Mountaineering Regulation

The Royalty and the size of the Expedition Team:

1. More than one team may be permitted to climb Sagarmatha (Mt. Everest) by a separate route each in one season.
2. A Royalty of US$50,000 has been fixed for Sagarmatha for a team consisting of seven members. The team may include 5 more members provided it pays extra US$ 10,000 for each additional member. The royalty includes trekking fee of the team members. The team members will be granted three months visa. Additional, US$ 20,000 will have to be paid by the team willing to scale Mt. Everest by normal south – east ridge route.
3. In all regions including Khumbu, an expedition team can have up to 7 members for the minimum, and 5 more members for the additional royalty.
4. The team already permitted to scale Mt. Everest will have to pay US$ 10,000 if it intends to change the accent route. It will have to pay additional US$ 20,000,if it intends to change the ascent route to normal south east ridge route
5. For peaks other than Mt. Everest, the team will have to pay an additional 25% of the royalty in US$ to change the ascent route.
6. Expedition team must complete all necessary administrative formalities and procedures in order to send back the garbage of the expedition team to their respective countries, after the completion of the expedition. The Ministry of Tourism & Civil Aviation will take necessary monetary deposit from them, which will be refunded after the dispatch of the garbage from Nepal.

Equipment for expedition

Government may provide the following facilities to any Mountaineering team which has obtained permit for mountaineering expedition:

1. To import and use temporarily, during the expedition such number of walkie – talkies not exceeding 12 and two sets of wireless having the capacity to communicate between the base camp and the nearest police station or the place where the means of telecommunication is available on the condition that such sets shall be taken back to the home country of the team after the end of the expedition.
2. Partial exemption of customs duty on the goods and materials imported for the expedition.
3. Two sets of wireless having the capacity to communicate between the base camp and the capital city Kathmandu, provide the mountaineering team desirous to use such facility shall have to hand over one of the two sets of wireless to the Ministry of Culture, Tourism & Civil Aviation, Mountaineering Section, for its use during the continuation of the expedition.

Payment of Climbing Royalty

The leader of the expedition team is required to pay the full amount of climbing permit fee (Royalty) within two months of the date of permission. In case of the failure of the payment of royalty within two months, such permission may be cancelled.

The climbing permit fee (Royalty) must be paid directly in favor of the ministry of Culture, Tourism & Civil Aviation, Mountaineering Section, either by bank draft or bank transfer to Nepal Rashtra Bank, Thapathali, Kathmandu, payable in convertible foreign currency.

Permit to climb Mount Everest

All mountaineering team, desirous of obtaining a permit in Nepal, shall submit an application in the form as prescribed, to the Ministry of Culture, Tourism & Civil Aviation, Mountaineering Section (Phone:4256228,4247037,4256231) enclosing a recommendation of the concerned government, or of Mountaineering Association (U.I.A.A) or a recommendation of the Embassy of its home country for the kingdom of Nepal, ordinarily four months prior to its proposed mountaineering expedition.

Everest Experience

Himalayas is the largest and the highest occupying 800 km across, with eight peaks that rise above 8,000m. including the highest Mountain of the world , The Mt. Everest .

Ever since the country was first opened to climbers if 1949, Nepal Himalayan has become a great theatre of mountaineering activity and the drama of success and failure have provided impetus to more men to meet the ultimate adventure. It is therefore, through all the ages, Nepal Himalayan had been the center of attractions to the whole world, be it saints, philosophers, researchers or adventures.

Heaven for Adventure Tourist

Nepal(Kathmandu), offers terrific places for rock climbing that make for an experience of a lifetime. Make sure you leave time for hot air ballooning for a bird/s-eye view of the Kathmandu Valley and the magnificent Himalaya. See life from a new perspective as you take off in a micro-light aircraft for motor gliding in Pokhara. A trip will take you over some of the best scenery on earth, as you share airspace with Himalayan griffin vultures, eagles, kites and float over villages, monasteries, temples, lakes and jungle, with a fantastic view of the majestic Himalayas. The Bhote Kosi, one of the world’s wildest raging rivers, rushes down from the heights of the Himalayas. This Bhote Kosi is the main tributary of the Sun Kosi and is followed by the Arniko highway from Kathmandu to Lhasa. Mountain flights offer spectacular views of the Himalaya in just one hour. These flights offer the closest possible aerial views of Mt. Everest and other above 8,000 m peaks.

Tour:- Adventure Tour

Being at the top of the world Nepal offers a wide range of adventure tourism to those who takes their life as a challenge. The varied landscape has some of the best sites for these activities, raging rivers to run, mountains to scale, clear blue skies, challenging treks, fine lakes and rivers to boat, fish and raft down, and a wild terrain to ride.

River rafting, one of the best ways to explore the typical cross section of natural as well cultural heritage of the country. Rafting is inarguably the best way of exploring Arcadian Nepal, as it takes you through hamlets, canyons, virgin forests, and wildlife.

Jungle Safari is another area of interest for Adventure Tourist. There are many National Parks in Nepal that can be a interest of Adventure Tourist.

Nepal a Heaven for Adventure

Nepalese Fair & Festivals

Nepal's festive calendar is hectic. Dasain, celebrated nationwide in October, is the most important of all Nepalese celebrations and features the biggest animal sacrifice of the year. Running a close second is Tihar (November), but unlike Daisan, animals are honoured rather than slaughtered. Other festivals celebrated nationally include the water-tinged Holi (March) and Chaitra Daisan (April), which is yet another bad day for animals. Hindu festivals number the Haribodhini Ekadashi (November) and Maha Shivaratri (March), both celebrated in Pashupatinath, the Gai Jatra (August) in Kathmandu and the Krishna Jayanti (August/September) in Patan. Buddhist celebrations are just as thick on the ground, and include Mani Rimdu (November) in Solu Khumbu, Buddha Jayanti (May) in Kathmandu, and Losar (Tibetan New Year) (February) in Swayambhunath, Jawlakhel and highland communities.

Nepalese Culture

The Himalayan Kingdom has the richest and most diverse culture landscapes anywhere. Nepal is the holy land of Lord Pashupatinath and Gautam Buddha where the Hindus and Buddhists have lived together in harmony for centuries. The Temple of Pashupatinath is Nepal/s most sacred Hindu shrine and one of the four most important cities in the world for Shiva worshippers. Lord Buddha, the light of Asia, was born in Lumbini in Nepal/s southern plains, which makes Nepal a scared pilgrimage destination for Buddhists as well.

The rich tapestry of the cultural heritage of Nepal is synthesized in the Kathmandu Valley. The three ancient cities of the Valley Patan, Kathmandu, Bhaktapur represent an epitome of harmony in urban design, elegant architecture and refined culture. These cities pack a concentration of religious monuments unequalled in the world. Don/t miss the seven monument zones named as World Heritage Sites by UNESCO all situated within the small confines of the Valley.

Adding dazzling color to Nepal/s myriad attractions are the many festivals that dot the calendar. Join in the numerous annual festivals that are celebrated throughout the year in traditional style highlighting enduring customs and beliefs. Go for village tours and visit the multi-ethnic groups to get first hand experience of their customs and lifestyles.

As eating is a special affair in Nepal, there is food for each and every occasion and festival. Kathmandu offers an incredible selection of dining opportunities. There are many restaurants that serve only authentic Nepali food complete with ethnic ambience.

Nepal Information:-People

People of Nepal can be divided into two distinct group, the Aryans and the Mongolians. And three are many different ethnic groups in Nepal living in different part of the country with their own unique cultures, languages and religions.
The ethnic group of Magars, Rais, Sunuwars and Gurungs live in the eastern mountains observing their own culture and speaking their own culture and speaking their own mother languages. By tradition, most Gurkha soldiers come from these ethnic groups and are famous for the bravery in the battles. Sherpas, inhabitants of the Northern Himalayan region are influenced with the Tibetan culture. The Sherpas are famous in the world for mountaineering.The Newars constitute the important ethnic group in the Kathmandu valley. The Newars are rich in culture and famous for their craftsmanship. There are many artistic pagodas, monuments and old palaces in the Kathmandu valley built by the Newars. The ethnic group of Tharus, Maithili, Bhojpuri Danuwar etc live in the Terai region.The Brahman and Chhetris also play an important role in Nepalese Society. These groups are originally from the west Nepal and now inhabit the most of all the parts of the country.Tamangs live outside the rim of the Kathmandu valley. The Thakalis inhabitant in the northwest part, upper the Kali Gandaki Rivers. The Thakalis were considered to be expert traders in the past.Apart from the above, there are still many other ethnic group in Nepal and all of these groups are tied up together by their common ideals of peace and nationalism.

