<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230112100128/63bfd35e9c7e80680e0d3059jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="4288" height="2848"/><figcaption>Photo: GUÐMUNDUR PÁLL ÓLAFSSON</figcaption></figure>There are many mistaken notions about Nepal and the Himalaya. Nepal is <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/himal-pahad-tarai/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">not just mountains</a> — the southern plains make up a quarter of the area and is home to more than half the country’s population.The general perception is that the highest peaks mark Nepal’s northern border with China in one long chain. Actually, only Makalu, Lhotse, Everest, Cho Oyu, Gauri Shankar up to Phurbi Ghyachu are on the Nepal-China border.From the north of Kathmandu Valley westwards, Langtang, most of Ganesh, Manaslu, Annapurna, Dhaulagiri, Kanjiroba run diagonally across Nepal. On the other side of these mountains are the trans-Himalayan districts of Humla, Mugu, Dolpo, Mustang and Manang which form 18% of Nepal’s area.<a style="background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/conserving-mountains-for-people-and-nature/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Himalaya</a> is not one long row of peaks, but is made up of massifs called Himals: for example, Rolwaling Himal, Ganesh Himal, Annapurna Himal or Dhaulagiri Himal. These Himals are separated by rivers that are older than the mountains, and cut through them as they rose after the collision between the Indian and Eurasian plates starting 50 million years ago.Evidence of this is the Yarlung Tsangpo (Brahmaputra) and the Indus which wander along the Tibetan Plateau until they cut through the mountains. Most of Nepal’s major rivers, including the Karnali, Kali Gandaki, the Marsyangdi, Budi Gandaki, the two Bhote Kosis, Tama Kosi and the Arun originate in glaciers north of the main Himalayan chain<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230112100128/63bfd3629c7e80680e0d305ajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="109">The <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=16488" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Kali Gandaki</a> is the deepest scar on the land surface of the earth, flowing at barely 1,400m with two 8,000m massifs of Annapurna and Dhaulagiri towering only 8km apart on either side.Along its riverbed are ammonites, perfectly preserved fossils of shellfish that lived on the floor of the Tethys Ocean 250 million years ago. Fossilised sea lilies have been found on the yellow limestone on top of Mt Everest — thrusted from the bottom of the ocean to nearly nine kilometres into the edge of the stratosphere.What makes our mountains so scenic is also why they are seismic. The mountains are still rising at about 1cm a year as India continues to plough under the softer Asian plate — not steadily but in gigantic lurches every few decades. The rock strata move at 20mm every year, and bend with the strain until they snap, causing regular earthquakes.Himalayan seismologists estimate the tectonic tension building up beneath us, and have calculated that there are 8-9M earthquakes every 500 years or so, with smaller temblors every 100 years along segments of the Himalaya.The <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=5065#.Y4-SSy9w2Lc">1934</a> and <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/photos-nepal-earthquake-2015,2207">2015</a> earthquakes have eased the strain in central Nepal somewhat, but in western Nepal there is a <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/aint-seen-nothing-yet/">‘seismic gap’ </a>because there has been no megaquake for at least 500 years. An 8.5M earthquake there could lead to surface displacement of 8m or more, causing widespread destruction in Nepal and all over the densely populated north Indian plains.Aside from the danger of building collapses, an earthquake of this magnitude can cause landslides to block rivers and unleash catastrophic floods of the kind that probably caused the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/past-disasters-foretold/">Pokhara Valley</a> to fill up some 600 years ago.The world’s youngest mountain range is <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/we-have-not-respected-the-fragility-of-the-himalaya/">already very fragile</a>, but haphazard infrastructure and settlements without risk assessment makes it even more dangerous. And the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/climate-change-is-a-disaster-in-the-nepal-himalaya/">climate emergency</a> with its <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-needs-weather-stations-in-the-himalaya/">weather extremes</a> adds to the hazards of Himalayan seismicity, including the threat of simultaneous <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/danger-nepals-glacial-lakes-are-filling-up/">glacial lake outburst floods</a>.We need to know our mountains, our own survival depends on it. Nepal’s planners and government ought to <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/page/preparing-for-the-next-big-earthquake-in-nepal">factor in earthquake</a> and <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/a-terrifying-assessment-of-himalayan-melting/">climate risks</a> in future development. The mountains will seek their revenge if we mistreat them. Wilful ignorance, greed and incompetent implementation are sure to invite disaster.The Himalaya is not just a mountain range. It is the entire watershed from the Tibetan Plateau, though the Himals, Mahabharat and Chure foothills to the Tarai. This is the water tower of Asia, it stores ice and groundwater not just for Nepal but for hundreds of millions of people downstream.It is Nepal’s duty to protect the Himalaya not just from and for ourselves, but for humans and other life forms we share this planet with.

