KATHMANDU, Nepal-The government of Nepal is to revise the mountaineering royalty while giving permission for climbing the peaks to be paid by the mountaineers. For the purpose, the government has formed a new task force under the co-ordination of Purna Chandra Bhattarai, joint secretary and chief at the Tourism Industry Section of the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation.
According the Ministry, the seven member committee headed by Bhattrai comprises of each one representative from the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry of Law. Likewise, representative from Nepal Tourism Board (NTB), Nepal Mountaineering Association (NMA), and Trekking Agency Association of Nepal (TAAN) and an under-secretary at Trekking and Mountaineering Section of the Ministry Surendra Prasad Sapkota are other members of the task force.
The task force would summit its proposal within 30 days after beginning its work. The task force is believed to suggest a compulsory policy for the mountaineering guide to pay royalty beside existing charges for expedition team.
Likewise, the task force would forward a suggestion that would inspire to manage charging royalty from the domestic mountaineers compulsory.
Similarly, the government is planning to charge royalty on the basis of per climber summit on the Everest at summer season, reviewing existing minimum 25 thousand, 40 thousand, 48 thousand and 56 thousand dollar charges for a expedition team comprising the member one, two, three and four respectively.
Keeping in mind to control the existing trend of mountaineers who presented large number of fake mountaineers to pay minimum royalty for getting climbing permission, the government is planning to introduce such new rule hoping it would help to increase revenue with the increase of mountaineering team in future.
At present, expedition team comprising 5 members should pay 60 thousand dollar while, team involving six members should offer 66 thousand dollar to acquire climbing permits by the mountaineers in Mt. Everest. Team comprising 8 members should pay 70 thousand as royalty while extra 10 thousand is charged for the expedition team having more than eight members, but the team should not have more than 15 members.
Each expedition team should deposit extra 4 thousand dollar for cleaning the peak. Earlier, the government had reviewed the royalty in 2003.
