Kathmandu - Agence France-Presse



Nepal has drastically cut the cost of climbing Mount Everest and other Himalayan peaks to try and attract more mountaineers to the country an official said yesterday.
"The government has approved the decision to cut the royalty fee for climbing Everest by 75 percent during winter and summer seasons and 50 percent during the autumn season" tourism official Krishna Prasad Gyawali said.
Prices for the spring season by far Everest's busiest due to a brief climbing window before monsoon rains will remain the same.
But the number of people allowed on a $70000-permit will be raised to 15 from 12 the official said.
"Prices for permits on the other 326 peaks over 5500 meters that are open for climbing have been slashed on a similar basis" said Gyawali.
As well as the 8848-meter Everest Nepal has another seven of the world's 14 highest peaks. Mountaineering brings much needed hard currency into the impoverished nation sandwiched between India and China.
"To encourage mountaineering in unexplored and backward areas the government also decided to allow mountaineering free of charge in the mid-west and far-west regions for the next five years" said Gyawali.
"Most of the time people only climb the famous peaks Everest Langtang and the Annapurnas while many other mountains with great potential are ignored. We want to end this trend" the official said.
This year's Everest spring season has seen the northern approach to the mountain through Chinese-controlled Tibet closed by Beijing.
Chinese authorities – fearful of protests by pro-Tibet groups – want to keep the mountain clear in early May while they try to get an Olympic torch to the world's highest point.
At China's bidding Nepal has imposed strict new regulations on the southern approach to the mountain.
Last week Nepal deported an American mountaineer who was found to be carrying a pro-Tibet banner at Everest base camp.
Nepal has enforced a media blackout on Everest coverage at base camp.
It has also deployed police and army personnel on the mountain to ensure that climbers are not above 6500 meters while the Chinese make their summit bid between May 1 and 10. The mountain has been climbed more than 3000 times since it was first scaled in 1953 by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay.