<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181120/636be1919c7e80680e083e57jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1530" height="972"/><figcaption>Despite the pandemic, mountaineers have flocked to Mt Ama Dablam, 6,812m in the Nepal Himalaya this autumn. Photo: Maik Psotta / Wikimedia</figcaption></figure>It has been described as the most beautiful mountain in the world, its silhouette is <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invesco#/media/File:Invesco.svg" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invesco%23/media/File:Invesco.svg&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605765084378000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGDtnGyanYz3MKCBR7n9_EjKi3fxQ">the logo</a> of a global insurance company, and the 6,812m peak was once described by Edmund Hillary as being “unclimbable”.Trekkers and mountaineers on their walk up to Mt Everest Base Camp have for decades marvelled at the chiselled sculpture that dominates the trail. Many have vowed to <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=18972#.X7Symi8RoWo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D18972%23.X7Symi8RoWo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605765084378000&amp;usg=AFQjCNH_T9pvxloFyTaAm6lvNMkEclTRmw">return to climb it </a>one day.One of them was <a href="https://www.instagram.com/moealthani/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.instagram.com/moealthani/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605765084378000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEDAnbwlOGicbgDDBEoIix17n7ZEw">Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulla Al Thani </a>of the Qatar royal family who was among dozens who climbed the mountain last week during the peak of the pandemic in Nepal.Sheikh ‘Moe’ Al Thani said in an interview that he had been obsessed with climbing Ama Dablam ever since he was trekking in the area ten years ago, and after climbing Mt Everest in 2013.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181120/636be1949c7e80680e083e58jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1296" height="1244"><figcaption>Qatari Prince ‘Moe’ Al Thani on the summit of Ama Dablam on 11 November. Photo: @moealthani</figcaption></figure>The very next day, on 12 November, not only did eight more climbers make it to the top, but four of them were Nepali siblings who run Seven Summit Treks that handled the expedition.Mingma Sherpa, Dawa Sherpa, Tashi Lakpa Sherpa and Pasang Sherpa are experienced climbers, and Mingma and Chhang Dawa have climbed all 14 eight-thousand metre peaks in the world.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181120/636be1979c7e80680e083e59jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1482" height="1104"><figcaption>Four Sherpa brothers who were among eight climbers who summitted Ama Dablam on 12 November. Photo: Seven Summit Treks</figcaption></figure>The Sheikh was part of a multinational team led by <a href="https://madisonmountaineering.com/tag/ama-dablam/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://madisonmountaineering.com/tag/ama-dablam/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605765084378000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEV7WxawknVxwVArzaNpRarL5luPA">Madison Mountaineering</a> that put all 13 climbing members on the summit including seven Nepali, four American, and a Canadian mountaineer.Besides the sheer grandeur of the peak is its technical challenge with a knife-like ridge and a perpendicular face leading to the top. Added to that are the dangers of avalanches and rockfalls that have killed dozens of climbers.Since climbing first began in the region in the 1950s, 32 people have been killed on Ama Dablam, mostly in falls and avalanches, and one Russian died three years ago while jumping off from near the top in a wingsuit.Lead guide of the Qatari Prince’s team, Garrett Madison, first tried to climb the mountain in 2003, but had to turn back due to technical difficulties on the southwest ridge, but returned to summit twice in 2012 and 2014.Madison wrote in a <a href="https://madisonmountaineering.com/tag/ama-dablam/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://madisonmountaineering.com/tag/ama-dablam/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605765084378000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEV7WxawknVxwVArzaNpRarL5luPA">blog post</a> last week: “We had a beautiful clear, perfect day up on the summit … it has been a wonderful, successful and safe expedition here in Nepal, we are very happy we got to come and experience the wonderful people with warm hearts.”<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181120/636be19a9c7e80680e083e5ajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1058" height="1330"><figcaption>Climbers make their way up from Camp III below the hanging serac near the summit of Ama Dablam on 11 November. Photo: Madison Mountaineering</figcaption></figure>What is surprising this year is that these climbs of Ama Dablam have happened during the middle of a pandemic, and Nepal has been closed for trekking and mountaineering since March until foreign teams were finally allowed back in mid-September.Even before that, a Bahraini military team got special permission to climb Mt Manaslu, and an all-Nepali expedition climbed Baruntse. And during the pandemic in spring, the Chinese climbed Mt Everest and Cho Oyu from the north. Besides the expeditions in Ama Dablam this autumn, the only others were a Nepali team on Gyalzen Peak and two trekking teams on Himlung.“Ama Dablam is a very attractive and challenging mountain, everyone who has been on the Everest trail dreams one day of climbing it,” says the president of the Nepal Mountaineering Association Ang Tshering Sherpa, adding that while most expeditions go for Nepal’s 8,000m peaks in spring, they prefer to climb Ama Dablam in the autumn.In fact, last November <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/kuwait-flag-on-ama-dablam-to-be-investigated/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/kuwait-flag-on-ama-dablam-to-be-investigated/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605765084378000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGF4-6roQZQaGiaUm6WDCQA-RcXyQ">a Kuwaiti expedition</a> got into trouble with the authorities for unfurling a giant flag of the country from the summit and draping over the west face of the mountain. It was visible to the naked eye from Khumjung, which is 3,000m below and 12km away. The Kuwaitis said they were just trying to break a record, and did not know a permission was required.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181120/636be19d9c7e80680e083e5bjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1710" height="1028"><figcaption>Last November, a Kuwait expedition got into trouble for unfurling a huge flag of the country from the summit of Ama Dablam that was visible from Khumjung. Photo: Manjushree Thapa</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.alanarnette.com/climbs/amadablam.php" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.alanarnette.com/climbs/amadablam.php&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605765084378000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHUYbOs0jME88L0xoyy2VUGSuhJaw">Alan Arnette</a>, a mountaineer and blogger climbed Ama Dablam in 2000, and describes the allure: “Ama Dablam is a fantastic climb by any definition. In many ways it is more satisfying than the 8000m climbs with the rock, ice and snow sections. But it is a very dangerous climb today with the instability of the Dablam.”Ama Dablam means ‘Mother’s Pendant’ in Sherpa because its summit makes the mountain look like a mother hugging her young, and the ‘dablam’ is the massive hanging serac near the summit which looks like a holy locket.Mountaineers try to avoid climbing and camping below this serac, but despite that some have been killed by chunks breaking off. In 2006, <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=12870#.X7Sx-C8RoWo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D12870%23.X7Sx-C8RoWo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605765084378000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEOjeZxus4fD2qJ-tgnP9B_VwWz2w">a piece of the hanging ice fell and killed six climbers</a> in Camp III at the point where the southwest ridge meets the top of the face. Three more were killed below the serac in 2014. Nepali climber <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2016/11/29/thundu-sherpa-46/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2016/11/29/thundu-sherpa-46/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605765084378000&amp;usg=AFQjCNE98ajT4jiixxVjftRKnpYj6a4DgQ">Thundu Sherpa was killed</a> when an earthquake in 2016 triggered an avalanche on the face.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181120/636be1a09c7e80680e083e5cjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1544" height="1154"><figcaption>Ang Phurba Sherpa on the spacious summit of Ama Dablam on 11 November, with Mt Everest in the background. Photo: @aang_phurba_mountaineer</figcaption></figure>This year, despite the pandemic and the dangers of climbing via the traditional southwest ridge route, mountaineers could not resist the temptation of climbing Ama Dablam. What helped was the relative ease of organising an expedition at short notice compared to the complicated logistics on big 8,000m peaks in Nepal.Those who made it were rewarded with mountains devoid of other climbers, and a spell of good weather that has lasted more than two months now.Nepal’s Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation Yogesh Bhattarai himself helicoptered to Ama Dablam Base Camp on Monday just as another 12-member expedition arrived to climb Ama Dablam. That team is led by Himalayan Guides and British climber Kenton Cool who has sumitted Mt Everest 14 times.“We were glad to run into Kenton Cool and other mountaineers at Ama Dablam Base Camp, and also happy that Nepal’s climbing sector that has been badly hit by the pandemic, is getting back to normal,” Bhattarai said.Despite the minister’s remark, it is clear that Nepal’s trekking and mountaineering has suffered from the Covid-19 crisis. The country usually makes $20 million in royalty and other fees from climbing, and this year the count is only $3.3 million.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181120/636be1a39c7e80680e083e5djpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1374" height="1030"><figcaption>Tourism Minister Yogesh Bhattarai at Ama Dablam base camp on Monday to greet another expedition climbing the mountain. Photo: Yogesh Bhattarai Facebook</figcaption></figure>Besides this, many Nepali guides, porters, trekking companies, hotels, airlines and helicopter companies have lost business. Last autumn there were 210 climbing expeditions in the Nepal Himalaya, but this season there are only seven.Minister Bhattarai also hosted the Qatari team in Kathmandu last week after their climb, during which Prince Al Thani said: “I have always been enchanted by Ama Dablam, and I have been struck by the scenic beauty of Nepal and the hospitality of its people. I promise to return very often."

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What is it about Ama Dablam?

<figure><img width="646" height="395" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109171152/636bdae39c7e80680e080291jpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Khim Lal Gautam (left) Rabin Karki (middle) and Tshiring Jangbu Sherpa on the top of the Mt Everest at 3am of 22 May 2019 with the GNSS equipment behind them.</figcaption></figure>The Nepal Mt Everest Height Measurement Expedition Team climbed the world’s highest mountains last year to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepal-china-re-measure-height-of-mt-everest/">determine its exact altitude. </a>Although the height Mt Everest has been accepted as 8,848m (29,028ft) since 1955, later measurements have been higher or lower than that. Previous calculations were by Americans or Europeans, and Nepal and <a href="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/201907/15/WS5d2bd46ba3105895c2e7d5fe.html">China </a>needed to make their own measurement of the peak on their border. In 1856, the Great Trigonometric Survey of India found Mt Everest’s height to be 29,000ft, and the highest mountain in the world. But the British surveyors through the all the zeroes would give people the impression that the elevation was rounded off. So they added 2ft to make it a more exact-sounding 29,0002ft.The true elevation of Sagarmatha is not constant because of tectonic activity, and there was a need to update it <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/is-mount-everest-shrinking-nepal-is-on-a-mission-to-measure-the-worlds-tallest-mountain/2019/10/17/c587f8f4-eea4-11e9-b2da-606ba1ef30e3_story.html">after the 2015 earthquake</a>. The Survey Department installed GPS equipment on the summit, and uses geodesy, levelling and gravity measurements and is processing the data.  <figure><img width="1524" height="1146" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109171152/636bdae59c7e80680e080292jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>Geomatic engineer Mahesh Thapa of the Survey Department carrying out gravity levelling measurement on Upper Rauje at about 4,500m in Solu Khumbu. Photo: SURVEY DEPARTMENT</figcaption></figure>A very accurate sea level height for Sagarmatha can now be expected, since the Survey Department used state-of-the-art equipment at the summit, and had  other survey data. It will also help Nepal now to use this GPS technique to more accurate measure the heights of Nepal’s other mountains. The Survey Department has used historical trigonometry levelling as done by Survey of India in the 1950s, and combined it with more exact levelling and modern geoid systems with gravity survey, and Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) to cross check results. The Survey Department selected 12 trigonometry observation points in Solukhumbu, Khotang, Bhojpur and Dolakha districts from where we measured the position and angle of the summit. We plotted the elevation of points from sea level right up to the base of Mt Everest. For its part, the ground penetrating radar (GPR) on the summit measured the thickness of the ice cap above the rock at the summit, so that we can know the rock height of the summit.  <figure><img width="1778" height="842" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109171152/636bdae99c7e80680e080293jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>Khim Lal Gautam at Mt Everest Base Camp last year, unpacking the GNSS equipment that he was taking to the summit.</figcaption></figure>After 26 days at Base Camp, preparing, planning and acclimatising for the final push for the summit, our team headed up the Icefall 18 May, 2019. Our goal was to reach the top to conduct the measurements, but even more importantly, our mission was to return back down safe and sound. Our team had to take survey instruments and then conduct observations to pinpoint accurately the elevation of the highest point on earth.  The observations we were conducting would be one of the most critical information in determining the height of Sagarmatha. Precise and meticulous calculations based on the measurement we would make at the top along with survey observations by several other teams would result in the definitive height of Mt Everest. While we conducted Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) observation at the top, these measurements would have to be linked to similar data from base stations. This was managed by a different survey team located in Lukla. Our expedition included four surveyors from the Survey Department and four Sherpa colleagues.  Me and surveyor Rabin Karki were to head for the summit with our guides, while surveyors Yubaraj Dhital and Surveyor Suraj Singh Bhandari would stay at base camp and coordinate with other teams. Our guides included Tshiring Janbu Sherpa, Lakpa Sherpa, Dorji Sherpa and Pem Ngima Sherpa. Tshiring and Ngima had already summited Everest twice each, while for other Sherpas it was their first time. It was the first time for Rabin Karki too.  