By Sudeshna Sarkar, IANS
Kathmandu : With Thai king Bhumibol Adulyadej, the world’s longest surviving monarch, set to turn 80, a Thai group has decided to celebrate the event by “doing something that will leave a mark” globally.
TITV, one of Thailand’s main broadcasters, is planning the loftiest birthday gift anyone can ever hope to have – the first Thai expedition to Mt Everest, the highest mountain in the world.
A nine-member Thai team, supported by Nepali Sherpas, aims to plant on the 8,848-metre summit the national flag, a Buddhist flag and a flag with the royal emblem.
“No Thai has ever scaled Mt Everest,” TITV said in its letter to Nepal’s culture, tourism and civil aviation ministry. “Also, we want to climb from Nepal and not Tibet since Nepal is the birthplace of the Buddha.
“We want to show the Thai people’s faith and loyalty towards the king, country and Buddhism.” The king’s birthday is in December.
Adding that a successful summit would also promote Nepal as a tourist destination, TITV requested Nepal’s government to waive or reduce the royalty fee for climbing the peak, the most expensive in the world.
A nine-member expedition has to pay a whopping royalty fee of $90,000. TITV estimates that the climb will altogether cost it about $450,000. It plans to cover the event from the beginning of the training sessions in August to the ultimate summit, planned in October.
However, with a growing clamour for the abolition of monarchy in Nepal, the ministry has turned down the request to waive or reduce the fee, saying the regulations have no such provision.
Only Nepali expeditions or joint expeditions with Nepali climbers are eligible for such concessions.
Though there was a media furore that the Nepal government is considering offering “off season discounts” on the world’s most coveted mountain during autumn – when there are fewer teams – to promote mountaineering, Khadanand Dhakal, under secretary at the tourism department, said it was too premature.
“This year’s budget has envisaged promoting Nepal in all seasons and the government has formed a nine-member team to consider the idea,” Dhakal told IANS.
“However, the panel just held its first meeting Friday and will take some time to study the aspects and give its recommendations.”
Discount or no discount, the Thai team is still planning to go ahead with the expedition.
Though scores of people scaled Mt Everest in summer, only the Thais have shown interest so far in climbing the peak from Nepal this autumn, probably due to the growing turmoil in Nepal as the countdown to a critical election begins.