KATHMANDU: The government has exempted visa fee for the Everest and Dhaulagiri Summiteers for 2010 and 2011. The mountaineering fee has also been reduced by 50 per cent for Dhaulagiri climbers during the two years, on the occasion of Dhaulagiri golden jubilee celebration — on May 13 — and Sagarmatha day — on May 29.

Government is set to celebrate the third International Sagarmatha (Mount Everest) Day on May 29 with various programmes. The celebration is scheduled for two days — on May 28 and May 29. “We are hopeful that the celebration of Mt Everest Day will definitely help encourage

Nepal Investment Bank has sought local partnership to support the projects of national value. Every year, we have been providing a wholesome amount of money for such causes.

This year too, we have organised a NIBL Heritage Marathon 2010, raising over Rs 7 million for the renovation of Bhai Deval Temple and Aryaghat at Pashupatinath.

What is more remarkable about this project is that while urbanites are playing blind to the mounting heaps of garbage in front of our eyes, the Sherpas have taken an initiative to clean their backyard.

Given the context that we rank among the most polluted cities, the project

Nepali people across the nation and abroad are observing the New Year 2067 of Bikram Samwat today.

Various programmes are being organized to mark the beginning of the most famous and widely used New Year day among various calendars used in the country.

On the occasion, President Dr Ram Baran Yadav, Vice President Paramananda Jha, Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal, Ministers, and senior leaders of the political parties have wished for happiness, peace, prosperity, and progress of all the citizens.

Extending his best wishes to the people, President underlined the need to defeat the challenges facing the nation in order to draft the

The nine-day festival of Bisket Jatra, coinciding with the Nepali New year, began in Bhaktapur today. Two chariots are pulled during the festival of new year celebration that falls on April 14.

A 25 meter pole is put up and set into the stone yoni at Khalna Tole, one of the squares in Bhaktapur.

The festival has been immensely popular since the Lichhavi period. According to the legend, a man who married a princess died of snake bite in Bhaktapur.

Nobody dared to marry her for the fear of bad omen. However, one day, a merchant arrived in the village and tied the

Thirteen-year-old Jordan Romero is climbing Mount Everest, the world’s highest peak, not only for himself but to inspire more young people to get outdoors.

“Obese children are the future of America the way things are going,” he tells CNN in Kathmandu Friday as he prepared to leave for the mountain on Sunday.

“I am hoping to change that by doing what I do — climbing and motivational speaking. I want to motivate children and inspire them to get outdoors.”

If he is successful, Jordan will be the youngest person to get to the top of Everest’s summit, 29,028 feet above sea level.

With a