This was my second summit bid, after having got to the top in 2011 with the Civil Servants’ Expedition. From Base Camp, we reached Camp II the same day and stayed there overnight and headed on to Camp III at the base of the Lhotse Face, which we reached at 3pm on 19th May. The next day, we climbed the steep icy flanks to reach Camp IV at the South Col by mid-afternoon. It sounds easy to say, but this was technical climbing at high altitude, with hurricane force winds at the South-Col. But that was the least of our worries: we found out when we got to camp that the stockpile of oxygen that was supposed to be at Camp IV had not yet arrived. Usually, all expeditions carry oxygen bottles to the South-Col within the first week of May, and store it there for the summit teams that come later. We had received information that our cylinders would also be stored at the South Col in time for the summit day. However, we found that not all the cylinders had actually reached the South Col, and understandably our head guide Tshiring indicated that we could not attempt the summit without them. He felt it would be better to descend to Camp II and climb again when enough oxygen bottles reached the South-Col. <figure><img width="1124" height="532" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109171152/636bdaec9c7e80680e080294jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>Summit team at the Yellow Band between Camp III and the South Col at 8,000m.</figcaption></figure>This was a difficult moment. At that altitude, with our decision-making already somewhat impaired by lack of oxygen, we hesitated. Descending 3,500m to Camp II and climbing back up was not going to be a walk in the park.In addition, the weather window for the summit push was narrow, and then there could be a heavy traffic of climbers on the southeast ridge. This was going to be a make-or-break decision. Going back down to Camp II would, for all intents and purposes, mean failure of the mission – we might as well just descend all the way back to Base Camp and go home. But without the necessary oxygen, we would be risking our lives on the summit bid. As the leader of the expedition, the decision was on my shoulders. It was not an easy one, since the lives of my colleagues depended on it. But just the thought of giving up the expedition was too devastating to even think about. So, as team leader I decided that we go ahead. Failure was not an option. I remember telling Tshiring, “I simply cannot give up this historical mission when we are so near the top.”When there is a will, as they say, there is a way. I persuaded the team to stay overnight at Camp IV, and then went around the other expeditions at the South Col from Seven Summit and Pioneer to loan us oxygen cylinders. Fortunately, our Sherpa colleagues found a stash at the Geneva Spur at 7,600m. Experience from my previous expedition was helpful in making my decision, since I was aware of my own limitation and capability. I had also made a lot of friends among the guides during my 2011 expedition, and they had helped me out of some tricky situations. This was useful in breaking the ice, as it were. By the morning of 21 May, with the help of our Sherpa friends at the South Col, we had managed to collect enough bottles for the push. We decided to head off for the summit at 2PM, which was unusual because most climbers start from the saddle at about midnight and take 10-15 hours to reach the top. There was some disagreement about this from our guides, who said it was not a good idea because it would mean that we would be on the summit at night when it would be too cold to install our equipment and take measurements. “If it is too cold, we cannot even take off our mittens to work with the equipment,” one of them said.  <figure><img width="1430" height="953" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109171152/636bdaef9c7e80680e080295jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>The summit team started to climb from the South Col at the unusual hour of 2PM. </figcaption></figure>But, from my experience from eight years previously, I had my reasons for starting out so early (or so late in the day). The foremost reason was that we did not want our survey activities and measurements to be disturbed by the rush of climbers on the summit. Secondly, satellite positioning data is much more accurate if it is made at night instead of at sunrise. The ionosphere effect is minimal if the GNSS observation is carried out at night because it depends on signals coming from satellites to the receiver.At least that was my theoretical conclusion after reviewing relevant literature regarding observation time for achieving high quality GNSS data. This expedition was all about accuracy, and we had to do everything in our power to ensure that there would be no margin for error in our measurements. We made progress up the ridge, and by 9:30pm had reached the Balcony at 8,450m. I remember being very thirsty, and took out two flasks that I had filled with hot water at the South Col. One of the thermos flasks had been provided by the Nepal Mountain Academy at a training four months previously, and another was given to us by Peak Promotion. To my dismay, I found that the water in both flasks had turned to ice. Dehydration can be a serious issue at this altitude, but there was no choice. There was also no sense in carrying that extra weight, so I left the bottles at the Balcony where we rested for a bit under the starlight.It took us another three hours to reach the South Summit at 1:30am, where we rested briefly and pressed on. Another hour-and-half, and we were at the summit. At 3:00am on 22 May I was on the top of Mt Everest for the second time. Unlike the previous climb, however, it was pitch dark, very windy, and I was utterly exhausted after 13 straight hours of trudging up the mountain. I had nothing left in me physically, and just thinking about the descent made me nervous.But there was no time to think about anything, there was work to be done. We were here on a mission to find out the exact altitude of the spot we were standing on.  Despite the extreme tiredness, howling wind, the numbing cold, we had to complete our GNSS survey and the Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) observation in the limited time window at our disposal. We were completely focussed on our work, which we had rehearsed many times at base camp.Our team, made up of the very strong and capable survey officer Rabin Karki, the excellent mountain guide Tshiring Jangbu Sherpa and other climbing colleagues, was able to capture the crucial bits of data that would help us solve the riddle of the exact height of the Mount Everest.  <figure><img width="1172" height="778" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109171152/636bdaf29c7e80680e080296jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>Survey Department climbers reached the top at 3am to avoid the crowds. The GNSS equipment on a specially designed tripod is on the summit behind the climbers.</figcaption></figure>We stayed on the summit for almost two hours installing the GNSS equipment on a small and sturdy tripod designed especially to work on the summit of Mt Everest. Unlike the tripod provided by the manufacturer, this one was light-weight and stubby, allowing greater stability in the high wind. It also had a special type of locally-designed steel screw about 30cm long to fix it to the ice on the summit. I had a hand in designing this contraption from my previous experience of seeing the character of the terrain and the topography of the summit. The tripod should have also been able to withstand the high winds blowing over the summit all the time. The direction of the wind, although it is predominantly westerly, can also change to the south or north. In order to stabilise the tripod while the wind was blowing, some of us got down on the snow and held the tripod’s legs firmly. The idea was to ensure that the tripod was stable and there would not even the slight displacement that could throw the data off. Stuck at the Hillary step By about 4am, as the eastern sky started lighting up, other climbers began to arrive at the summit. This was why we came up early, so that the crowds would not disturb the sensitive instruments. I was now worried that the climbers would affect the sensitive data we were collecting. However, members of our team kept the climbers from going near the GNSS antenna at the top. When I realised that we had collected all the data that was required, we packed our bags and started to head down. I put the main height measuring GNSS antenna in my bag, while Tshiring carried the other gear.  <figure><img width="433" height="915" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109171152/636bdaf59c7e80680e080297jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>Khim Lal Gautam descending through the Lhotse Face.</figcaption></figure>Although it was daylight, the descent was a challenge. Our progress down was delayed by the throng of climbers heading up towards the summit. From the top to the South Summit, we had to wait to let climbers pass who unclipped and clipped again to the single rope on the ridge. At the Hillary Step, we have to wait two hours just to wait for our turn on the one-way route. We had our equipment with all the precious data that we had so painstakingly collected at the summit in our bag. The data does not weigh anything, but it weighed us down with responsibility to protect it during this treacherous descent. In fact, I later found out that 22 May, 2019 had the highest number of climbers on the summit, and news about the ‘traffic jam’ on Mt Everest had gone viral around the world. A total 223 mountaineers summited on that day, and there were calls for restricting numbers. As luck would have it, not a single expedition has put climbers on the summit from the Nepal side of Sagarmatha in 2020 because of the Covid-19 restrictions.Last spring, there was a very short weather window for summit planning. According to weather reports, less wind and good weather was forecast for 22 May compared to the days before and after. That is why there were so many climbers on the summit all at the same time. While we were descending from the South Summit which is at about 8,600m Rabin Karki’s oxygen system started giving him trouble. This was dangerous, and his life was at risk. Our guide Tshiring Jangbu Sherpa borrowed an extra oxygen cylinder from another Sherpa colleague, and Rabin managed to continue his descent. I myself was drained, and did not have much energy left by the time we got back down to the Balcony. My condition got worse, and on the slope down to the South Col at one point I actually lost consciousness at 8,200m. I must have lain there for two hours in the blue ice, until another climber kicked me to see if I was alive. After I woke up, I found that the rest of the team had headed on down thinking that the South Col was close, and I would catch up with them. Tshiring must have thought that I could descend by myself. Those two hours gave me frostbite, and when I got back to Kathmandu I had to amputate a tip of my left toe. Normally, if climbers fall unconscious at that altitude, and there is no one to  help them down, it is likely that they will not wake up again. It was that kick, and a miracle, that woke me up so that I could stumble down the mountain that day, and bring down the precious cargo of data in my backpack.This 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 not only for the sake of successful completion of the historical mission, but also for the qualitative raw data so we could get the precise height of Mt Everest. <img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109171152/636bdaf79c7e80680e080298jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="93" height="112"><a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/2020/09/remeasuring-mount-everest-the-worlds-tallest-mountain/">Khim Lal Gautam</a> is the Chief Survey Officer at the Survey Department, Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation, Government of Nepal.

Measuring Mt Everest: because it is there

https://youtu.be/RTnxJKo97DIFor many tourists trekking to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/re-measuring-mt-everest/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mt Everest</a> Base Camp this autumn, the trip will be an adventure of a lifetime. The thin clear air, stark landscape, and ice-tipped peaks pierce the inky sky providing great Instagram backdrops.However, what is stunning scenery to tourists is for climate scientists an apocalyptic sight. They see dramatic evidence all around of a rapidly warming atmosphere.Visitors returning to the Everest region after 20 years also notice changes: large lakes where there were none, glacial ice replaced by ponds, boulders and sand, the snowline moving up the mountains, and glaciers that have receded and shrunk.Read also:<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/climate-for-change/the-great-himalayan-thaw/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The great Himalayan thaw</a>, Ajaya Dixit<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107171112/63692eea9c7e80680e03c079jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1400" height="1050"/><figcaption>HIMALAYAN MELTDOWN: The Khumbu Glacier is the highest in the world and receding at 30m/y. It is also shrinking: Base Camp is now 50m lower than when Hillary and Tenzing climbed Mt Everest in 1955. Pics: Kunda Dixit</figcaption></figure>All these features are visible from ground level right from the start of the trek in Lukla. The banks of the Bhote Kosi still bear the scars of the deadly flash flood in 1985 which washed off a long section of the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2014/05/19/everest-climbers-continue-in-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Everest Trail</a> and the hydropower plant in Thame. It was caused by an avalanche falling into the Dig Tso glacial lake, causing it to top over.Further up near Tengboche, the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/page/not-out-of-danger-the-big-one" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Imja Khola</a> also bears signs of a huge glacial lake outburst flood that thundered down the western flank of <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=12870#.W7XuTHszbIU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ama Dablam</a> in 1977. And below the formidable south face of Lhotse is Imja Tso, a lake 2km long that has formed and grown in the last 30 years. It does not exist on trekking maps from the 1980s. All these lakes were formed and enlarged as a result of global warming melting the ice.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107171112/63692eee9c7e80680e03c07ajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1200" height="990"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107171112/63692ef19c7e80680e03c07bjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1200" height="800"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>The terminal moraine of the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Book-Review/The-Everest,428" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Khumbu </a>Glacier looms 400m above Dughla. This is the debris bulldozed down from Mt Everest and surrounding peaks over millions of years, and represents the extent of the glacier’s advance in the last Ice Age. Today, the surface ice on the world’s highest glacier is all but gone due to natural and anthropogenic warming.For an even more dramatic glimpse of how global warming is changing the Himalayan landscape, there is nothing like an aerial perspective. Nepali Times got a chance last week to take these striking images of the terrain below Mt Everest. The barren beauty foretells of a time when this terrain will be stripped of much of what remains of its ice cover.Read also: <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/melting-mountains-shake,3073" target="_blank" rel="noopener">When melting mountains shake</a>, Kunda Dixit<a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/ice-to-water-glacier-lake-outburts-himalayas-nepal,4197" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ice to water</a>, C Scott Watson<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107171112/63692ef49c7e80680e03c07cjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1400" height="1050"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107171112/63692ef79c7e80680e03c07djpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1400" height="1050"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>The Khumbu Icefall funnels ice from the Western Cwm below Everest, Lhotse and Nuptse to the glacier below. The ice here has receded at an average of 30m/y in the past 20 years, but it has also shrunk vertically, losing up to 50m in thickness. Everest Base Camp was at 5,330m when <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2018/01/13/commemorating-edmund-hillary/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hillary </a>and Tenzing climbed Mt Everest in 1953, today it is at 5,270m.The glacier is also getting flatter: the darker debris makes the ice beneath melt faster near Base Camp, but the thicker layers of boulders and sand further down insulate the ice. Glaciologists say this flatter profile means the ice moves slower, leading to more ponding, and more rapid melting of the ice underneath.The velocity of the glacier is 70m/y at Base Camp, and it slows down to 10m/y further below, but is zero at the terminus situated at 4,900m. This means the ice is decelerating as it is squeezed, and the pressure is being released by the melting of the ice mass.Researchers monitoring the supraglacial ponds say their area has grown by 70% in the past ten years alone. The ponds are fringed by ice cliffs and caves which accelerate the melting. The melted ice has carved an outflow channel through the left lateral moraine, so there is no large glacial lake on the Khumbu like as elsewhere in Nepal.Scientists conclude that the Khumbu Glacier is not about to vanish, and the Icefall is not going to turn into a water fall any time soon. However, the permanent ice catchment of the glacier above 6,000 could start to deplete under the worst-case ‘beyond catastrophic’ scenario of +5°C warming.Read also: <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/interview/interview-with-david-molden-icimod,3074" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nepalis paying price for climate change</a><a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/editorial/going-green-environment-day,3064" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Climactic change, Editorial</a><h4>Climate Eco Tourism</h4><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107171112/63692efa9c7e80680e03c07ejpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1400" height="934">Will more tourists visiting areas threatened by global warming spread awareness and help save the planet, or will the energy they burn contribute to making the earth warmer?Both. Tour operators offer Antarctic cruises, trips to Greenland and the Arctic to observe calving glaciers up close. Many have scientists on board instead of tour guides, and the travel companies say the trips help spread environmental awareness.However, mass tourism also comes with its own enlarged carbon footprint and the very act of visiting the Himalaya to see melting glaciers may contribute to thawing them faster. The carbon emitted by a holiday charter plane to the Maldives, for example, leads to sea level rise that may ultimately submerge the archipelago nation by the end of the century.However, as awareness grows about the effects of global warming in the poles and the ‘Third Pole’ (as the Himalaya is called) there is also increasing interest among the public to see up close the impact of climate change on the mountains. Many trekkers visiting Nepal are eco-conscious and aware that their travel and stay in Nepal comes with a carbon cost.Read also: <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=16562#.W7XuDHszbIU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Defrosted</a>, Kunda Dixit<a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Book-Review/The-Everest,428" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Everest Industry</a>, Kunda Dixit<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107171112/63692efd9c7e80680e03c07fjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1400" height="1050"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>As they share their impressions on social media, there is evidence that climate tourism can indeed turn many visitors into environmental activists, or at least convince them to lead less carbon-intensive lifestyles when they get back home.Many environmentally sensitive visitors to Nepal these days calculate their carbon footprint from the aviation fuel per passenger on their flights to Kathmandu and Lukla, in taxi rides, and even the carbon emitted by the LPG gas in lodges along the Everest trail. And they try to offset all that by donating to agencies working on adaptation or mitigation of climate impact.Even so, there are critics of carbon offsetting who say that it is cosmetic and does not address the wasteful consumerism that is at the root of the climate crisis. They say trekkers on Everest hikes who buy carbon offsets are simply washing off their guilt, and shifting the responsibility to do something about global warming on someone else.On balance, however, there is a case to be made for climate eco-tourism creating jobs and benefitting the Nepal economy, ultimately allowing the tourism industry to introduce less carbon intensive technology. Tourists from all over the world can also see for themselves how the people suffering the most from the effects of climate change are the ones least responsible for it.There are websites to calculate your carbon footprint and how to offset the cost to the climate of your tour. There are also trekking agencies and airlines that try to minimise their carbon footprints.<a href="http://www.carbonfootprint.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Carbon Footprint</a><a href="http://www.responsibleadventures.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Responsible Adventures</a>:Mountain Helicopters: 01-4111032<h4>HOW MUCH CO2 DID YOU BURN TO GET HERE?</h4><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107171112/63692eff9c7e80680e03c080jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="850" height="314">An economy class roundtrip passenger on a flight from London Heathrow to Lukla via Kathmandu emits 2.9 tons of carbon. The emission can be offset by contributing to verified climate protection projects that do not just contribute to reducing greenhouse gases and creating carbon sinks through forestry, but also for sustainable development.Readers' writePowerful article and photos -- nothing like it. So impressive and informative and depressing. Especially useful, the last sidebar: How Much Carbon Did You Burn to Get Here?- Jon Swan

Kunda Dixit

On thin ice in the Khumbu

It was pure drama: the political transition in Madhes unfolded by the dawn’s early light. At around 4AM on Monday, Province Head Sumitra Subedi Bhandari quietly departed Janakpur saying she was headed to Kathmandu for health reasons.&nbsp;
Outgoing Chief Minister Jitendra Sonal, whose coalition had begun to unravel, even saw her off, asking supporters to clear the road for her motorcade.
But an hour later, instead of continuing on to the capital, Bhandari stopped in Bardibas on the East-West Highway. There, as the sun started rising over the misty plains, she administered the oath of office to Saroj Kumar Yadav of the CPN-UML, invoking Article 168(3) of the Constitution.&nbsp;
Bhandari is also a member of the CPN-UML. The provision she invoked is typically used only after coalitions fail under Article 168(2), and the timing and location of the swearing-in have since drawn scrutiny.
Bhandari was subsequently relieved of her duties, and former National Planning Commission member Surendra Labh Karna was sworn in as the new Madhes province head on Tuesday.
Sonal had formed his government barely a month ago, with the backing of 56 provincial lawmakers but it became evident he would not secure the 54 votes needed to survive a confidence motion.&nbsp;
Several lawmakers in his coalition publicly signalled they would abstain. Still, the seven-party alliance that opposed Yadav’s appointment argues that the Province Head, who is the highest constitutional rank in the provincial structure, acted prematurely and under pressure from central UML party command.&nbsp;
A coalition of seven parties, including the Nepali Congress (NC), had been urging the Province Head to invite them to form a new government under Article 168(2). At the same time, the UML, which had been holding demonstrations outside the Province Head’s office in Janakpur, was calling for the formation of a minority government under Article 168(3).
The alliance of the seven parties that included the NC and Maoist Centre took to the streets. By mid-morning, protests had escalated outside Madhes Bhawan with cadre vandalising both the Chief Minister’s office and the Province Head’s office.
