Mountains of India: Peaks, Permits & Mountaineering Guide
India’s Himalaya, peak by peak.
156 summits across seven states, from Churdhar to Kangchenjunga — how high they are, who climbed them first, which ones are open, and how permits work. Ready to climb one? We plan it with you from Himachal.
- 8,586 m Kangchenjunga
- 7,816 m Nanda Devi
- 38 major 7,000 m summits
- 137 peaks opened to foreigners (2019)
- 83 Uttarakhand peaks opened (2026)
What is the highest mountain in India?
Kangchenjunga (8,586 m / 28,169 ft), on the Sikkim–Nepal border, is the highest mountain in India and the third-highest on Earth. India’s official map also shows K2 (8,611 m) inside Ladakh, but K2 stands in Gilgit-Baltistan, which Pakistan administers. The highest peak that lies entirely inside India is Nanda Devi (7,816 m) in Uttarakhand.
India holds the eastern end of the Karakoram and a long arc of the Great Himalaya, from Ladakh through Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Sikkim to Arunachal Pradesh. This guide covers 156 of its most notable peaks. For each we give the height in metres and feet, the first recorded ascent, and whether you can climb it today. Where sources disagree on a height we use the most-cited figure and say so. Every fact traces to a source listed at the foot of the page.
India’s mountains, from 3,000 m to 8,586 m
Each band of altitude is a different kind of trip. The animation places India’s landmark summits at their true heights, from Churdhar to Kangchenjunga.
Above 3,000 m you are on hill summits and trek tops. From 5,000 m you are on snow with an ice axe and crampons. Above 6,000 m most routes need rope work and a proper expedition. Above 7,000 m you need weeks, a permit and real high-altitude experience.
Counts below are for the 156 peaks in our dataset, not every summit in India.
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8,000 m +1 peakKangchenjunga — India’s only 8,000 m summit. Sacred in Sikkim and closed to climbing from the Indian side. See the list →
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7,000–7,999 m48 peaksExpedition giants such as Kamet, Saser Kangri, Nun and Trisul. Plan on three to five weeks, prior high-altitude experience and an IMF permit. See the list →
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6,000–6,999 m74 peaksThe big step up: Deo Tibba, Reo Purgyil, Shivling, Changabang. A few are non-technical, like Yunam; most need rope work. See the list →
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5,000–5,999 m18 peaksFirst real summits: Friendship Peak, Ladakhi, Hanuman Tibba, Kanamo. Snow slopes, ice axe and crampons — usually with a guide. See the list →
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4,000–4,999 m6 peaksHigh trekking tops such as Chanshal, Patalsu and Pangarchulla — long days, no ropes. See the list →
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3,000–3,999 m9 peaksHill summits and trek tops: Churdhar, Kedarkantha, Chandrashila, Sandakphu. See the list →
The 10 highest mountains in India
Ranked among major summits (at least 500 m of prominence), so subsidiary tops like Zemu Gap Peak are left out. Four of the ten stand in the Siachen or Sikkim border zones where civilian climbing is not allowed.
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#18,586 m28,169 ft
Kangchenjunga
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#27,816 m25,643 ft
Nanda Devi
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#37,756 m25,446 ft
Kamet
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#47,742 m25,400 ft
Saltoro Kangri
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#57,672 m25,171 ft
Saser Kangri I
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#67,516 m24,659 ft
Mamostong Kangri
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#77,513 m24,649 ft
Saser Kangri II East
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#87,495 m24,590 ft
Saser Kangri III
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#97,462 m24,482 ft
Teram Kangri I
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#107,462 m24,482 ft
Jongsong Peak
Highest peak in each Himalayan state
Seven states and union territories hold India’s big mountains. Tap one to filter the full list.
Which peaks are closed, sacred or still unclimbed?
Of the 156 peaks in our list, 121 have recorded ascents and are generally climbable with the right permits. 25 are restricted (sacred, military or border zones), 2 are formally closed, and 8 have no confirmed ascent.
Closed Closed
- Nanda Devi (7,816 m) — Uttarakhand. The Nanda Devi Sanctuary and main summit have been closed since 1983; only Nanda Devi East is on the state’s 2026 open list.