CURRENCY – Currency of Nepal is known as Rupee which comes in notes of 1,2,5,10,20,25,50,100,500and 1000. Coins known as paisa comes in 5,10,25,50 and 100.Rupees coins are also used; 1,2,5,and 10.One Nepali Rupee is made up of 100 paisa. Foreign currencies must be exchanged only through the banks or authorized foreign exchange dealers.

TIME – Nepal Time is 5 hour 45 minutes ahead of Greenwich Mean Time and 15 minutes ahead of Indian Standard Time.

WEEKEND – Saturday is the official holiday in Nepal.

ELECTRIC CURRENT – 220 Volts/50 cycles. Most of the villages, cities of the kingdom are accessed with electricity.

Nepal at a Glance: Introduction

Known as the Land of Everest and being “The only Hindu Kingdom in the world”, the kingdom of Nepal is a land of sublime scenery, one of the world’s best and Archeologically very important temples, and some of the best walking trails on the Earth. Although the GDP of “The Land of Buddha” is very low, but it is rich in scenic splendour and cultural treasures.

The kingdom has long exerted a pull on the Western imagination and it's a difficult place to dislodge from your memory once you visit Nepal and return.
This is why so many travelers are forced to visit Nepal again and again with a greater appreciation of its natural and cultural complexity, a stout pair of walking boots and a desire for improved leg-definition.

Marketing tips:Be an Affilitate

The business world is fiercely competitive; that probably won't surprise anyone, as it has always been that way. The introduction of the Internet as a business tool has transformed the nature of business, as the market is now more fair than it has been in the past. It may be difficult for a small company to compete with a big brick and mortar store in the world of retail sales, but the Internet makes it easier for the small business and the large one to compete more fairly.

One of the most effective methods of attracting paying customers to a Website or product is through affiliate marketing. With affiliate marketing, the person with the product to sell pays a commission to willing participants, known as affiliates, who send customers to the retailer. It's a mutually beneficial situation for everyone; the seller has buyers sent his way and the affiliate gets a percentage of the sale for a small bit of work. Affiliate marketing has been touted on many Websites and in many books as a good way to make "easy money". Is that the case?

Affiliate marketing is no easier or harder than any other business project. In order to make a profit using this strategy, you need to make effective use of the items below:

Find a good product. There are literally thousands of products available for which the publisher will pay a commission to affiliates. Many of these products are either software or electronic books. The products, the pricing, and the subject matter vary tremendously, so you should select something that suits you.

You will likely need a Website to advertise the product. Many customers search for information or reviews of products before they buy. Building a Website with accurate, relevant information about the product you are promoting will help attract customers.

Your Site will require marketing in order for people to find it. This is the most difficult part of any Web-based business, as promoting Websites is a sizeable industry unto itself. You can find tons of documentation about this subject by doing a Web search for either "search engine optimization" or "Website promotion."

Why Nepal Tourism?

