Gombu, 79, is survived by his wife, three daughters and a son. Besides being the youngest Sherpa to reach South Col during the first successful expedition in 1953, Gombu first climbed Mt Everest along with Jim Whittaker during American Everest Expedition in 1963.
He then set a new record when he scaled the world's highest peak again in 1965 along with Capt Awarae Singh Cheema as members of Indian Everest Expedition. The South Col usually refers to the southern route between Mount Everest and Lhotse, the first and fourth highest mountains in the world.
Other Himalayan peaks climbed by Gombu included Makalu, Sakang, Saser Kangri, Nanda Devi, Cho Oyu, Koktang and Ratong. Gombu was part of the first group of Sherpa mountaineers who along with Tenzing Norgay completed a guide course in Switzerland in 1954.
They became the backbone of the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute (HMI), an idea pushed by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. He retired from HMI as its Director of Field Training after more than 40 years of service.
For his climbing and teaching accomplishments, Gombu was awarded Padma Bhusan, Padma Shree, the Arjuna Award, the Indian Mountaineering Foundation Gold Medal and the Tenzing Norgay Lifetime Achievement Award.
He also received the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation medal from Her Majesty and Hubbard medal from National Geographic Society. Former Director of Field Training of HMI, Dorjee Lahtoo said, "Gombu was the guiding force for the Sherpas as well as the
mountaineering fraternity of the country. His death has left a big void in the adventure field of India."
Born in southern Tibet near the famed Rongbuk monastery in Tibet, Gombu was the son of a former Tibetan monk Nawang Gyaltzen and former nun Lhamu Kipa. He briefly attended the Rongbuk monastery as a student but then moved to the village of Khumjung Solu Khumbu near Mt Everest in Nepal with his parents and sister Doma, where he spent his childhood.
After coming to Darjeeling later with his uncle, he became a high altitude porter before becoming a climbing member in many expeditions. Gombu's funeral will be held in Darjeeling on April 28.
Mount Everest 
 mountaineer , 79, the first person to reach the summit of  twice, died Sunday morning at his home in , India, located at the base of the , his family reported.

Gombu was born in Tibet but later moved with his family to a small village in Nepal near Mount Everest.  

When he was about 21, Gombu reached the  as the youngest member of 's team in 1953. On that expedition, Hilary and , Gombu's uncle, were the first to successfully scale . 


Gombu set another record as the first person to reach the mountain's summit twice, first in 1963 with  on an American expedition and again in 1965 with Captain  on an Indian expedition.

He scaled many other Himalayan peaks including ,  and , and is credited with discovering several new mountain routes.

Gombu was one of the "Tigers of the Snow", Sherpa mountain climbers who brought recognition to their their ethnic community in the mountains of Tibet and Nepal.

He was important in the formation of the  (HMI), along with other Sherpas. The creation of the Institute was supported by . Gombu served as Director of Field Training there after Norgay retired from the role, eventually retiring from HMI himself after more than forty years of work for the Institute.

"He was not only an outstanding climber, Gombu was a fine person who guided Indian mountaineering to a greater height," said , a retired Navy captain and leader of the 1965 Indian  expedition. "Gombu’s death left a big void in the adventure field of the country."

For his work, Gombu received many awards, including medals from  Queen Elizabeth II and the , and was invited to the  by .