- Stok Kangri (6,153 m) — Ladakh. Closed since 2020 over crowding and glacier damage; no reopening announced for 2026.
Restricted Sacred or restricted
- Kangchenjunga (8,586 m) — Sikkim banned climbing it in 2001 (Notification 70/HOME/2001). Climbers who reach it from Nepal stop short of the summit, a promise first made in 1955.
- Manimahesh Kailash (5,653 m) — Chamba, Himachal. Pilgrims circle the lake below; the summit itself has no confirmed ascent.
- Shrikhand Mahadev (5,227 m) — Kullu, Himachal. A July pilgrim trek to the rock lingam, not a climbing objective.
- Siachen and border peaks — Saltoro Kangri, K12, Ghent Kangri and the Teram Kangri group sit in a military zone and are not normally open to civilian teams.
Unclimbed No recorded ascent
- Apsarasas Kangri II (and III) (7,239 m) — Siachen; listed as virgin by the IMF.
- Nyegyi Kansang (7,047 m) — Arunachal; a 1995 claim is disputed.
- Shudu Tsenpa (7,024 m) — Sikkim; no recorded attempts.
- Chiumo (6,890 m) — Arunachal; no documented ascent.
- Chombu (6,362 m) — North Sikkim; no documented ascent.
- Parvati Parbat (6,633 m) — Kullu, Himachal; no documented ascent found (treat as uncertain).
- Recently climbed: Kangto (7,090 m), Arunachal’s highest, got its first recorded ascent in late 2025.
The hardest peaks in India
Height isn’t everything. These Garhwal and Karakoram summits are famous for steep granite, hard ice and objective danger. Several have won alpinism’s top award, the Piolet d’Or.
Changabang
A granite fang above the Bagini glacier. First climbed in 1974 by an Indo-British team; Peter Boardman and Joe Tasker’s 1976 West Wall is a landmark of Himalayan big-wall climbing.
Thalay Sagar
A steep rock-and-ice pyramid above Kedar Tal, first climbed in 1979. Several of its routes have won the Piolet d’Or.
Meru Central (Shark's Fin)
The central summit was reached in 2001, but the Shark’s Fin line waited until 2011 — Conrad Anker, Jimmy Chin and Renan Ozturk’s climb, told in the film Meru (2015).
Shivling
The ‘Matterhorn of the Himalaya’ above Gaumukh. First climbed by an ITBP team in 1974; its ridges and faces are still prized technical lines.
Saser Kangri II East
Until 2011 it was the world’s second-highest unclimbed peak. Mark Richey, Steve Swenson and Freddie Wilkinson’s first ascent won the Piolet d’Or.
Janhukut
A steep Gangotri summit that stayed unclimbed until 2018, when Malcolm Bass, Paul Figg and Guy Buckingham reached the top.
A timeline of the Indian Himalaya
From the first 7,000 m summit ever climbed to the peaks opened this year.
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1907Trisul — the first 7,000 m summit ever climbedTom Longstaff, the Brocherel brothers and Karbir reached the top of Trisul (7,120 m) on 12 June 1907.
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1911PauhunriAlexander Kellas and two Sherpas climbed Pauhunri (7,128 m) in Sikkim — the highest summit climbed at the time, a record that stood until 1928.
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1931Kamet — the first summit above 25,000 ftFrank Smythe’s team, with Lewa Sherpa, topped Kamet (7,756 m) on 21 June 1931.
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1936Nanda DeviBill Tilman and Noel Odell reached the summit (7,816 m) on 29 August 1936. No higher peak was climbed until Annapurna in 1950.
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1955Kangchenjunga — and a promiseGeorge Band and Joe Brown stopped just short of the summit, honouring Sikkim’s reverence for the mountain. Most climbers still do.
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1965India’s first Everest successAvtar Singh Cheema and Nawang Gombu summited on 20 May; Capt. M.S. Kohli’s expedition put nine climbers on top, a record that stood for 13 years.
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1974Changabang and ShivlingThe two Garhwal icons were first climbed on consecutive days, 3 and 4 June 1974.