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Knowing our mountains

<img width="856" height="570" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181144/636be7859c7e80680e087806jpeg.jpg" alt=""/>Half the world’s biodiversity and half the quarter of world’s population reside along the mountains. And a half of the world’s population quenches its thirst from melt water originating from the planet’s mountain glaciers. The water fed by these perennial mountain river systems have also become sources of energy through hydropower, irrigation for agriculture, and large water related economies downstream. Mountains in Nepal are characterised as sub-tropical to alpine climatic patterns ranging from soft hilltop to steeper terrain.Nepal has within its vertical terrain, the same range of biodiversity that stretches thousands of horizontal kilometers from the tropics to the Arctic on the planet’s surface.  Lush forests with important flora and fauna intermingle with  pockets of mountain communities spread across the Himalaya. This ice cap on ‘The Third Pole’ provides a life support system for the region and the planet. Mountains are incredibly rich in biodiversity, and the Himalaya is home for wildlife including red panda and snow leopard as well as a wide range of resident and migratory bird species. The mountains also offer habitats for various endemic species of flora with important medicinal and aromatic plants, and non-timber forest products including rhododendron, Yarshagumba, Paanchaule, Sarpagandha -- specifically growing in the rangelands that lie immediately past the snowline.The diversity and uniqueness in the extremities provided by the geographical terrain are limitless. Mixed in with this natural variety of plant and animal life, are culturally rich and ethnically diverse human settlements.This biodiversity is now at risk with increasing threats, both natural and human-induced. Infrastructure development, invasive species proliferation, and deforestation of high-value trees that often takes an age to mature along with overuse of limited natural resources have taken their toll on the Himalaya. The climate crisis has come on top of these existing problems. Glacial lake outbursts threaten downstream valleys, affect freshwater availability, increase in landslides, flash floods and forest fires, and changes in timings of flowering and fruiting of important crop species. Raising awareness to adapt to these changes, while global action is taken to mitigate carbon buildup in the atmosphere has never been more important. That is why on 11 December International Mountain Day this year, the theme is to focus on protecting mountain biodiversity. Protecting Nepal’s mountain ecosystems and their wealth of flora and fauna require immediate attention. Various groups are working with the Nepal government to ensure that large swathes of these multiple-use mountain landscapes are secured and preserved under the protected areas system such as conservation areas (Api Nampa, Annapurna, Manaslu, Gaurishankar and Kanchenjunga), national parks (Khaptad, Rara, Shey-Phoksundo, Langtang, Shivapuri-Nagarjun, Sagarmatha, and Makalu Barun) and a hunting reserve (Dhorpatan). In addition, large areas of mountain ecosystems outside the protected areas are under direct management of division forest offices and community forest groups. Nepal’s community forest management system, in particular, has been lauded globally as a unique model of grassroots-based conservation.Special focus is now provided to species conservation in mountains where external influences have impacted wildlife, their habitats, and communities. Species such as red panda in mid-mountain and snow leopards in high mountains are flagship animals, and indicator species of the local ecosystems. <figure><img width="1000" height="688" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181144/636be7889c7e80680e087807jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> Photo: STUART CHAPMAN/WWF</figcaption></figure>Their persistence in nature has been used as an emblem for conservation success. In the past, the Nepal government and the conservation fraternity have taken initiatives such as nationwide surveys, awareness and sensitisation programs, strengthening anti-poaching efforts, and forests and corridor restoration measures, while expanding livelihood initiatives in the mountains. Habitat restoration programs such as afforestation and networking of community managed forests have also enhanced the species conservation and maintenance of critical ecosystems in the mountains. Recent paper on red panda distribution in Nepal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0243450">published</a> in PLOSONE highlights the first baseline on red panda occupancy in the country. Approximately 40% of the potential habitat (nearly 22,453 km2) is currently being occupied by the red panda. Bamboo forests are highlighted as an important factor for red panda distribution in the mountain ecosystem. This is symbolic of the successes so far, and also point to the need to provide similar protection to the habitat of other species. Conservation of holistic mountain conservation guided by National Biodiversity Strategies, National Forests Strategies, landscape strategies, management plans, and species action plan including the community forest operation plan can weave together various strands of conservation work for the benefit of mountain, wildlife, and local communities.  <img width="81" height="109" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181144/636be78a9c7e80680e087808jpeg.jpg" alt="">Ananta Ram Bhandari heads the Mountain and Forest Programs at WWF Nepal. <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/peak-ambition/">Peak ambition</a>, Lisa Honan and Nimsdai Purja

Conserving mountains for people and nature

<img width="856" height="570" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109191116/636bee884b0ad905ca02ef4fjpeg.jpg" alt=""/>Half the world’s biodiversity and half the quarter of world’s population reside along the mountains. And a half of the world’s population quenches its thirst from melt water originating from the planet’s mountain glaciers. The water fed by these perennial mountain river systems have also become sources of energy through hydropower, irrigation for agriculture, and large water related economies downstream. Mountains in Nepal are characterised as sub-tropical to alpine climatic patterns ranging from soft hilltop to steeper terrain.Nepal has within its vertical terrain, the same range of biodiversity that stretches thousands of horizontal kilometers from the tropics to the Arctic on the planet’s surface.  Lush forests with important flora and fauna intermingle with  pockets of mountain communities spread across the Himalaya. This ice cap on ‘The Third Pole’ provides a life support system for the region and the planet. Mountains are incredibly rich in biodiversity, and the Himalaya is home for wildlife including red panda and snow leopard as well as a wide range of resident and migratory bird species. The mountains also offer habitats for various endemic species of flora with important medicinal and aromatic plants, and non-timber forest products including rhododendron, Yarshagumba, Paanchaule, Sarpagandha -- specifically growing in the rangelands that lie immediately past the snowline.The diversity and uniqueness in the extremities provided by the geographical terrain are limitless. Mixed in with this natural variety of plant and animal life, are culturally rich and ethnically diverse human settlements.This biodiversity is now at risk with increasing threats, both natural and human-induced. Infrastructure development, invasive species proliferation, and deforestation of high-value trees that often takes an age to mature along with overuse of limited natural resources have taken their toll on the Himalaya. The climate crisis has come on top of these existing problems. Glacial lake outbursts threaten downstream valleys, affect freshwater availability, increase in landslides, flash floods and forest fires, and changes in timings of flowering and fruiting of important crop species. Raising awareness to adapt to these changes, while global action is taken to mitigate carbon buildup in the atmosphere has never been more important. That is why on 11 December International Mountain Day this year, the theme is to focus on protecting mountain biodiversity. Protecting Nepal’s mountain ecosystems and their wealth of flora and fauna require immediate attention. Various groups are working with the Nepal government to ensure that large swathes of these multiple-use mountain landscapes are secured and preserved under the protected areas system such as conservation areas (Api Nampa, Annapurna, Manaslu, Gaurishankar and Kanchenjunga), national parks (Khaptad, Rara, Shey-Phoksundo, Langtang, Shivapuri-Nagarjun, Sagarmatha, and Makalu Barun) and a hunting reserve (Dhorpatan). In addition, large areas of mountain ecosystems outside the protected areas are under direct management of division forest offices and community forest groups. Nepal’s community forest management system, in particular, has been lauded globally as a unique model of grassroots-based conservation.Special focus is now provided to species conservation in mountains where external influences have impacted wildlife, their habitats, and communities. Species such as red panda in mid-mountain and snow leopards in high mountains are flagship animals, and indicator species of the local ecosystems. <figure><img width="1000" height="688" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109191116/636bee8a4b0ad905ca02ef50jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> Photo: STUART CHAPMAN/WWF</figcaption></figure>Their persistence in nature has been used as an emblem for conservation success. In the past, the Nepal government and the conservation fraternity have taken initiatives such as nationwide surveys, awareness and sensitisation programs, strengthening anti-poaching efforts, and forests and corridor restoration measures, while expanding livelihood initiatives in the mountains. Habitat restoration programs such as afforestation and networking of community managed forests have also enhanced the species conservation and maintenance of critical ecosystems in the mountains. Recent paper on red panda distribution in Nepal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0243450">published</a> in PLOSONE highlights the first baseline on red panda occupancy in the country. Approximately 40% of the potential habitat (nearly 22,453 km2) is currently being occupied by the red panda. Bamboo forests are highlighted as an important factor for red panda distribution in the mountain ecosystem. This is symbolic of the successes so far, and also point to the need to provide similar protection to the habitat of other species. Conservation of holistic mountain conservation guided by National Biodiversity Strategies, National Forests Strategies, landscape strategies, management plans, and species action plan including the community forest operation plan can weave together various strands of conservation work for the benefit of mountain, wildlife, and local communities.  <img width="81" height="109" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109191116/636bee8c4b0ad905ca02ef51jpeg.jpg" alt="">Ananta Ram Bhandari heads the Mountain and Forest Programs at WWF Nepal. <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/peak-ambition/">Peak ambition</a>, Lisa Honan and Nimsdai Purja

