NEW DELHI, March 9. /TASS/. The number of mountaineers who will try to scale Mount Everest in the upcoming season will be record-high according to the Nepalese authorities’ estimates, Rakesh Gurung, the director of the Department of Tourism has told TASS.
"The 2023 spring season saw a record number of climbers who got permission to climb Mount Everest (479 licenses - TASS). This year we expect that the number of climbers who intend to climb the mountain will be even higher than last season. I talk regularly with expedition operators and agencies. They are taking bookings from climbers for Mount Everest and according to this data, the number will be higher this year than last year," Gurung said.
The authorities are exerting extra efforts to ensure the climbing season runs smoothly.
"'We held a meeting several days ago about making the expedition season more effective, safe and manageable,' he said.
In particular, the wearing of electronic chips for those climbing the Everest has been made mandatory as of this year. The Nepalese authorities expect that this measure will facilitate search and rescue operations. In 2023, according to The Himalayan Database, which stores information on all expeditions in the Nepalese Himalayas, 18 people died on the Everest, more than in any other year since the first successful expedition to the peak 70 years ago.
The municipality of Khumbu, through which the route to the summits of the Everest and neighboring mountains lies, also introduced new rules for mountaineers in February. They must carry special bags for biological waste and to bring it down. Also, those trying to climb the Everest, as well as the Nuptse and the Lhotse, will have to bring down at least 8 kilograms of garbage in accordance with the Leave No Trace principle. The teams of mountaineers will be obliged to keep the area around their campsites tidy and clean.
The Everest is the world’s tallest peak: 8,848 meters above sea level.