This was the third government in Madhes to fall since the 2022 provincial elections, and it follows a similar pattern. The previous Chief Minister Satish Kumar Singh of the Janamat Party, resigned before a scheduled confidence vote after losing the support of his own party and others including NC and LSP.&nbsp;
His resignation unfolded amid nationwide GenZ protests against corruption, demanding accountability and reform. The recurring instability points to a structural tension in Nepal’s federalism.&nbsp;
Provincial politics remain closely tied to alliances shaped in Kathmandu. The withdrawal of support by parties like the NC and Maoist Centre in provinces often reflects national-level calculations rather than provincial priorities.
As a result, the Provincial Assembly is repeatedly consumed by survival of the coalition instead of governance. Development work stalls. Budget execution slows. Public frustration grows. In a province that was at the forefront of the movement for federalism to counter what is seen as neglect, apathy and discrimination by Kathmandu, the sense that the system may not delivering on its promise is becoming increasingly pronounced.
If federalism is to be strengthened, provincial governments must be able to function with a degree of autonomy that currently exists more in principle than in practice. Otherwise, the perception that federalism is costly, unstable, and ineffective will continue to expand, providing fertile ground for anti-federal sentiment that is already gaining traction.
Earlier examples such as the NC General Secretary Bishwo Prakash Sharma in January calling for a new government in Madhes led by his party demonstrates how the central party leadership deliberately intervenes in provincial affairs. His remarks came during campaigns for bi-elections in Madhes when former CM Singh had been in office for six months only.&nbsp;
Likewise, in early June 2024, the federal coalition in Kathmandu shifted from a Maoist Centre and NC to form a new alliance between the NC &nbsp;and the UML. Within a day, coalition negotiations in Madhes changed to mirror this.
UML leaders publicly stated: “The issues at the federal and provincial levels will be resolved together.” This indicated that the realignment in Madhes followed national party decisions rather than provincial deliberation.
The events that unfolded in Madhes are a reminder that federalism in Nepal is still in transition, and that its success depends on political actors honouring the constitutional framework.

Chronic instability in the Madhes

New and old, businessmen and former diplomats, engineers and academics — they have all been trooping to the Election Commission to register political parties ahead of the Sunday deadline.
Till press time Thursday, five new parties had been registered and 21 new parties were in the process of applying. Behind the scenes, new parties are head-hunting, well-known figures are shopping for parties to join, while older parties are splitting or uniting to form new united parties.
“It is reason for optimism that people are enthused to form new parties,” notes political analyst Indra Adhikari. But, she adds, this does not mean that despite the celebrity status they will win votes and succeed in politics.
The outlier in all this are the Nepali Congress (NC) and the UML, which are still licking the wounds after being swept out of power by the GenZ protests in September. Neither are too keen on elections because of the prospect of losing badly.
Former prime minister K P Oli is the most recalcitrant, and seems to want to scuttle elections so Parliament will be reinstated. After announcing that he was stepping down, the NC’s Sher Bahadur Deuba has had a change of heart in Singapore and is gunning to restore Parliament.
Neither party and their leaders have shown any remorse for the 8 September massacre, or understood the outrage on the streets against their decades-long incompetence and corruption. &nbsp;
Among those registering parties are various GenZ youth groups and family members of those killed during the September protests. Notable among the new parties certified this week was Gatishil Loktantrik Party (गतिलो) backed by Buddha Air founder Birendra Basnet and led by sociologist Dinesh Prasai. Dharan Mayor Harka Sampang’s Shram Sanskriti Party is also registered.
Energy and Infrastructure Minister in the interim government Kulman Ghising has backed the Ujyalo Nepal with former secretary Anup Kumar Upadhyaya as its chair. Ghising has been playing coy about his political ambitions, and is planning to resign from his cabinet post before elections.&nbsp;
Ghising had been talking to Rabi Lamichhane’s RSP about joining, but that negotiation failed. Former RSP lawmaker Sumana Shrestha was supposed to join Ghising, but pulled out following Ghising’s reluctance to resign from government.
Ghising has much public support because he is credited with ending power cuts as head of the Nepal Electricity Authority, but is now getting flak for being unwilling to give up his ministerial portfolios while still wanting to contest elections. &nbsp;
Ujyalo has hit other snags. GenZ activist Tashi Lhazom, who was considered for a Cabinet position last month but was dropped by Prime Minister Sushila Karki, has said she is not in Ujyalo despite being listed as a Central Committee member. Another member has said that he will not be a part of Ujyalo due its “a lack of political culture”.
Even though Nepalis from across backgrounds and professions are eager to participate in the country’s new political landscape, there are doubts about the structure of their parties, ideology and electoral platforms.&nbsp;
Hurriedly set up parties without a shared philosophy have less chance of political influence and longevity. For example, the RSP was formed just months before the 2022 polls to become the fourth-largest party in Parliament, has lost its momentum, and its leader is in jail.
“Parties like the RSP, which did some positive work after being elected, have still not been able to establish a clear ideological roadmap or organisational structure,” Adhikari says. &nbsp;“It is easy to form parties, the real work goes into building an institution, which is the hard part”
Meanwhile, despite expectations of increased and inclusive youth participation not just at the polling booths but also on the ballot, only a few GenZ-led parties are applying at the Election Commission. They include the Rastriya Pariwartan Party and the Rastriya GenZ Party Nepal. Most other parties are led by men in their 40s, even in their 70s.&nbsp;
Analysts note that despite hopes of young blood in politics, Nepalis are still inclined to trust those with experience, as evidenced by GenZ’s choice of Sushila Karki to succeed KP Oli as Prime Minister after the September protests.&nbsp;
“So it will be difficult for young Nepalis without prior political experience to lead parties and it will be even more difficult for them to cultivate enough public trust to get votes,” says Adhikari.&nbsp;
Then there are the old political players, who have been breaking up and making up new alliances. Resham Chaudhary quit his Nagarik Unmukti Party and registered a new one.
Last week, Puspha Kamal Dahal’s Maoist Centre, and Madhav Kumar Nepal’s Unified Socialists merged along with smaller leftist parties to form the Nepali Communist Party (NCP). Disgruntled former UML members like Bhim Rawal have also joined the NCP. On the other hand, Janardan Sharma has fallen out with Dahal and is going his own way.&nbsp;
Even though the NC, UML and NCP show little sign that they have learnt their lesson and will be turning a new leaf, they still have the party organisation and vote banks to fall back on at election time in the runup to 5 March. &nbsp;
Says Adhikari: “At the end of the day, Nepali society remains hyper-partisan. And although the newly-formed parties and their popular candidates may give older leaders a run for their money, established parties will still benefit from their solid vote base.”