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109191116/636bee6a4b0ad905ca02ef43jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"/><figcaption>All photos: ALEX TREADWAY/ICIMOD</figcaption></figure>Today is International Mountain Day, when the world’s attention is drawn to the mountains that are home to 1.1 billion people, contain half of the world’s biodiversity hotspots, and which provide half of the world’s fresh water.In Nepal, the reasons why mountains matter are clear, whether one is looking up from the Tarai or down from the summits. Equally clear is the need for action to protect the mountains and their people from the climate crisis and support sustainable development.That is why the UK has just announced both its ambitious new climate commitments and a 10-point green growth plan, ahead of the global Climate Ambition Summit being held on Saturday, 12 December on the 5th Anniversary of the Paris declaration.We must help mountain communities cope with and recover from the Covid crisis. A prolonged monsoon has led to a poor harvest in many mountain areas this year. Health facilities are under pressure and the impacts of a cancelled climbing and trekking season have hit mountain communities the hardest.<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/covid-climate-crises-hit-everest-region/">Covid-climate crises hit Everest region</a>, Nepali Times<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109191116/636bee6d4b0ad905ca02ef44jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000">These communities were already coping with the impacts of climate change: glaciers retreating rapidly creating lakes that can flood catastrophically at any moment that will be gone by 2100 if decisive climate action is not taken now.The fragile mountain ecosystems support some of the world’s most iconic and endangered animals such as the snow leopard and the red panda, and are at risk from unsustainable development including indiscriminate road building and ecological changes. Invasive species are migrating upwards as temperatures in mountain areas increase at twice the global average.As significant as these challenges are, we must not lose sight of the climate solutions that the mountains have to offer:- Locking up carbon in mountain forests where Nepal leads the world with 45% forest cover.- Developing hydro power resources – with 190GW available from the Himalayas alone- Managing rivers to reduce floods and storing water for the dry season so that 1.6 billion people downstream from the Himalaya can reliably access water for drinking and irrigationThis is why we are working with the Climate Alliance of Himalayan Communities to take these messages to the world through events like the 5th International Sustainable Summits Conference to be held in Kathmandu in 2021.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109191116/636bee704b0ad905ca02ef45jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000">In addition, we need to make sure we do not miss opportunities for regional collaboration on climate issues. Our partnership with ICIMOD has helped us identify concrete ways of tackling regional climate issues such as on energy trade, water management and air pollution.The same is also true at the local level, where the UK is supporting innovations through investments of over £52.5million which will help Nepal’s local governments to adapt to climate change in the Karnali Province.The UK is also helping improve access to clean energy for mountain communities to support sustainable tourism, agricultural processing and reliable domestic use. In particular, the UK is supporting innovations that can increase investment in renewables and find new solutions – like the newly established Tourovation Hub that is developing new models for sustainable energy supply in the Himalayas.We need strong voices to take this call to tackle the climate crisis in the mountains to the world. The UK is working with the British Council to launch a campaign to support women’s leadership on climate, putting leaders who are women in the driving seat to take the call on climate action. The UK is also supporting Nepal’s Sagarmatha Dialogue. Messages from both initiatives will reach next year’s COP26 in Glasgow.Finally, as we wait to hear Nepal’s climate ambition at the Climate Ambition Summit on Saturday, we want to reconfirm the UK's commitment to supporting Nepal’s efforts to undertake a green recovery from the Covid pandemic and to take up a regional leadership role on climate action. It has never been more important to work together for the good of present and future generations.          Video: NIMSDAI PURJA/BRITISH EMBASSY KATHMANDU<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109191116/636bee734b0ad905ca02ef46jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="88" height="109">Lisa Honan is the British Embassy’s Development Director and the Asia Regional Climate Envoy for the UK’s Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109191116/636bee744b0ad905ca02ef47jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="78" height="109">Nimsdai Purja is a record-holding mountaineer, expedition leader and author of Beyond Possible.<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/time-to-walk-the-talk-on-climate-change-in-the-himalaya/">“Time to walk the talk on climate change in the Himalaya”</a>, Nepali Times

Peak ambition

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181144/636be7669c7e80680e0877fajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"/><figcaption>All photos: ALEX TREADWAY/ICIMOD</figcaption></figure>Today is International Mountain Day, when the world’s attention is drawn to the mountains that are home to 1.1 billion people, contain half of the world’s biodiversity hotspots, and which provide half of the world’s fresh water.In Nepal, the reasons why mountains matter are clear, whether one is looking up from the Tarai or down from the summits. Equally clear is the need for action to protect the mountains and their people from the climate crisis and support sustainable development.That is why the UK has just announced both its ambitious new climate commitments and a 10-point green growth plan, ahead of the global Climate Ambition Summit being held on Saturday, 12 December on the 5th Anniversary of the Paris declaration.We must help mountain communities cope with and recover from the Covid crisis. A prolonged monsoon has led to a poor harvest in many mountain areas this year. Health facilities are under pressure and the impacts of a cancelled climbing and trekking season have hit mountain communities the hardest.<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/covid-climate-crises-hit-everest-region/">Covid-climate crises hit Everest region</a>, Nepali Times<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181144/636be7699c7e80680e0877fbjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000">These communities were already coping with the impacts of climate change: glaciers retreating rapidly creating lakes that can flood catastrophically at any moment that will be gone by 2100 if decisive climate action is not taken now.The fragile mountain ecosystems support some of the world’s most iconic and endangered animals such as the snow leopard and the red panda, and are at risk from unsustainable development including indiscriminate road building and ecological changes. Invasive species are migrating upwards as temperatures in mountain areas increase at twice the global average.As significant as these challenges are, we must not lose sight of the climate solutions that the mountains have to offer:- Locking up carbon in mountain forests where Nepal leads the world with 45% forest cover.- Developing hydro power resources – with 190GW available from the Himalayas alone- Managing rivers to reduce floods and storing water for the dry season so that 1.6 billion people downstream from the Himalaya can reliably access water for drinking and irrigationThis is why we are working with the Climate Alliance of Himalayan Communities to take these messages to the world through events like the 5th International Sustainable Summits Conference to be held in Kathmandu in 2021.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181144/636be76d9c7e80680e0877fcjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000">In addition, we need to make sure we do not miss opportunities for regional collaboration on climate issues. Our partnership with ICIMOD has helped us identify concrete ways of tackling regional climate issues such as on energy trade, water management and air pollution.The same is also true at the local level, where the UK is supporting innovations through investments of over £52.5million which will help Nepal’s local governments to adapt to climate change in the Karnali Province.The UK is also helping improve access to clean energy for mountain communities to support sustainable tourism, agricultural processing and reliable domestic use. In particular, the UK is supporting innovations that can increase investment in renewables and find new solutions – like the newly established Tourovation Hub that is developing new models for sustainable energy supply in the Himalayas.We need strong voices to take this call to tackle the climate crisis in the mountains to the world. The UK is working with the British Council to launch a campaign to support women’s leadership on climate, putting leaders who are women in the driving seat to take the call on climate action. The UK is also supporting Nepal’s Sagarmatha Dialogue. Messages from both initiatives will reach next year’s COP26 in Glasgow.Finally, as we wait to hear Nepal’s climate ambition at the Climate Ambition Summit on Saturday, we want to reconfirm the UK's commitment to supporting Nepal’s efforts to undertake a green recovery from the Covid pandemic and to take up a regional leadership role on climate action. It has never been more important to work together for the good of present and future generations.          Video: NIMSDAI PURJA/BRITISH EMBASSY KATHMANDU<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181144/636be7709c7e80680e0877fdjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="88" height="109">Lisa Honan is the British Embassy’s Development Director and the Asia Regional Climate Envoy for the UK’s Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181144/636be7719c7e80680e0877fejpeg.jpg" alt="" width="78" height="109">Nimsdai Purja is a record-holding mountaineer, expedition leader and author of Beyond Possible.<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/time-to-walk-the-talk-on-climate-change-in-the-himalaya/">“Time to walk the talk on climate change in the Himalaya”</a>, Nepali Times