Nepal is a country lying between China on the North and India on the South. It is a landlocked country on the collision zone between two plates, so large mountain ranges are formed in the creasing including the Pahar Hill region and the Mountain region, both with large altitudes and populated valleys. Tourism is especially large in Mount Everest and a large amount of conflict has arisen there as we will study later. Mountaineers with ambitions to travel, view and climb the spectacular slopes come in their ten thousands. 39% of the GDP comes from agriculture; 76% of people use it as their principle employment. Services (which would include tourism) equal 42% and industry 21%. The lack of natural resources means that agriculture is the main primary industry, while tourism probably the main tertiary. Main exports are clothing, leather, jute goods and grain. There are lots of places to visit in Nepal. That is why people often term Nepal as "a place where there are more temples than houses". Similarly because of Gods and Goddesses we term it as a place where the number of gods and goddess is more than the population of people. Inside the Kathmandu Valley, there is lots of sight seeing. For example, you can go to Kasthamandap which was build of one tree, Pashupatinath of the capital and several other temples, historical places and monuments. However, one of the most amazing thing of the Kathmandu Valley is the excellent view of the valley from all the hilltops. Similarly when one goes outside of the valley, he or she can see countless natural beauties never explored. Tourists stare with amazements of the gift of God to the Himalayan Kingdom. Nepal is a must visit place. Nepal is well known for its natural beauty, mighty Himalayas, diverse culture and cheerful face of people. These qualities made Nepal a unique place giving high potentialities for the growth of tourism industry. Tourism is not new phenomena, however, making tourism a dynamic sector of economy and accepting it as a vehicle of poverty reduction is certainly relatively new and timely thinking. There are a number of ways that tourism can help the economy make better performance. Physically it contributes to accelerate national development through expansion of infrastructure; economically it contributes to generate employment that helps uplift the living conditions of local people. It generates revenue, contributes to the growth of GDP and helps earn foreign exchanges, which again are directly or indirectly linked to poverty alleviation in the country. Natural, cultural and manmade heritages are important to flourish tourism sector but more than that visionary plan, coordinated program and adequate resources to implement the plan and programs play important role to really make the tourism sector a vehicle of poverty alleviation. As the role of the government has gone sea change during the last decade of twentieth century, private sector should come to the fore of economic growth. Government alone is not there to serve people; there are multiple actors, such as, local government, private sector, and community organizations. Nepal is one of the richest countries in the world in terms of bio-diversity due to its unique geographical position and altitude variation. The elevation of the country ranges from 60 meters above sea level to the highest point on earth, Mt. Everest at 8,848 meters, all within a distance of 150 kilometers resulting in climatic conditions from sub-tropical to arctic. This wild variation fosters an incredible variety of ecosystems, the greatest mountain range on earth, thick tropical jungles teeming with a wealth of wildlife, thundering rivers, forested hills and frozen valleys. Within this spectacular geography is also one of the richest cultural landscapes anywhere. The country is a potpourri of 101 ethnic groups and sub-groups who speak over 92 languages and dialects. Nepal offers an astonishing diversity of sightseeing attractions and adventure opportunities found nowhere else on earth. And you can join in the numerous annual festivals that are celebrated throughout the year in traditional style highlighting enduring customs and beliefs.

Mobile phones and the Internet

The first mobile phone with Internet connectivity was the Nokia 9000 Communicator, launched in Finland in 1996. The viability of Internet services access on mobile phones was limited until prices came down from that model and network providers started to develop systems and services conveniently accessible on phones. NTT DoCoMo in Japan launched the first mobile Internet service, i-Mode, in 1999 and this is considered the birth of the mobile phone Internet services.

In 2001 the mobile phone email system by Research in Motion for their Blackberry product was launched in America. To make efficient use of the small screen and tiny keypad and one-handed operation typical of mobile phones, a specific document and networking model was created for mobile devices, the Wireless Application Protocol (WAP). Most mobile device Internet services operate using WAP. The growth of mobile phone services was initially a primarily Asian phenomenon with Japan, South Korea and Taiwan all soon finding the majority of their Internet users accessing resources by phone rather than by PC.

Developing countries followed, with India, South Africa, Kenya, Philippines and Pakistan all reporting that the majority of their domestic users accessed the Internet from a mobile phone rather than a PC. The European and North American use of the Internet was influenced by a large installed base of personal computers, and the growth of mobile phone Internet access was more gradual, but had reached national penetration levels of 20–30% in most Western countries.

The cross-over occurred in 2008, when more Internet access devices were mobile phones than personal computers. In many parts of the developing world, the ratio is as much as 10 mobile phone users to one PC user.

History of the Internet

Before the wide spread of inter networking that led to the Internet, most communication networks were limited by their nature to only allow communications within the stations on the local network and the prevalent computer networking method was based on the central mainframe computer model. Several research programs began to explore and articulate principles of networking between physically separate networks, leading to the development of the packet switching model of digital networking.

These research efforts included those of the laboratories of Donald Davies (NPL), Paul Baran (RAND Corporation), and Leonard Kleinrock at MIT and at UCLA. The research led to the development of several packet-switched networking solutions in the late 1960s and 1970s, including ARPANET and the X.25 protocols. Additionally, public access and hobbyist networking systems grew in popularity, including unix-to-unix copy (UUCP) and FidoNet. They were however still disjointed separate networks, served only by limited gateways between networks. This led to the application of packet switching to develop a protocol for internetworking, where multiple different networks could be joined together into a super-framework of networks. By defining a simple common network system, the Internet Protocol Suite, the concept of the network could be separated from its physical implementation.

This spread of internetworking began to form into the idea of a global network that would be called the Internet, based on standardized protocols officially implemented in 1982. Adoption and interconnection occurred quickly across the advanced telecommunication networks of the western world, and then began to penetrate into the rest of the world as it became the de-facto international standard for the global network.