Party Time

You do not have to be a climate expert or atmospheric pandit to claim that Nepal is not pulling its weight on the grand narratives of the Anthropocene. As a heavily populated ‘country-on-an-incline’ from the Tarai to the Himalaya, Nepal is a thermometer of global warming.&nbsp; Its people are human witnesses to environmental and climate breakdown, but remain mute observers to the unfolding crises. Nepal should be leading the pack at the COP30 climate conference in Belém, backed by science and lived experience. But it is doubtful that two of the most crucial climate-related subjects central to the culture, economies and human wellbeing in the Himalaya and South Asia will be discussed at the summit that started this week in Brazil.&nbsp; The first topic that should be raised at COP is Black Carbon or the South Asian Brown Cloud, made up of tiny suspended particles in the air. This is not just a transboundary health hazard, there is now enough science to make the case that Himalayan snowmelt is accelerated significantly by the albedo effect that makes ice melt faster because of reduced reflectivity. But Kathmandu has not been able to make governments near and far listen. In 2014, I wrote a short piece published in Outlook magazine explaining why India’s Prime Minister Modi looking northward from a SAARC Summit retreat in Dhulikhel was unable to see the Jugal Himal range barely 30km away. His view was obscured by the pollution layer arriving from as far away as Lahore with substantial contribution from the Delhi region. That summit itself was an opportunity for Nepal to inform the Indian and Pakistani prime ministers that much of the haze, smog, dust and soot that settles on our slopes was generated in Sindh, Punjab, Punjab, Haryana, Western UP and Delhi NCR, carried by prevailing westerly winds up to the Himalaya. The forest fires within Nepal as well as Kathmandu Valley’s pollution contribute to the haze, but the shroud that suffocates the region through autumn, winter and spring is mostly transnational. Last year, these anthropogenic fine aerosols actually curled over the Bay of Bengal and invaded the airspace of Sri Lanka and Maldives.&nbsp; Even as the soot particles accelerate glacial melt and impact everything from infrastructure to public health, the most visible effect is on tourism. Nepal’s economic future is based on tourism, and much of this relies on being able to see the snow mountains. Why should travellers go to Pokhara if they cannot see the Annapurnas?&nbsp; Hoteliers in Nagarkot have started a campaign: ‘Visit Nagarkot 2025: More than Sunrise and Sunset’. While clever, the slogan is a response to the acclaimed Himalayan vista from Everest to the Annapurnas from the hill station, now obscured by the brown curtain of haze for most of the year. As the bellwether country of South Asia when it comes to the climate crisis, Nepal must build diplomatic confidence to reach out to the governments of Pakistan and India even in their present state of antagonism. Kathmandu must launch ‘haze diplomacy’ for its own sake and for the region.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20251113001132_16c9941da7b31c1d4683c06dc0f8a572803240701270606848851f915140329c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20251113001132_16c9941da7b31c1d4683c06dc0f8a572803240701270606848851f915140329c" data-rendition-name="original" width="1005" height="695" loading="lazy" alt="permafrost"> </figure>  IMPERMANENT FROST&nbsp; Permafrost is understood mostly as a phenomenon of the Arctic, Antarctica, Siberia and Alaska. Mountains elsewhere did not figure, though it was natural for the ground to freeze all year round at high altitudes.&nbsp; In the Himalaya, besides the snowfields and glaciers, frozen moisture binds rocks and stabilises slopes. But global warming is melting the permafrost that used to cement mountain flanks, including boulders, sand and scree slopes. Some of the debris (गेग्रान) did tumble down, but much of it remained entombed on high, thanks to permafrost. Pokhara Valley and the Seti River reaching all the way up to the base of the Annapurnas, is the best place to observe this dance of geology between gravity and the mountain range. Rubble from the collapse about <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/remembering-the-seti-disaster">700 years ago of paleo-Annapurna IV </a>created the sediment field on which Pokhara is situated today. However, much of the debris from the crumbled mountain is still lodged up on and around Annapurna IV, but the binding is loosening with the warming earth. A <a href="https://www.icimod.org/event/analysing-permafrost-in-the-hindu-kush-himalaya-using-open-access-tools/">2024 report by the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD)</a> indicates that global warming is thawing the permafrost across High Asia. Among the unintended consequences of climate breakdown is that mountains and moraines are collapsing, with <a href="https://www.icimod.org/press-release/everest-region-a-hotspot-of-cryosphere-linked-hazards-icimods-new-study-on-nepals-2024-thame-flood-confirms/">cascading impact</a> that includes glacial lake outburst floods, reduced groundwater recharge as well as winter flow in the Ganga, Indus and Brahmaputra. No one has calculated the total volume of rubble locked in by permafrost across the Himalaya. Despite the increased risk, there is accelerated construction of highways, hydropower projects, housing and tourism infrastructure across the Himalaya. While the COP conferences discuss rising oceans and receding glaciers (without doing much about it), Himalayan permafrost has been melting unremarked. In their path-breaking September 2024 <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/the-not-so-permanent-frost">article in Nepali Times</a>, Wilfried Haeberli and Alton C Byers argued that the extreme events of the past few years that led to mountain and moraine collapses, unleashing destructive debris flows downstream, were the result of melting permafrost. Haeberli and Byers suggest that the avalanches and floods including those of <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Anatom-of-a-Himalayan-tsunami,1330">Seti (2012)</a>, <a href="https://www.icimod.org/article/understanding-the-chamoli-flood-cause-process-impacts-and-context-of-rapid-infrastructure-development/">Chamoli (2021)</a>, Birendra Tal (2023), <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772883825000251">Sikkim (2023)</a>, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/climate-breakdown-linked-to-thame-flood">Thame (2024)</a>, <a href="https://himat.org/publication/byers-rockfall-induced-2019/">Barun (2017)</a> and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/drones-to-the-rescue-in-melamchi">Melamchi (2021)</a> were the result of the thawing of frozen ground. They say that the collapse of the lateral moraine on the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/sikkim-flood-is-warning-to-nepal">South Lhonak glacial lake</a> in Sikkim on 4 October 2023 that swept away more than 100 people, destroyed the $1 billion Chungthang Dam as well as houses, roads and farms far downstream, was also caused by cloudburst on a lateral moraine that had lost its permafrost adhesive. There will be permafrost sceptics, as there have been climate change deniers. But it is time to wake up to the reality that the Himalayan peaks are no longer the immutable sentinels as regarded by humanity since prehistoric times.&nbsp; Modern society has pumped so much greenhouse gas into the atmosphere that now even the mountains are giving up. And we have not even begun to think about the bacteria and viruses locked away in the permafrost up the slope.&nbsp; Loss of permafrost adds to the cumulative impact of climate breakdown, including extreme weather events, drought and cloudbursts, heat waves in the plains affecting lives and livelihoods, creating mass migration, social unrest, and upending politics and geopolitics. The government and polity of Nepal have a duty to themselves and the larger humanity to wake up to the climate breakdown. The Sagarmatha Sambaad conclave organised by the Government in May failed to emerge as a pulpit for global warming and associated ills. Our political class, bureaucracy and academia should make up for lost opportunities to rise to the occasion and take the lead.&nbsp; Kanak Mani Dixit is writer, commentator and founding editor of Himal Southasian.