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181144/636be7019c7e80680e0877d4jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="3024" height="4032"/><figcaption>Past the South Summit of Everest and climbing the Cornice Traverse with the Hillary Step in the background. Photo: KARMA TENZING</figcaption></figure>The height of Mt Everest has grown by 86cm to now measure 8848.86m, the foreign ministers of Nepal and China revealed at a joint virtual live event on Tuesday.The new measurement of Sagarmatha-Zhumulangma (Mt Everest) was declared by Nepal’s Foreign Minister Pradeep Gyawali in Kathmandu and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing by pressing a crystal ball simultanesouly. The two also exchanged congratulatory messages from Nepali President Bidya Devi Bhandari and Chinese President Xi Jinping to each other.The new height puts end to speculation about whether Mt Everest had risen or shrunk and by how much after the 2015 earthquake, or if there would be a wide discrepancy between measurements by Chinese and Nepali surveyors.<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/mt-everest-from-both-sides-now/">Mt Everest from both sides, now</a>, Raunab Singh Khatri and Rastraraj Bhandari<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181144/636be7049c7e80680e0877d5jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2144" height="1000"><figcaption>New height joint announcement on Tuesday in Beijing and Kathmandu .</figcaption></figure><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181144/636be7079c7e80680e0877d6jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="805"><figcaption>Sagarmatha Zhumulangma and the China Nepal border. Photo: NASA</figcaption></figure>The announcement came three days before International Mountain Day 2020 on 11 December, and in the week when China’s Chang’e 5 lunar probe is starting its return to Earth with soil samples from the Moon’s surface.Mt Everest’s elevation of 8,848m (29,028ft) had been accepted since 1955. But depending on who is counting, the height has been plus-minus a dozen or so metres since then.The joint announcement of the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/re-measuring-mt-everest/">latest measurement of the world’s highest mountain</a> was delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic, and officials in both countries guarded the new number as if it was a military secret.In the past century and half, the height measurement has changed as more accurate survey techniques became available.When the Great Trigonometric Survey Of India was done in 1856, surveyors triangulating from the plains found the height to be exactly 29,000ft. However, Sir George Everest, who headed the Survey, thought people would think they rounded off the figure, and added 2ft to it just so it sounded more accurate.The true height differ depending on where it is measured from – mean sea level, or the centre of the Earth. Because of the Earth’s equatorial bulge, Andean peaks can actually be considered ‘higher’ than Mt Everest.Measurements have also differed in the past because some take the elevation of the rock at the summit, while others also add the icing on top. The snow cornices on the peak are about 4m thick, depending on the season, wind patterns, and the impact of <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/mt-everest-is-melting-are-you-moved/">global warming</a>.<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/global-heating-melts-mountains/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Global heating melts mountains</a>, Nepali Times<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181144/636be70b9c7e80680e0877d7jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="648" height="902"><figcaption>The history of Everest measurements.</figcaption></figure>To make it even more complicated, the real height of Himalayan peaks are not constant. There is tectonic pressure which can push mountains up or down, depending on the location. Mt Everest is said to be rising by about 1cm a year, but that is possibly cancelled out by the weathering process.More recently, geologists and scientists had also come up with different views on the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/on-everest-4-years-after-the-nepal-earthquake/">impact of the 2015 earthquake</a>, which is why the new joint measurement was needed. Besides the height, surveyors were also keen to find out if the mountain had moved southwards, and by how much. But the joint announcement on Tuesday did not disclose horizontal displacement.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181144/636be70d9c7e80680e0877d8jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="4000" height="3000"><figcaption>Photo: DAMIEN FRANCOIS/NEPALI TIMES ARCHIVE</figcaption></figure>“The height of Everest is constantly changing due to tectonic activity, of which the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/kundadixit/2015/05/27/a-month-that-felt-like-a-year/">2015 Gorkha Earthquake</a> is only the most recent contribution,” Christopher Pearson of the University of Otago in New Zealand, who worked with Nepal surveyors on the measurement in 2018, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepal-china-re-measure-height-of-mt-everest/">explained to Nepali Times earlier this year</a>. “Since the present measurements are fairly old, we needed to update it.”The New Zealand government assisted Nepal’s Survey Department expedition to Mt Everest in May 2019 with the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), and trained technicians in processing the geodesy, levelling and gravity measurement data.The Nepali survey expedition was led by Khim Lal Gautam, who climbed the mountain for the second time on 22 May 2019, to take measurements with GNSS and ground-penetrating radar. On the risky descent, Gautam nearly died of exposure at the South Col.<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/why-we-climb-mountains/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Why we climb mountains</a>, Damien Francois<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181144/636be7119c7e80680e0877d9jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="946" height="631"><figcaption>Khim Lal Gautam and his survey team reached at the top of Mt Everest at 3am on 22 May 2019 to avoid the crowds. The GNSS equipment on a specially designed tripod is on the summit behind the climbers.</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/measuring-mt-everest-because-it-is-there/">Gautam wrote in Nepali Times</a> recently about the experience: ‘The near-death experience reminded me of the importance of the summit observation and the responsibility that I had in bringing down the data. We took risk for this raw data so we could get the precise height of Mt Everest.’The Chinese also sent an expedition to climb Mt Everest in May this year – the only team on the mountain because of the pandemic. While the climbers were on top, a Chinese survey aircraft was flying overhead to take airborne gravity survey readings from the instruments on the summit. China said its equipment had “centimetre-level accuracy”.China and Nepal signed an MoU to cooperate on the re-measurement, and had originally planned to jointly announce the height during President Xi Jinping’s visit to Kathmandu in October 2019.K2, the second highest mountain the world in Pakistan is 8,611m, so there is no danger of Mt Everest being demoted any time soon. The famous Hillary Step on the southeast ridge of Everest that used to be the last steep hurdle for climbers, collapsed during 2015, showing that earthquakes do suddenly change the topography of mountains.<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/everest-trail-repaired-during-pandemic/">Everest Trail repaired during pandemic</a>, Ang Rita Sherpa

