Dolpa, Oct. 19 -- Phoksundo lake, located in ward 8 of Shey-Phoksundo Rural Municipality in Dolpa district, has been drawing an increasing number of visitors in recent years.

According to Kishor Kumar Mahat, information officer at Shey-Phoksundo National Park, a total of 19,537 tourists have visited the iconic turquoise lake over the past five years.

Among them, 17,712 were domestic tourists, while 1,825 were foreigners, including 92 from SAARC countries, Mahat said. During this period, the park collected Rs7.38 million in revenue from entry fees alone. "We earned Rs1.77 million from Nepali tourists and Rs5.61 million from foreigners," he added.

The park charges Rs100 for Nepali visitors, Rs1,500 for SAARC nationals, and Rs3,000 for ot...