October 2013

Nepal Mountaineering Association

Issue-89

Two dead‚ one missing in avalanche-1 Oct

Two persons (Tendi Sherpa of Gudel and Nim Pasang Sherpa of Jubhing Kharikhola of Solukhumbu district ) died and one went missing in an avalanche on Mt Himulung, 7126 m in Manang that happened 30 Sep. They were part of an eight-member expedition team on Mt Himulung. Other foreign nationals are safe and two other Nepalese named Dorje Khatri and Kul Bahadur Thapa had been rescued. The person who has gone missing has been identified as Kaji Sherpa from Okhaldhunga.

New government official at NMA Board- 2 October 2013

Mr. Ram Prasad Sapkota, Under Secretary at Tourism Industries Division will represent Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation in Executive Board of Nepal Mountaineering Association (NMA).

German and Austrian alpine clubs to rejoin UIAA- 6 Oct

The UIAA - International Mountaineering and Climbing Federation voted unanimously at its General Assembly on 5 Oct to accept the applications of the German Alpine Club (DAV) and Der Verband alpiner Vereine Österreichs (VAVÖ) to rejoin the federation.

German Alpine Club (DAV) was founded in 1869 and has become the world's largest alpine sports organization with more than one million members. Similarly, Der Verband alpiner Vereine Österreichs (VAVÖ)(VAVÖ) was founded in 1949 and has over 600,000 members across Austria which represent 12 clubs.

In-Jeong Lee re-elected President of UAAA-7 Oct

General Assembly of Union of Asian Alpine Association (UAAA) in Pakistan from 29 Sep - 1 Oct 2013 re-elected In-Jeng Lee and Christine Pae as President and General Secretary of UAAA respectively.

Hotel occupancy rate falls slightly- 8 Oct

The occupancy rate at five-star hotels stands at over 85 per cent in October, which is below in comparison to 2011 when booking was more than 90 per cent. According to statistics provided of Hotel Association of Nepal, overall occupancy rate at five-star hotels has declined by around 10 per cent since 2011. The possible reasons may be as lack of international promotional activities, economic slowdown in Europe and shortage of flights to Nepal hit bookings during one of the peak tourist seasons. The increment in number of hotel rooms in Kathmandu Valley as compared to 2011 and 2012 may have contributed to lower reservation as the number of rooms has gone up by 600 in the last two years. ( Source: The Himalayan Times)

Investigation to begin- 9 Oct

Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation reveals that it has begun to investigate the attempts by two Italian mountaineers named Edmond Joyeusaz and Federico Coll who aim to set the world record through a skiing descent from the South face of Mt Lhotse (28,102 feet) after summiting it from the same route.

Delay in identification of new 8000 m peaks- 20 Oct

During UIAA General Assembly held in Switzerland from 3- 5 Oct, Pakistan Alpine Club and Indian Mountaineering Foundation requested to give them some time to discuss in their general assembly and get approval to proceed for international recognition of additional five mountains above 8000m. UIAA initiated the Agura project to identify and recognize new peaks above 8,000 metres. It identified five additional peaks in Nepal and one at the China-Pakistan border as new peaks above 8,000 metres. The six peaks are Yarlung Khang - 8,505m (also known as Kanchenjunga West), Kanchenjunga Central - 8,473m (Nepal-India border), Kanchenjunga South - 8,476m (Nepal-India border), Lhotse Middle - 8,413m (Nepal-China border), Lhotse Shar - 8,400m (Nepal-China border) and Broad Peak Central - 8,047m (Pakistan-China border).

Three Nepali ethnic origins to be felicitated- 20 Oct

Sikkim Government decided to felicitate three Nepali ethnic origins each with one million for their successful ascent on Everest in May 2013. The recipients of the award are Ananda Gurung, Kazi Sherpa and Rabindra Kumar. ( Source: Nagarik news)

1st Park Yeoung Seok Climbing Competition- 23 Oct

NMA in coordination with Park Yeoug Seok Foundation is organizing 1st Park Yeoung Seok Climbing Competition on 1 & 2 Nov 2013. Registration form has been started to distribute from NMA Secretariat upon the receipt of Rs 1000 as registration fee. The competition will be organized at Himalaya Climbing & Training Center, Balaju Industrial Area. The competition will be held in lead and speed category. Park Yeoug Seok is the first Korean to ascend successfully all the mountains above 8000m and this program is being organized in his memory on his death anniversary on 2 Nov.

Reports of UIAA and UAAA General Assemblies submitted- 24 Oct

NMA President and General Secretary submitted the reports of General Assemblies of Union of International Alpine Association (UIAA) and Union of Asian Alpine Association (UAAA) in the Executive Board Meeting of NMA held on 24 Oct 2013. NMA President Zimba Zangbu Sherpa, Immediate Past President and honorary member of UIAA Ang Tshering Sherpa, General Secretary Deebas Bikram Shah, Purna Chandra Bhattarai- Joint Secretary participated in UIAA GA held in Switzerland from 2-6 Oct 2013.

Similarly, NMA President Zimba Zangbu Sherpa, General Secreary Deebas Bikram Shah ans Surendra Prasad Sapkota- Under Secretary participated in UAAA GA held in Pakistan from 29 Sep - 1 Oct 2013.