However, the disparity of growth between advanced nations and the third-world countries led to a digital divide that is still a concern today.

History Of Computers

The volume and use of computers in the world are so great, they have
become difficult to ignore anymore. Computers appear to us in so many ways that
many times, we fail to see them as they actually are. People associated with a
computer when they purchased their morning coffee at the vending machine. As
they drove themselves to work, the traffic lights that so often hampered us are
controlled by computers in an attempt to speed the journey. Accept it or not,
the computer has invaded our life.

The origins and roots of computers started out as many other inventions
and technologies have in the past. They evolved from a relatively simple idea or
plan designed to help perform functions easier and quicker. The first basic type
of computers were designed to do just that; compute!. They performed basic math
functions such as multiplication and division and displayed the results in a
variety of methods.
Some computers displayed results in a binary representation
of electronic lamps. Binary denotes using only ones and zeros thus, lit lamps
represented ones and unlit lamps represented zeros. The irony of this is that
people needed to perform another mathematical function to translate binary to
decimal to make it readable to the user.

One of the first computers was called ENIAC. It was a huge, monstrous
size nearly that of a standard railroad car. It contained electronic tubes,
heavy gauge wiring, angle-iron, and knife switches just to name a few of the
components. It has become difficult to believe that computers have evolved into
suitcase sized micro-computers of the 1990's.

Importance Of Computer

In this day and age, it is extremely important that a person be skillful and knowledgeable in the area of computers and technology. It is very difficult to be successful in today’s job market and high tech lifestyle if you do not have these skills.
The computer is now an essential tool that all workers must be familiar with in order to complete their daily tasks. Whatever your job; teacher, lawyer, or salesperson; computer skills are mandatory in order for you to succeed. You also need to possess certain computer skills in order to complete basic every day skills in our society day.
The use of the internet is one extremely important computer skill one should definitely have mastered. Computers and Internet today are almost one in the same thing and usually one isn’t mentioned without the other tagging along. Without the Internet, there would be no way to instantly find the name of a movie your favorite actor was in five years ago or how much it costs to fly to Aruba. A person will need to be familiar with the Internet in all types of work whether it is research on any topic or surfing for information. For this purpose computer users need to know what a search engine is and how it works, what a keyword is and how it works, how to open a browser and how to use a link, etc. The Internet is a huge wealth of information that everyone should take advantage of. There are web sites that will help you find a job by posting your resume online. Online skills allow people to pay bills, play the stock-market, and even sell personal items such as clothes or other things through a website such as E-Bay. Online shoppers aren’t even required to go out and brave the elements or crowds anymore to find that perfect Christmas gift. Many students today are now getting their degree online in the comfort of their own homes on their own schedule. It’s amazing how today with a couple of clicks, you can go anywhere in the world without leaving your...

Computer

A computer is a programmable machine that receives input, stores and manipulates data//information, and provides output in a useful format.

While a computer can, in theory, be made out of almost anything (see misconceptions section), and mechanical examples of computers have existed through much of recorded human history, the first electronic computers were developed in the mid-20th century (1940–1945). Originally, they were the size of a large room, consuming as much power as several hundred modern personal computers (PCs). Modern computers based on integrated circuits are millions to billions of times more capable than the early machines, and occupy a fraction of the space. Simple computers are small enough to fit into mobile devices, and can be powered by a small battery. Personal computers in their various forms are icons of the Information Age and are what most people think of as "computers". However, the embedded computers found in many devices from MP3 players to fighter aircraft and from toys to industrial robots are the most numerous.

Nepal- Government

HE DRAMATIC EVENTS of the beginning months of 1990 marked a watershed in Nepal's political system. The quest for a multiparty, representative form of government had begun on December 15, 1960, when an unprecedented royal coup d'état dismissed the constitutionally elected government of Bishweshwar Prasad (B.P.) Koirala. King Mahendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev abrogated the constitution and suspended all guarantees of fundamental rights and political activities. The traditional partyless panchayat system of local and national assemblies imposed by fiat was found unsatisfactory in the face of the Nepalese desire to secure legitimate political and human rights and establish accountability in government.

Monarchical opposition toward political parties or groups had been so vigorous that the centrist Nepali Congress Party, the oldest political party, carried on its activities from exile in India. Other political parties, including the splintered leftist groups, either operated from abroad or were disbanded. Although political parties were banned and at times their leaders were incarcerated or forced to go underground, they remained a vital force in sensitizing and mobilizing public opinion against government authoritarianism.