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1977Kangchenjunga from SikkimAn Indian Army team led by Col. Narendra Kumar made the second ascent, via the north-east spur.
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1984Bachendri PalOn 23 May she became the first Indian woman to stand on Everest.
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2011Shark’s Fin and Saser Kangri II EastTwo of the great unsolved Indian Himalayan problems fell in the same year.
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2013Arunima SinhaThe first woman amputee to summit Everest, on 21 May.
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2022Baljeet Kaur of HimachalThe Solan climber summited a string of 8,000 m peaks in one season, including Manaslu without supplementary oxygen — a first for an Indian woman.
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2025Kangto climbedAn Indian Army team made the first recorded ascent of Arunachal Pradesh’s highest peak.
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202683 Uttarakhand peaks openedIn February the state opened 83 peaks from 5,700 m to 7,756 m and waived its own fees for Indian climbers.
Did you know? In October 1965 an Indian and American team tried to place a plutonium-powered sensor on Nanda Devi to watch Chinese missile tests. A blizzard forced them to leave it at Camp IV, and the 1966 search never found it. The story became public in 1978.
How to get permission to climb in India
Foreign teams apply to the Indian Mountaineering Foundation (IMF) at least 90 days ahead. They climb with an IMF liaison officer and pay a peak fee: US$500 for a team of two on most peaks up to 6,500 m, or US$200 on IMF-listed trekking peaks, plus per-member charges. Indian teams book peaks through the IMF too. Border areas need a protected-area permit, and sacred or military-zone peaks are off-limits.
- Pick an open peakIn 2019 the government opened 137 peaks to foreigners: 47 in Himachal, 51 in Uttarakhand, 24 in Sikkim and 15 in J&K. Uttarakhand added its own list of 83 in 2026.
- Apply to the IMFApply online at least 90 days before you go. Open-area permits usually come through fast; restricted areas can take two to six months.
- Visa and local permitsA tourist visa covers open areas; restricted areas need a mountaineering (X) visa, so confirm with the Indian mission. Kinnaur beyond Jangi, parts of Spiti and much of Ladakh also need a protected-area permit.
- InsuranceYour policy must cover ground and helicopter search and rescue plus altitude illness. Support staff must be insured too.
- Leave no traceCarry all non-biodegradable waste down, retrieve ropes and gear, and include photo proof in your expedition report.
| Peak height | IMF base fee (foreign team of 2) | Also payable |
|---|---|---|
| IMF-listed trekking peaks | US$200 | Per-member charge for bigger teams, plus US$500 hire of the liaison officer’s equipment and the LO’s travel from Delhi |
| Up to 6,500 m | US$500 | |
| 6,501–7,000 m | US$700 | |
| Above 7,000 m | US$1,000 |
Source: IMF peak-fee page, checked 1 Oct 2026. Fees change, so confirm with the IMF before you budget.
Climbing in Himachal Pradesh
Himachal requires trekking and mountaineering outfitters and their guides to register with HP Tourism, and only guides with a Method of Instruction course may lead difficult routes. Participants must be insured for at least two lakh rupees of life cover plus two lakh rupees of rescue cover. In Kangra district, from 8 July to 15 October 2026, trekkers on ten Dhauladhar routes must register at check posts, and anyone who skips registration can be billed for their own rescue. Our guided peak climbs include this paperwork.
Mountaineering courses in India
For technical peaks, start with a Basic Mountaineering Course. The usual ladder runs Basic, then Advanced (which needs an ‘A’ grade in Basic), then Method of Instruction and Search & Rescue. On Indian expeditions at least half the members must hold the Advanced course.
| Institute | Where | Basic course | Who can join |
|---|---|---|---|
| ABVIMAS | Manali, Himachal Pradesh | 26 days; batches May–October | Indians and foreigners, 16–45 |
| NIM | Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand | 28 days; spring and autumn batches | Indians and foreigners, 16–40 |
| HMI | Darjeeling, West Bengal | 28 days | Indians and foreigners, 17–45 |
| JIM&WS | Pahalgam, Jammu & Kashmir | 24 days; May–August | Ages 17–40 |
| NIMAS | Dirang, Arunachal Pradesh | Basic and advanced courses | Check the institute’s site |
Fees and batch dates change every season — apply directly on each institute’s official site.
