By Sudeshna Sarkar, IANS
Kathmandu : Every day there is at least one protest in Nepal over the election that will seal the fate of King Gyanendra and his 238-year crown. And every week, there is a beauty pageant where a new winner is crowned. But, caught between its king and beauty queens, has Nepal forgotten its heritage?
That seems to be so. Despite the hectic activity on other fronts, there is no move afoot, either from the media, government or any of the kingdom’s hundreds of NGOs, to enrol support for its national pride Mt Everest or the Sagarmatha national park so they can rank among the new seven natural wonders of the world.
The nominations for the ranking to be decided at a worldwide poll this month close Wednesday. After that, a panel of experts will create a list of 21 sites, from which voters worldwide will elect the new seven wonders of nature.
Mount Everest, the highest peak in the world at 8,848 m on the Nepal-China border and a prime source of attraction for tourists and mountaineers, ranks among the seven natural wonders of the world.
The other six are Victoria Falls in Africa, the Grand Canyon in the US, Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, the Northern Lights, Mexico’s Paricutin volcano and South America’s harbour of Rio de Janeiro.
However, the old heritage sites could be replaced with new ones after a new poll worldwide.
Last month, a similar poll over the Internet and phone selected new seven manmade wonders of the world.
While Nepal had no presence in the list, its southern neighbour India made it there with the famed Taj Mahal, and northern neighbour China with is Great Wall.
However, while India had launched a frenzied campaign to garner votes and keep the Taj on the list, there is no activity afoot in Nepal to promote either the Everest or the Sagarmatha National Park, largely composed of the rugged terrain and gorges of the high Himalayas and listed as a World Heritage Site by the Unesco for its unique natural, cultural and landscape characteristics.
Nepal’s tourism ministry and tourism board are currently grappling with the thorny issue of reviving the ailing national carrier, Nepal Airlines, whose flights have been cancelled due to all aircraft being grounded.
The Nepal Mountaineering Association, entrusted with promoting mountaineering in Nepal, is facing charges of corruption.
Even Nepal’s media, quick to take up nationalistic causes, has been oblivious of the campaign.
Only a handful of individuals have been struggling valiantly to fight for the Sagarmatha National Park.
“I have sent 2,000 emails to friends, acquaintances and the media, asking them to nominate the Sagarmatha National Park,” said Ananta Karki, a 24-year-old struggling model.
“However, there is no public interest in the campaign. The Nepali media I sent my email to did not respond.”