Mt Everest grows by 86cm

Fenerbahçe Beko won the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague finals in Abu Dhabi, held 23-25 May, defeating Monaco 81-70 in the final. Olympiacos, who defeated Panathinaikos 97-93, finished the series in third place. The Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the final match, Nigel Hayes-Davis from Fenerbahçe Beko, received a prize of 1,000,000 Miles&amp;Smiles from Turkish Airlines’ Chief Commercial Officer Ahmet Olmuştur. The carrier has been the title sponsor of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, a top tier tournament, since 2010.

Turkish Basketball

While Nepal was hosting the Sagarmatha Sambaad international climate conference in Kathmandu this month, on Mt Everest it was pretty much business as usual.&nbsp; The signs of climate breakdown are all there: a river now runs through Base Camp in summer, the Khumbu Icefall is more unstable, and there are more &nbsp;frequent avalanches. When expeditions arrived in March, the mountains were bare: it had not snowed since September, but then blizzards dumped unseasonal snow in May. And despite climate worries, such is the pull of Himalayan mountaineering that the Everest Industry showed no signs of slowdown. More than 600 international climbers and their Nepali guides had made it to the summit of the world’s highest mountain. At one point there were an estimated 2,000 people in the tent city on the Khumbu Glacier. All the ropes and ladders on the Icefall came down on Thursday, marking the official end of the spring climbing season, and just in time to avoid a monsoon cyclone approaching from the Bay of Bengal. It has been an action-packed season. One factor could be that Everest fees will go up from September: each foreign climber needs to pay a $15,000 royalty, up from the present $11,000. The cost for a Nepali climber on the South Col route will also go up: from Rs75,000 to Rs150,000.&nbsp; The fee to climb Everest in autumn is $7,500 (up from $5,500), but most climbers still prefer spring. Winter permit fee (December-February) is only $3,750 per person and the mountain is now also open for monsoon (June-August) climbs, when the fee is ever lower at $2,750. The revised rule also makes it mandatory for every two climbers on an 8,000m peak to hire one Nepali mountain guide.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025053004050_67f856fe52714e4bdcf21ae7d45c6f18c82117b9d0a5f73ed1efa04c96de1046.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="2025053004050_67f856fe52714e4bdcf21ae7d45c6f18c82117b9d0a5f73ed1efa04c96de1046" data-rendition-name="original" width="931" height="732" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest Industry graph 1"> </figure>  In addition, climbers also have to pay for porters and guides, equipment, Base Camp costs, Ice Fall and fixed rope team fees, so climbing Everest does not come cheap. But such is the draw of climbing the world’s highest peak that some say the increased fees will not diminish the crowds next year. The government has tried to spread expeditions out to other seasons and other 8,000ers, but with not much success. Earlier this year, Nepal unilaterally increased the number of 8,000m peaks to 14 by adding six more sub-summits to broaden the choice for climbers. Added were: Yalung Kang (8,505m), Yalung Kang West (8,077m) &nbsp;Kangchenjunga Central (8,473m), Kangchenjunga South (8,476m), Lhotse Middle (8,410m) and Lhotse Shar (8,400m).&nbsp; The announcement could go against the accepted topographic criteria that a stand alone peak has to be at least 300m higher than an adjoining prominence, and at more than 3km isolation from it. The UIAA (Union Internationale des Associations d'Alpinisme) still recognises only 14 mountains as eight-thousanders, and only eight of those are in Nepal, or on the border with China. Nepal’s revised mountaineering regulations also increased the insurance coverage of high-altitude workers to protect porters and high altitude guides who usually take more risks on the mountains. Rescue teams and clean-up campaigners to collect trash and remove bodies of dead climbers up to Camp IV of Mt Everest do not need permits.&nbsp; The Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee is now using drones to fly down trash in 20kg sacks. Each climber is also required to bring down at least 6kg of waste and not just their own, but this rule is erratically enforced. With five fatalities on Everest and Lhotse, Spring 2025 had a historically low death toll. Another five climbers died on Annapurna, Kangchenjunga and Makalu.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025053004050_38681de22f0fefb6faa12b01755566d09c5064d0ff84e12ccc7b5d68ea9ba38a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2025053004050_38681de22f0fefb6faa12b01755566d09c5064d0ff84e12ccc7b5d68ea9ba38a" data-rendition-name="original" width="665" height="740" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest industry graph 2"> </figure>  Journalist Ben Ayers who ran the Everest Live social media channel from Everest Base Camp with daily updates credited the low death rate to dramatic rescues of climbers from the ‘Death Zone’ by their Nepali guides and longline helievacs — the visuals all uploaded on YouTube.&nbsp; “Ironically, this perception of safety is bringing more and more inexperienced climbers to the mountain, and they need more rescues,” Ayers said in one of his dispatches.&nbsp; American expedition chronicler and summiteer Alan Arnette suspects there is a lot of under-reporting given that the jet stream and storms were lashing Everest even till late in the season. He told us: “I heard a lot about frostbite and rescues that were not made public. It’s become practically impossible to cover the details on Everest. All the teams report nice news, and they don’t talk about bad stuff to avoid hurting businesses.” Although trash on Nepal’s mountains makes headlines, what does not receive as much attention is the climate impact of so many expeditions. The Sagarmatha Sambaad conference sidestepped this issue, which is ironic given that the impact of climate breakdown is most evident on Himalayan peaks and their glaciers.&nbsp; <h2>Need for Speed</h2> The big stories this year have been about speed-running from their home cities to the top of Everest. Ukrainian entrepreneur Andrew Ushakov flew out of JFK on 15 May at 10:15AM Nepal time, and was on the summit 3 days, 23 hours, and 7 minutes later on 19 May at 9:22AM.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250601080640_1c5cc6fc991307861768f07037ed9d30930fb20f35dbb57dc31c9a92a9e1a885.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20250601080640_1c5cc6fc991307861768f07037ed9d30930fb20f35dbb57dc31c9a92a9e1a885" data-rendition-name="original" width="1440" height="1800" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest Industry"> <figcaption>Andrew Ushakov at the summt. Photo: ELITE EXPED</figcaption> </figure>  “I could never find the time for the traditional 40-50 days of acclimatisation,” Ushakov explained matter-of-factly. His ‘Everest Sea-to-Summit’ climb was possible because he spent 400 hours in hypoxic sleep tents over the past four years in New York. However, Ushakov did use ropes already fixed, hired four Nepali guides, helicoptered to Base Camp, and used much more oxygen than an average climber. And after the climb, Ushakov was arrested at Kathmandu airport for being in possession of $20,000 of undeclared cash and spent a night in jail and fined $60,000.&nbsp; The other speedsters were Garth Miller, Alastair Cairns, Anthony Stazicker, and Kev Godlington, all former British Army commandos. They left London and summited five days later on 21 May, and flew right back. They also used hypoxic tents to simulate the thin air high on Everest.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250601080644_90c8dd5cc07b4b43f2989b1dc0c0650ab80f10ebb06680c25a6909c519957bd8.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20250601080644_90c8dd5cc07b4b43f2989b1dc0c0650ab80f10ebb06680c25a6909c519957bd8" data-rendition-name="original" width="810" height="668" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest Industry "> <figcaption>All four members of the Furtenbach team at the summit. Photo: Sandro Gromen-Hayes</figcaption> </figure>  But more controversial was their use of xenon gas therapy in a German hospital to ramp up the production of oxygen-carrying haemoglobins in their blood. Xenon is banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency for being performance enhancing in sports. Expedition leader Lukas Furtenbach said this rule does not apply to mountaineering, as it is not a regulated sport like swimming. Nepal has no rules about xenon, but the Department of Tourism said it was launching an ‘investigation’ to decide on future policy since it is difficult to ban xenon, but allow oxygen. The controversy has also divided the mountaineering community, with some climbers saying they just want to maximise their chances of survival. Spending less time on the mountain could make climbing safer by reducing avalanche risk. It would also mean less trash on the mountains, but it would reduce the income of Nepal’s expedition industry. It is also unclear how much of the success was due to xenon therapy and whether the ex-special forces were already in good physical shape.&nbsp; The need for speed hides the fact that climbing in the Himalaya is dangerous business, and climbers cannot sprint to the top just by huffing xenon. But ultra-fast climbs could be charged more, and the revenue generated can be used to establish state-of-the-art rescue operations, and increase pay and insurance for guides. Two other speed chasers this season were Swiss-Ecuadorian Karl Egloff and American Tyler Andrews, both on Everest without oxygen. Andrews choppered to Base Camp to catch a weather window, but turned back from 8,500m due to high winds. Heavy snow and wind also forced Egloff to descend from 7,000m. Slow and steady climbers like Anja Blacha from Germany did make it to the summit without oxygen, while Kami Rita Sherpa broke his own record with his 31st Everest summit as he led a 26-strong Indian Army group. There were 468 permits issued for foreign climbers from 48 expeditions to Everest this spring. Nepal’s other eight-thousanders together had only 17 expeditions. Nepal has more than 1,000 peaks above 6,000m, and has opened only 476 of them for climbing.&nbsp;