The Movement for the Restoration of Democracy (MRD), popularly known as the prodemocracy movement, finally succeeded in early 1990 in restoring democratic rights denied for decades by the powerful palace clique. In April 1990, tens of thousands of Nepalese marched on the royal palace in Kathmandu, demonstrating against King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev, who was traditionally revered as an incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu. Police and troops shot and killed many of the marchers. As shock waves reverberated through Nepal, long an oasis of civil order in South Asia, the king quickly scrapped the panchayat system, lifted the ban on political parties, and formed an interim government from among the ranks of the veteran opposition leaders under the premiership of Nepali Congress leader Krishna Prasad (K.P.) Bhattarai.

The interim government, which represented the spectrum of public opinion, was directed to conduct fair and free elections within a stipulated period under a new constitution framed by an independent constitutional commission appointed by the Council of Ministers--the Constitution Recommendation Commission. Although the constitution was proclaimed from the throne, its development, unlike past constitutional edicts, was through a democratic process in which the interim Council of Ministers served as a legislature. Nepal's human rights records--poor before the success of the prodemocracy movement--also improved.

During the prodemocracy movement, a range of political parties acted in concert and rapidly commanded the loyalty and imagination of the overwhelming majority of the urban population. This unprecedented expression of national unity and the government's subsequent attempts to suppress the movement triggered the reactions of major and regional world powers including the United States, Japan, and India, and international financial institutions, such as the World Bank and Asian Development Bank. Their timely expressions of concern and threats to reevaluate their commitments of economic and technical assistance both bolstered the movement and served as a damper against the monarchy's continued use of excessive force to contain it.

Strategically wedged between China and India, Nepal has always been fearful of foreign intervention and has tried to maintain equal distance from these two powerful neighbors in a continuing effort to protect its sovereignty. Nepal's choice not to align with any superpower facilitated grants of economic assistance from diverse sources, including the United States, the Soviet Union, India, China, and Japan. Nepal maintained a high profile in various international organizations and activities and was a charter member of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).

Although the vast majority of the Nepalese population was illiterate, Nepal's printed media has been influential as well as strident. Before the introduction of the 1990 constitution, which guarantees freedom of expression, several stringent publication and censorship laws limited freedom of expression.

Politics: Introduction

Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to behavior within civil governments, but politics has been observed in other group interactions, including corporate, academic, and religious institutions. It consists of "social relations involving authority or power" and refers to the regulation of a political unit, and to the methods and tactics used to formulate and apply policy.

Agriculture

Agriculture is the production of food and goods through farming. Agriculture was the key development that led to the rise of human civilization, with the husbandry of domesticatedanimals and plants (i.e. crops) creating food surpluses that enabled the development of more densely populated and stratified societies. The study of agriculture is known as agricultural science. Agriculture is also observed in certain species of ant and termite.

Agriculture encompasses a wide variety of specialties and techniques, including ways to expand the lands suitable for plant raising, by digging water-channels and other forms of irrigation. Cultivation of crops on arable land and the pastoral herding of livestock on rangeland remain at the foundation of agriculture. In the past century there has been increasing concern to identify and quantify various forms of agriculture. In the developed world the range usually extends between sustainable agriculture (e.g. permaculture or organic agriculture) and intensive farmingindustrial agriculture).

For Example, Modern agronomy, plant breeding, pesticides and fertilizers, and technological improvements have sharply increased yields from cultivation, and at the same time have caused widespread ecological damage and negative human health effects. Selective breeding and modern practices in animal husbandry such as intensive pig farming (and similar practices applied to the chicken) have similarly increased the output of meat, but have raised concerns about animal cruelty and the health effects of the antibiotics, growth hormones, and other chemicals commonly used in industrial meat production.

The major agricultural products can be broadly grouped into foods, fibers, fuels, and raw materials. In the 2000s, plants have been used to grow biofuels, biopharmaceuticals, bioplastics, and pharmaceuticals. Specific foods include cereals, vegetables, fruits, and meat. Fibers include cotton, wool, hemp, silk and flax. Raw materials include lumber and bamboo. Other useful materials are produced by plants, such as resins. Biofuels include methane from biomass, ethanol, and biodiesel. Cut flowers, nursery plants, tropical fish and birds for the pet trade are some of the ornamental products.

