70th anniversary of the first human ascent to Mt Everest being marked today

KATHMANDU, May 29: Today is the 16th International Everest Day and the 70th anniversary of Everest. May 29 marks 70 years since the first successful ascent of Mt Everest, the world's highest peak.

On this day in 1953, Tenzing Norgay Sherpa and Sir Edmund Hillary set foot on Mt Everest for the first time. In commemoration of the same climb, 'Platinum Jubilee' is being celebrated in connection with the 70th anniversary of climbing Mt Everest.

According to the Nepal Mountaineering Association (NMA), the 70th anniversary of Mt Everest will be celebrated with a grand program in Nepal.

To make the day grand, a core organizing committee with representative organizations of the tourism sector has been formed under the chairmanship of Suresh Adhikari, Secretary of the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation.

According to the program, a formal ceremony will be held at the Nepal Tourism Board. Famous mountain climbers from Thamel-based Employees Provident Fund and representatives of tourism businessmen and government bodies participated in the meeting at the of the board at Bhrikutimandap.

Medals will be awarded to record climbers and various climbers in the program. Mohan Lamsal, the general secretary of NMA, informed that for the first time a medal is going to be presented to the climber on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Everest climb. "For the first time, we are honoring local and foreign climbers who have climbed Mt Everest with medals," he said.

Similarly, a special program is being organized in Khumjung of Solukhumbu and Kathmandu under the platinum jubilee program of Mt Everest. According to Ang Tshering Sherpa, former president and chief adviser of NMA, General Secretary of NMA Lamsal informed that there will be a program to honor the families of Tenzing Sherpa and Hilary in a special program to be held in Khumjung today.

After the official program of Khumjung, NMA will organize a separate program in Kathmandu. The program will be held in Kathmandu on June 1. A rally, honor and dinner will be held in honor of the climber.

Ang Tshering Sherpa, who is also knowledgeable about mountains, said that it will be useful to promote the identity of Nepal in the international world through the platinum jubilee program of Mt Everest. He said, "Since Mt Everest is the highest peak in the world, every activity on Mt Everest is reported by the national and international media, so we believe that the 70-year platinum jubilee will bring some buzz in tourism."

Nepal has eight mountains with a height of 8,000 meters, including the highest peak, Mt Everest. So far, about seven thousand local and foreign mountaineers have completed the ascent of the highest peak. More than 300 people have died during the climb.

Along with the hustle and bustle of climbing Mt Everest, the climbers have also been setting new records. Kami Rita Sherpa has set a world record by climbing Mt Everest 28 times. He has broken his own record by reaching the peak of Everest twice on May 17 and May 23 respectively in the ongoing ascent of the spring season. Similarly, Pasang Dawa Sherpa has set a record by climbing Mt Everest 27 times during this period. He climbed twice during this period and registered a new record.

Hari Budha Magar, who successfully climbed Mt Everest with prosthetic legs, has set a world record. Budha Magar made a record by reaching the peak of Mt Everest on May 19.

According to the Department of Tourism, more than 600 people have climbed Mt Everest so far. This year's spring climbing started on May 13. The highest numbers of climbers in history have received permission to climb Mt Everest this year. According to the details of the mountain climbing branch of the department, a total of 478 climbers including 103 women and 376 men from 47 climbing groups have taken climbing permits.

Pasang Lhamu Sherpa from Solukhumbu climbed Mt Everest on April 23, 2013 and set the record of being the first Nepali woman to climb Mt Everest. Junko Tabei, a Japanese citizen, is considered the world's first female climber of Mt Everest.

The government has so far opened 414 mountains for climbing. Eight of the 14 mountains higher than 8000 meters in the world are in Nepal. In commemoration of the day (May 29) when two brave climbers, Sherpa and Hillary, climbed Mt Everest, the government celebrates this day every year as Mt Everest Day. The day has been celebrated with various programs in Nepal and abroad. Ascendant Hillary died on January 11, 2008. Norgay died on May 9, 1986. Coincidentally, Republic Day and Mt Everest Day fall on the same day in Nepal.