

    Founder of the Bangalore Climbing Initiative (BCI)

    “The '80s and '90s were the golden years of climbing in Bangalore.”
    Source: New Lines Magazine
  • Sahyadri

    Samiran Kolhe

    Made the second ascent of Kokankada in 2014 and a new finish at Savandurga in 2016

    “This was the first big wall climb in the Sahaydris [sic]” (on the 1985 Kokankada climb)
    Source: The Outdoor Journal
  • Purulia

    Gautam Dutta

    Mountaineer and camp commandant for the Jadavpur University Mountaineering and Hiking Club, which has trained climbers in Bengal since 1966

    Source: Dream Wanderlust
  • Spiti

    Prerna Dangi

    Delhi climber and guide, writing on India's frozen waterfalls

    “the potential for big water ice is huge in India”
    Source: The Himalayan Journal
  • Bengaluru, Ramanagara, Savandurga

    K.V. Mohan

    Partnered visiting climbers such as Doug Scott and Jean-Francois Hagenmuller on the early hard routes; died in a Himalayan avalanche in 1995 and has a Savandurga route named after him

    Source: Adventure Wildlife
  • Bengaluru

    Usha Ramaiah

    Early woman pioneer of Karnataka climbing and a co-founder of the Karnataka Mountaineering Association

    Source: Adventure Wildlife
  • Ramanagara, Bengaluru

    Dinesh KS

    Among the first Indians to bolt routes, from the late 1980s, and helped set up Bengaluru's first artificial wall in the 1990s

    Source: Open Magazine
  • Badami, Ramanagara

    Pranesh Manchaiah and Gerhard Schaar

    Ran the Bolts for Bangalore project that added dozens of bolted sport routes and trained local climbers to bolt

    Source: Adventure Wildlife
  • Badami, Chitradurga

    Praveen CM

    Many-time national champion who bolts new sport routes and coaches young climbers from Karnataka

    Source: Open Magazine
  • Bengaluru

    Keerthi Pais

    Climbing since 1991; runs Equilibrium Climbing Station, a climbing gym in Bengaluru, and coaches climbers for competitions

    Source: Open Magazine
  • Badami, Hampi

    Gowri Varanashi

    First Indian woman up French Indian Masala (7b+) and organiser of CLAW, the women's outdoor climbing event in Hampi

    Source: The Bridge
  • Badami

    Siddhi Manerikar

    Redpointed Samsara (8a) in November 2018, called by The Outdoor Journal arguably the hardest sport route climbed by an Indian woman

    Source: The Outdoor Journal
  • Bansa Hill (West Bengal)

    Sandeep Maity and Sudipto Pal

    Climbed the first long routes on Bansa Hill in late 2021 and developed sport climbs and boulders at its base

    Source: American Alpine Journal 2024
  • Hampi

    Vikas “Jerry” Vikram

    Local Hampi climber and guide, subject of the film Hampi Local, who climbed some of India's hardest grades in his teens

    Source: Gripped
  • Leh, Suru valley

    Suhail Kakpori

    Ran the GraviT gym in Leh with Tenzing Jamyang and co-founded the Suru Boulder Fest in 2016

    Source: National Geographic
  • Rakchham

    Bernd Zangerl

    Austrian boulderer who spent 15 years developing Rakchham and wrote its guidebook

    “Climbers cannot forget that we are guests.”
    Source: adidas
  • Hampi and Himachal

    Paul “Pil” Lockey

    British climber who explored Hampi from 1993 and, from 2002, developed bouldering in Himachal at Manali, Chattru and Chota Dhara

    “it wasn't too crowded until 2004.” (on Hampi)
    Source: The Outdoor Journal
  • Dhauj, Delhi

    Robert Chambers

    Climber living in Delhi who led the first big wave of trad routes at Dhauj before he left India in 1985

    Source: The Outdoor Journal
  • Bengaluru, Bansa Hill

    Todd and Donette Swain

    Visiting US climbers who put up new routes near Bengaluru in 2019 and on Bansa Hill in 2023, and wrote both trips up

    Source: American Alpine Journal 2024

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