The Everest Industry

While Nepal marked <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/mt-everest-pvt-ltd">Mt Everest</a> Day on 29 May, on the other side of the planet in the US state of Colorado dozens of Nepalis who have climbed the world’s highest peak multiple times were busy working as chefs and Uber drivers. Among them is Nima Doma Sherpa, who climbed Mt Everest in 2019 after her husband Tshering Wangchu was among 16 crushed by an avalanche on <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/on-thin-ice-in-the-khumbu">the Khumbu Icefall</a> five years earlier. A large serac broke off the West Shoulder of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-everest-industry">Mt Everest </a>and fell directly on a group of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/more-porters-sick-on-everest-trail">porters and guides</a> making their way up the Icefall at 5,800m. Their bodies were flown by helicopter to Khumjung where Tshering Wangchu was born. He was excited about climbing Mt Everest for the first time.&nbsp; In Khumjung, Nima Doma felt like her own life had also ended. This was the kind of news Sherpa wives, mothers and sisters dreaded every <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/peak-climbing-season-2025-s4abrxny">mountaineering season</a>. She stayed home for more than two years grieving, but ultimately gathered up all her emotional strength to take care of her 6-year-old son and 3-year-old daughter. Nima had grown up in Khumjung hearing <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/stories-of-nepal-s-summiteers">tales of adventure on the mountains </a>from their father, Ang Chubi Sherpa who had climbed Everest in 1993. He used to bring her and her sisters and brother European chocolates after every expedition, and used to tell them that the chocolate bars grew on the mountains. “It was only after we got older did we realise that he told us that chocolates grew in the mountains so we would not worry about him putting himself in harm's way,” Nima Doma recalled with a faraway look at her home in Boulder this week. Nima went to the school that <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/commemorating-edmund-hillary-in-nepal,4145">Edmund Hillary</a> opened in Khumjung till Grade 8, and then dropped out to help in the kitchen and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/when-yaks-go-so-does-culture">tend yaks</a>. She was married off to Tshering Wangchu, who was also a high altitude guide. When Tshering went on expeditions, Nima also started working as a porter from Namche to Base Camp. It was perhaps her father’s tales of mountains of chocolates that had always attracted her to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/knowing-our-mountains-43v4iyvo">the peaks</a>. After her husband was killed ten years ago this month, being a widow with children was not easy for Nima Doma. But she was not alone: there were at least 200 single mothers in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/khumbu-since-1950-jaww4qn0">the Khumbu</a>, and 20 of them just in Khumjung whose husbands had been killed in <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/tragic-start-to-himalayan-spring-nepal,3695">mountaineering accidents</a>. Some were not even 20 years old, and had children growing up without fathers. But there were also women in the 50s whose husbands had been killed in the 1980s. Nima found sponsors for her children’s education, and moved to Kathmandu. In the capital, Sherpa widows used to meet to help each other. Some of them had joined the Nepal Mountaineering Association (NMA) training for rock and ice climbing. “I decided that it was no use sitting home and crying anymore, after meeting other single mothers I felt less alone,” remembers Nima, who joined the Juniper Foundation and enrolled in an NMA training camp in Manang. There she climbed Chulu East (6,584m) and met Furadiki Sherpa, whose rope-fixing husband had also been <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/on-mt-everest-s-70th-records-and-fatalities">killed on Everest</a> in 2013. They set themselves the goal of climbing Everest one day, and started a fund-raising drive.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250530090544_621be0724b9182c8e3594b2c562a71ec32ac01d985a71d0cf31646de9d51e15a.png" data-media-id="editor_12" data-image-id="20250530090544_621be0724b9182c8e3594b2c562a71ec32ac01d985a71d0cf31646de9d51e15a" data-rendition-name="original" width="2678" height="1274" loading="lazy" alt="Everest summiteers find new life in the US"> </figure>  “We decided we had to overcome society’s stigma of <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/widows-personal-happiness-comes-last-in-face-of-social-financial-hardships,1855">widowhood</a> and prove that <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/remembering-junko-tabei">women could also climb mountains</a>,” Nima said, adding that she was inspired by Nepal’s first woman Everest summiteer Pasang Lhamu Sherpa, who died during her descent in 1993. Nima Doma and Furdiki climbed the technically-difficult Ama Dablam (6,812m) and then arrived at Everest Base Camp in April 2019 as part of their Two Widows Expedition with the motto, ‘So Can We’. While climbing up the Icefall Nima passed the spot where her husband had been killed. It was a jumble of constantly-shifting ice blocks bigger than houses. She closed her eyes and said a prayer. “I remember thinking, this is so difficult and dangerous. This is what my husband had to do to support our family,” Nima Doma said. “I was determined to fulfil my husband’s dream of climbing Chomolungma, and to prove to ourselves that we two women could do it.” It was 23 May 2019 when <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/world/two-sherpa-widows-scale-everest-and-smash-stigma-idUSKCN1SU0MV/" target="_blank">Nima and Furdiki stepped on the summit</a> and looked over into Tibet, and down at Tengboche Monastery to the south.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250530090544_6b822582b5d88ba5e972db084f184690b40653c6efd9901b2dd082ffba2a263b.png" data-media-id="editor_16" data-image-id="20250530090544_6b822582b5d88ba5e972db084f184690b40653c6efd9901b2dd082ffba2a263b" data-rendition-name="original" width="2700" height="1522" loading="lazy" alt="Everest summiteers find new life in the US"> </figure>  Nima Doma hugged Furdiki, took off her mask and wept. But for the first time in five years, it was not from grief but relief — relief for being free of all the sadness and sacrifices and for fulfilling her husband’s dream. They had found <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/life-after-death">life after death</a>. “I felt this immense joy to be on top of the world, it was indescribable,” Nima Doma said, “I have wept only twice in my life. Once when my husband died, and once there on top of Everest.” The tears had frozen on Nima Doma’s cheeks, as she and Furdiki headed back down the mountain.

