PETALING JAYA: A Malaysian man who scaled the peak of Mount Everest last year died in Nepal while attempting to climb another mountain there.

Raman Nair Hachoodan (pic), 43, was found dead on Mounta Ama Dablam, which is located in the Himalaya region of Eastern Nepal.

According to a report by the Himalayan Times, he was recovered from a gorge at around 5300m above sea level on Sunday (May 20), five days after he went missing on May 15.

His close friend K. Nagarajoo said that Raman’s father was still in Nepal arranging for his remains to be brought back to Malaysia.

“Tentatively, his funeral has been planned for Wednesday (May 23). This however depends on the post mortem and legal clearance from Nepal,” he told The Star.

Raman, who is from Shah Alam, managed to reach the peak of Mount Everest on May 20 last year under extremely difficult circumstances.

“It was a great feeling to touch the roof of the earth. My hard work and training paid off. It is the most difficult thing I have done in my life,” an ecstatic Raman told The Star in an interview last year.

Nagarajoo said that Raman’s death was a big loss to the hiking community over here.

“He was a very dedicated person when it came to hiking. He loved nature very much. He said nature is religion. It’s a big loss for the community,” he said.