Kathmandu, April 5 -- Till 4 April, there were only 7 expeditions with 86 mountaineers who have got permits to climb Mt Everest this spring climbing season, much lower than the 47 expeditions and nearly 478 foreign alpinists in spring 2023.

It is not clear why the Department of Tourism starts processing applications for Everest climbs only in March when expeditions prepare for years before they plan to climb the world's highest mountain. It also seems insensitive to include total royalties collected in its tables which suggests that it is only interested in cash and not mountaineering.

The Department has been updating its list of expeditions almost every other day this week, and the latest one shows that besides the seven expeditions o...