Everest summiteers find new life in the US

At the edge of the dense forest overlooking Bhaktapur, the sound of chirping birds and the wind rustling through the trees have been replaced by the growl of dozens of bulldozers. This Kakrabari Community Forest behind Suryabinayak shrine was c<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/reviving-nepals-community-forestry-success-story">arefully protected and managed </a>by the local Tamang community for centuries. Today, heavy earthmovers claw noisily at the slope, opening it up like a big red wound. With little land left in the densely populated city, developers are venturing further afield to the valley’s rim and forcibly taking over forests that <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-unsung-heroes-of-conservation">local communities </a>have depended on for fodder, firewood and to protect their watershed.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250530180528_acd2eb20a4839a83f3a15b4c8587dbf82c5b96534f2184043edeaf0f5165145f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20250530180528_acd2eb20a4839a83f3a15b4c8587dbf82c5b96534f2184043edeaf0f5165145f" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="562" loading="lazy" alt="Plotting to plunder NT"> </figure>  This project of Nic Vujicic Housing Company in Suryabinayak’s Kakrabari Bhanjyang is just the latest and most blatant example of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/who-now-owns-nepals-forests">encroachment of forests </a>by real estate developers in collusion with local government officials. “One day, they just came and bulldozed my house,” says Shanta Lama of Ghising Danda, whose family has been living in a tent since March. “Company workers gathered my belongings, deposited them in this tent and demolished my house.” Unlike some of her neighbours, Lama refused to give up her home, but stood no chance against the heavy machines and strongmen mobilised by the company.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250530180528_ff88453001e3dc521406bda7b6cb06b9e5b70d6821e67251b92257e60e72232a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20250530180528_ff88453001e3dc521406bda7b6cb06b9e5b70d6821e67251b92257e60e72232a" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="562" loading="lazy" alt="Plotting to plunder NT"> <figcaption>Shanta Lama of Ghising Danda whose house was bulldozed last month. She and her family are now living in makeshift huts nearby.</figcaption> </figure>  Adds Shanta: “I have not signed any document of agreement, the company keeps telling me that they will settle the paperwork later.” Her neighbour Bal Bahadur Tamang, says a<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/ordinary-nepalis-extraordinary-sacrifice"> bulldozer razed his house</a> while he was out grazing goats in the forest. He recalls: “My wife shouted to the neighbours for help, but no one heard her.” &nbsp; The company used strongarm tactics to try to force Bal Bahadur to sign away his small plot at the edge of the forest that the housing company needed. The family refused, so the property was simply taken over. “Many families have been forcibly evicted from their homes and moved elsewhere to make way for the new housing colony,” says Bal Bahadur. But such is the fear of the young vigilantes employed by the company, that they are afraid to speak out.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250530180528_b7d1a94af95a0b17703f61397d65fe879c4c9b3b02681706b9104114a5c4e5cd.jpg" data-media-id="editor_6" data-image-id="20250530180528_b7d1a94af95a0b17703f61397d65fe879c4c9b3b02681706b9104114a5c4e5cd" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="562" loading="lazy" alt="Plotting to plunder NT"> <figcaption>Many families this one have been forcibly evicted, and do not want to speak openly because of the fear of vigilantes. </figcaption> </figure>  But there appears to be a generational divide among the local community in Ghising Danda. Many <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/no-country-for-young-men">young men have migrated</a> to the city or abroad, but those that remain have been promised jobs and a piece of land by the company, and support the project.&nbsp; For centuries, Suryabinayak communities have tended to the land, and the land has tended to them. The protected trees provide them with livelihood,<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/multipronged-response-to-nepal-s-multi-hazards"> prevent landslides</a> on the slopes above and recharge ground water so the springs do not go dry. But this historic connection was severed in January when the excavators arrived to chop down trees and dig up the hill, razing 1.1 hectares of the community forest and surrounding settlements.&nbsp; Much of the forest is now gone, and recent rains have washed the red mud down the mountain like a bleeding gash. On a recent visit excavators were levelling the slope.&nbsp; Nic Vujicic Housing is owned by Purna Bahadur Limbu, Prabin Kusma and Dillidhwaj Baraili. It had parcelled 14.6 hectares in the neighbouring Palanse village three years ago, and was even awarded by the municipality for the project.&nbsp; Now, the company is clearing 27 hectares of private property and community forest in Ghising Danda without a planning permit either from the municipality or the Kathmandu Valley Development Authority (KVDA).&nbsp; In fact, its application has been pending at the Authority since last October. The company has dangled a lollipop by promising 21 out of the 451 private plots to the government.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250530180528_08bcc863a21fd35364086877e1f8152d6c470b5fcd4fd650c555577a824c77c6.jpg" data-media-id="editor_9" data-image-id="20250530180528_08bcc863a21fd35364086877e1f8152d6c470b5fcd4fd650c555577a824c77c6" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="562" loading="lazy" alt="Plotting to plunder NT"> </figure>  Nepal’s 2015 Basic Standards for the Development of Settlements, and Urban Planning and Building Construction by-laws stipulate that land transactions, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepali-building-bridges-in-tasmania">construction projects</a>, and housing development via land consolidation require approval from either the KVDA or local government.