Climate of tragedy and apathy

This is the 73rd episode of Diaspora Diaries, a Nepali Times series in collaboration with Migration Lab providing a platform to share experiences of living, working and studying abroad. I don’t remember playing with dolls as a little girl. There is not much to remember from my childhood.&nbsp; My responsibilities began at a very young age, as I had two younger brothers to take care of. I was born in Sarlahi, but we moved around quite a bit as my father was in the government and got transferred frequently.&nbsp; From Rasuwa to Dang, from Nepalgunj to Kathmandu. I struggled to adjust in Kathmandu because I joined Grade 9 in the middle of the term. The education was different and fellow students also did not support me initially. But over time, I adjusted and made friends. I did not dream of becoming a nurse. It was by accident. I wanted to pursue medicine, but failed the entrance exam by a few marks. I did not want to lose a year, so decided to take up microbiology instead.&nbsp; I got married after my undergraduate, and my husband encouraged me to take up something more technical like nursing or engineering instead of Masters in Microbiology. As my quantitative background was weak, I chose nursing. I felt like I was born to be a nurse. Juggling my married life and studies was difficult. My teachers would often ask me why I am falling behind. It was not easy, but I managed and took up a full-time job as a nurse. There are challenges being a nurse in Nepal. You are overworked, underpaid, there is lack of appreciation. Superiors can be overbearing. These problems persist. But the bright spot is that you get to serve fellow Nepalis, and be close to your family.&nbsp; Just like I had no intention initially of becoming a nurse, I had no intention of migrating overseas. But life had different plans for me. After my baby boy was born, I noticed that something was off. Even at nine months he had not started crawling or sitting. As a nurse I knew something was wrong, and I took him for check-ups. He tested negative for down syndrome, but he had a heart defect.&nbsp; The cardiologist recommended that I take him to India where he was diagnosed with Williams Syndrome, a rare genetic condition that affects 1 in 10,000 people. It delayed his development. I looked for therapy. It was either not effective, or too expensive. Some schools also refused to admit him, and it drove me to tears.&nbsp; My family members overseas in the UK, US told me to emigrate as there were better facilities for differently abled children. So I decided to apply to the UK. Luckily just then there were calls for candidates under the Nepal-UK government-to-government pilot scheme for 100 nurses. Only 40 met the criteria, and I was one of them.&nbsp; I still remember the day I received the news on the day of my puja. There were people around me, and they told me that it was the result of my fasting and devotion on that auspicious day. Perhaps it was. Life was taking a new turn, and I was happy. I made it to the UK in February 2024 without paying a single paisa to any broker. The G2G scheme was unique as we were treated with dignity and valued for our skills: they covered costs for the ticket and visa, reimbursed us for exams we had taken and costs involved in the preparation and testing of the Objective Structured Clinical Examination were also covered.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20251106071148_dc5a0d0ea3024b34a4f2735754f8eb67a650bc7f61b98c75d589676c65b02a0c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20251106071148_dc5a0d0ea3024b34a4f2735754f8eb67a650bc7f61b98c75d589676c65b02a0c" data-rendition-name="original" width="1200" height="1600" loading="lazy" alt="Nurses NT"> </figure>  It was of course difficult to leave my son behind. But I was doing it for his future. I had the option of taking him from the start, but it was a new place and I wanted to be well-settled and knowledgeable about the options available for him before bringing him along. As I packed, he would ask me to take him with me in my suitcase. It did not seem like he was affected by my departure, and it was only later that his teachers said that he would express his feelings more openly at school. He just did not know how to tell me he missed me, and he would tell teachers he was worried I had forgotten him if we did not speak for a day.&nbsp; He missed me, and that realisation made me emotional. But I had to carry on. Life in the UK was difficult in the beginning. Even so, I wanted to prove to myself that I could do it. Fortunately I had cooperative staff who patiently answered my questions. I think I would have been irritated if I were in their place. But they did not seem to mind, and their support and guidance made it easy for me to adjust to the new work environment. APPRECIATION I still struggle to understand the accent of my English patients, and have ask the matron for help. They compliment me on my English, but I can speak better than I understand. The good thing about working in the UK is that you are appreciated for your work, which can be motivating. Sometimes, after a long day’s work you get a message from your supervisor acknowledging your work with a thank you. That’s enough to erase your tiredness.&nbsp; So far I have received 32 WOW nominations which are acknowledgements from patients for a job well done. It can be motivating, especially in the beginning. The main difference between the Alpana who first left Kathmandu for the UK and the Alpana now is that I am a much more confident person. What makes a good nurse? Skills, knowledge and qualifications are of course a given. But mostly, you need humanity. A smiling face. The way you communicate. Your empathy. These attributes can already solve many problems that patients are facing. This is my second time back home in the last 20 months. And this time, I have arranged for my son’s visa. I will go back after Tihar with my son and husband.&nbsp; I am happy, but also a little nervous about what awaits us. What kind of school will I put him in? Will it really be different from schools here? Will his needs be addressed? Will it be like here, or will he be able to adjust?&nbsp; But I am determined to make it work. Success for me would be if he adjusted well and there is a change in his condition. He still cannot recognise alphabets and read words like kids in his age group. Hopefully he will get learning support in the UK. He also has a knack for music, and this is common among individuals with Williams Syndrome. His ears perk up when he hears music, and he takes part in musical events at school. He still does not recognise letters &nbsp;but he uses voice commands to search for guitar videos on YouTube. I will enrol him in music classes, and help him develop this gift. For now, I worry how he will behave on his long flight. He has a short attention span and gets restless. He is also very social and will want to speak with everyone around him, and might irritate fellow passengers.&nbsp; I have already started trying to make him understand that he will need to behave on the flight. He nods in agreement. Let’s see how it goes. &nbsp;