Want to climb one? We’ll plan it from Himachal
Suzu Travels is an HP Tourism-registered travel agent based in Himachal. For guided climbs, from Friendship Peak (5,289 m) to Deo Tibba (6,001 m), we pair you with registered local mountaineering outfitters and certified guides. Permits, hotels, transfers and acclimatisation days all go into one plan and one quote.
Questions people ask about India’s mountains
What is the highest mountain in India?
Kangchenjunga, 8,586 m (28,169 ft), on the Sikkim–Nepal border. It is the third-highest mountain on Earth. India’s official map also places K2 (8,611 m) inside Ladakh, but K2 stands in Gilgit-Baltistan, which Pakistan administers, so Kangchenjunga is the highest peak on ground India controls.
Is K2 in India?
India claims it. The official map of India shows K2 (8,611 m) as part of the Union Territory of Ladakh, but the mountain lies in Gilgit-Baltistan, which is administered by Pakistan, and every expedition reaches it from Pakistan. That is why most lists name Kangchenjunga as India’s highest peak.
Which is the highest peak that lies entirely inside India?
Nanda Devi, 7,816 m, in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district. It has been closed to climbers since 1983. Uttarakhand’s February 2026 list of open peaks includes Nanda Devi East (7,434 m), not the main summit.
How many 7,000 m peaks does India have?
Wikipedia’s list of Indian summits with at least 500 m of prominence counts 38 above 7,000 m. Count subsidiary tops and border summits as well and the number is higher: our dataset lists 49 summits of 7,000 m or more, Kangchenjunga included.
What is the highest peak in Himachal Pradesh?
Reo Purgyil, 6,816 m, on the Kinnaur–Tibet border above Nako. It was first climbed in 1971. Foreigners need a protected-area permit for this border belt.
Can foreigners climb mountains in India?
Yes. Foreign teams apply to the Indian Mountaineering Foundation (IMF) at least 90 days ahead, climb with an IMF liaison officer and pay a peak fee in US dollars. In 2019 the government opened 137 peaks to foreign climbers, and border areas also need a protected-area permit. Sacred and military-zone peaks stay closed.
Is Stok Kangri open in 2026?
No. Stok Kangri (6,153 m) in Ladakh has been closed to climbing since 2020 and no reopening has been announced. Popular alternatives are Yunam (6,111 m) and Friendship Peak (5,289 m) in Himachal, or Kang Yatse II in Ladakh.
When is the best season to climb in the Indian Himalaya?
In Himachal and Uttarakhand: May–June and September–October, either side of the monsoon. In the rain-shadow of Ladakh, Zanskar, Lahaul and Spiti: July–September. Sikkim’s government suggests May–October, but most operators prefer April–May and October–November there.
Keep exploring
Peak guides
Peaks by state
More from Suzu Travels
Sources
- Indian Mountaineering Foundation — peak fees for foreign expeditions
- Indian Mountaineering Foundation — expedition application rules
- PIB, 21 Aug 2019 — 137 peaks opened to foreigners
- The News Mill, Feb 2026 — Uttarakhand opens 83 peaks
- ThePrint — Sikkim ban on climbing Kangchenjunga
- Wikipedia — List of mountains in India
- Wikipedia — Indian states and territories by highest point
- Wikipedia — Nanda Devi
- Wikipedia — Stok Kangri
- Free Press Journal — Indian Army's first ascent of Kangto (2025)
- HP Miscellaneous Adventure Activities (Amendment) Rules 2021
- The Tribune — Kangra makes trekker registration compulsory (2026)
- CDC Yellow Book — high-altitude travel and altitude illness
- Wikipedia — 1965 Indian Everest Expedition
- Wikipedia — Nanda Devi plutonium mission
Heights follow the most-cited survey figure; alternate heights are listed in the downloadable dataset. Photos in the video are free-licence stock and do not show a named peak unless the caption says so.