&nbsp; Projects involving land up to 0.1 hectares require permission from the local level, and those of up to 2.5 hectares require approval from the district authorities, and plans exceeding that area need a permit from the KVDA.&nbsp; Nic Vujicic Housing’s director Dillidhwaj Baraili, is a member of the Federation of Nepalese Industries and Entrepreneurs (FENIE), and close to the ruling UML party.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250530180528_2016ffcd828fda3535798e7534067519e9c346e64371866c9a61c571ce70b1b4.jpg" data-media-id="editor_11" data-image-id="20250530180528_2016ffcd828fda3535798e7534067519e9c346e64371866c9a61c571ce70b1b4" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="562" loading="lazy" alt="Plotting to plunder NT"> </figure>  While the company did consult with locals, conduct an EIA, tested soil quality, and conducted a hydrological study of the area, these were perfunctory and incomplete for a proper permit application. The approval of<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/mind-the-gap-6liiyw5w"> private landowners </a>and the municipality as well as project details were missing.&nbsp; The company had excavated half of Ghising Danda without permission when the local community started raising questions. Only then did it seek permission from the ward, which directed it to apply for a planning permit from the Suryabinayak Municipality.&nbsp; “We are yet to verify whether all the documents submitted by the company are in order, which is why the application is still pending,” Rajendra Prasad Nepal, the municipality’s information officer, told Nepali Times.&nbsp; But the lack of a permit does not seem to deter company director Dillidhwaj Baraili, who uses convoluted semantics to justify using excavators on private and community land. &nbsp; “It is the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/kathmandu-s-unreal-real-estate-prices">plotting of the land</a> that requires approval from the KVDA, we do not need permission from local authorities to operate heavy machinery on the project site,” Baraili told us. However, Ward 9 Chair Bhagwan Khatri says no such permission to use excavators and bulldozers have been given without first obtaining a planning permit. “The housing project is illegal because it has moved forward without a planning permit,” says KVDA’s District Commissioner for Bhaktapur, Safal Shrestha. When the bulldozers started felling trees in the community forest in March, a joint task force of four local guthi put up a resistance, and demanded that the housing company ensure that there would be no mudslide danger downslope <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/before-the-next-monsoon">during the monsoon</a>.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250531030528_44bd6a61a1c81d07ee19e790a51929a9fd13c1db2da7ede2b7ef4d99b8c6c32a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_15" data-image-id="20250531030528_44bd6a61a1c81d07ee19e790a51929a9fd13c1db2da7ede2b7ef4d99b8c6c32a" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="562" loading="lazy" alt="Plotting to plunder NT"> <figcaption>Dozens of heavy earthmovers were at work at this site one morning earlier this month. With an early monsoon, residents fear mud slides.</figcaption> </figure>  It also wanted the company to make sure the flow of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/the-heat-beneath-our-feet">water in springs</a> were not affected, and to set up a boundary along the community forest to prevent further encroachment. It also demanded compensation to displaced homeowners.&nbsp; But Nic Vujicic Housing paid no heed, and sent in excavators. Last month, the Kakrabari Community Forest Users Struggle Committee wrote to the Bhaktapur District Administration Office, Suryabinayak Municipality, and the Division forest Office to halt the project. In response, the housing company put out a press release accusing residents of spreading rumours, but the statement presented contradicting information about the status of its planning permit at various levels of the government. &nbsp; It has taken a month for the local government to even send an inspection team to the site. But the team concluded that the forest had been encroached upon and asked the housing company to halt its activities immediately.&nbsp; The company refused to comply, and on 9 May the Police was sent to shut down the project. Baraili maintains the forest was levelled with the consent of all four Guthi as well as Ram Krishna Tamang of the Kakrabari Community Forest User group. Tamang told us he has given no such go-ahead.&nbsp; “How could we have permitted the operation of construction machinery in the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/safeguarding-the-soul-of-sal">community forest </a>when the Nepal government itself does not allow the destruction of public property?” adds Tamang. Because of the controversy, the company is now trying to use a carrot and stick approach by placating the local community, while also intimidating those who speak out. “Even though we had obtained permission, perhaps we should have not started using our heavy machinery yet,” Baraili admitted. However, the company is trying to silence dissenters in the community with threats. The company has deployed local youth who have been promised jobs to convince and cajole outspoken community members in Ghising Danda. &nbsp; One of them is Chewang Tamang, who says jobs are more important, and lashes out at locals for being “anti-development”. He says: “There is no point sitting around complaining that a few trees have been cut. The only people who are opposed to this project are those who do not want this place to develop.” &nbsp; <div class="embed-block"><div><div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"><iframe src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/api/iframe?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fembed%2F6TRxyQjbo50%3Fsi%3DjMRyrgfB9tTX8pP8&key=87ca3314a9fa775b5c3a7726100694b0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"></iframe></div></div></div>

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