Navy officer's daughter gets PM’s Bal Puraskar award for mountaineering feats

The daughter of a Navy officer has been awarded the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar, the highest national civilian award for citizens below the age of 18, for commendable feats in mountaineering.

The Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar, formerly called the

National Child Award for Exceptional Achievement, was instituted in 1996 to given recognition to children exhibiting outstanding abilities in the fields of innovation, education, social service, arts and culture, and sports.

In a release, the Navy said Kaamya Karthikeyan, a Class VIII student of Mumbai's Navy Children School and daughter of Commander S

Karthikeyan, is currently on a mission named 'Saras', and aims to complete the 'Explorer's Grand Slam'.

It entails climbing the highest peaks on seven continents and skiing to the North and South Poles, and Kaamya, at 14 years of age, hopes to become the youngest in the world to achieve the feat, a Navy spokesperson said.

"She has so far scaled the highest peaks in Africa, Europe, Australia and South America. She has also set world records for being the youngest girl to summit Mount Aconcagua, the highest peak in South America, and the youngest to ski from the summit of Mount Elbrus, the highest peak in Europe," he said.