Economy of Nepal

An isolated, agrarian society until the mid-20th century, Nepal entered the modern era in 1951 without schools, hospitals, roads, telecommunications, electric power, industry, or civil service. The country has, however, made progress toward sustainable economic growth since the 1950s and is committed to a program of economic liberalization.

Nepal has used a series of five-year plans in an attempt to make progress in economic development. It completed its ninth economic development plan in 2002; its currency has been made convertible, and 17 state enterprises have been privatized. Foreign aid accounts for more than half of the development budget. Government priorities over the years have been the development of transportation and communication facilities, agriculture, and industry. Since 1975, improved government administration and rural development efforts have been emphasized.

Agriculture remains Nepal's principal economic activity, employing 80% of the population and providing 37% of GDP. Only about 20% of the total area is cultivable; another 33% is forested; most of the rest is mountainous. Rice and wheat are the main food crops. The lowland Terai region produces an agricultural surplus, part of which supplies the food-deficient hill areas.

Economic development in social services and infrastructure has made dramatic progress due to GDP dependency on India. A countrywide primary education system is under development, and Tribhuvan University has several campuses. Although eradication efforts continue, malaria had been controlled in the fertile but previously uninhabitable Terai region in the south. Kathmandu is linked to India and nearby hill regions by road and an expanding highway network. The capital was almost out of fuel and transport of supplies caused by a crippling general strike in southern Nepal on February 17, 2008.

Major towns are connected to the capital by telephone and domestic air services. The export-oriented carpet and garment industries have grown rapidly in recent years and together now account for approximately 70% of merchandise exports.

Geography and Geology of Nepal

Nepal is of roughly trapezoidal shape, 800 kilometres (497 mi) long and 200 kilometres (124 mi) wide, with an area of 147,181 km² (56,827 sq mi). See List of territories by size for the comparative size of Nepal.

Nepal is commonly divided into three physiographic areas: the Mountain, Hill, Siwalik region and Terai Regions. These ecological belts run east-west and are vertically intersected by Nepal's major, north to south flowing river systems.

The southern lowland plains or Terai bordering India are part of the northern rim of the Indo-Gangetic plains. They were formed and are fed by three major Himalayan rivers: the Kosi, the Narayani, and the Karnali as well as smaller rivers rising below the permanent snowline. This region has a subtropical to tropical climate. The outermost range of foothills called Shiwalik or Churia Range cresting at 700 to 1,000 metres (2,297 to 3,281 ft) marks the limit of the Gangetic Plain, however broad, low valleys called Inner Tarai (Bhitri Tarai Uptyaka) lie north of these foothills in several places.

The Hill Region (Pahad) abuts the mountains and varies from 800 to 4,000 metres (2,625 to 13,123 ft) in altitude with progression from subtropical climates below 1,200 metres (3,937 ft) to alpine climates above 3,600 metres (11,811 ft). The Mahabharat Lekh reaching 1,500 to 3,000 metres (4,921 to 9,843 ft) is the southern limit of this region, with subtropical river valleys and "hills" alternating to the north of this range. Population density is high in valleys but notably less above 2,000 metres (6,562 ft) and very low above 2,500 metres (8,202 ft) where snow occasionally falls in winter.

The Mountain Region (Parbat), situated in the Great Himalayan Range, makes up the northern part of Nepal. It contains the highest elevations in the world including 8,848 metres (29,029 ft) height Mount Everest (Sagarmatha in Nepali) on the border with China. Seven other of the world's eight thousand metre peaks are in Nepal or on its border with China: Lhotse, Makalu, Cho Oyu, Kanchenjunga, Dhaulagiri, Annapurna and Manaslu.

The arid and barren Himalayan landscape.

Nepal has five climatic zones, broadly corresponding to the altitudes. The tropical and subtropical zones lie below 1,200 metres (3,937 ft), the temperate zone 1,200 to 2,400 metres (3,937 to 7,874 ft), the cold zone 2,400 to 3,600 metres (7,874 to 11,811 ft), the subarctic zone 3,600 to 4,400 metres (11,811 to 14,436 ft), and the Arctic zone above 4,400 metres (14,436 ft).

Nepal experiences five seasons: summer, monsoon, autumn, winter and spring. The Himalaya blocks cold winds from Central Asia in the winter and forms the northern limit of the monsoon wind patterns. In a land once thickly forested, deforestation is a major problem in all regions, with resulting erosion and degradation of ecosystems.

Nepal is popular for mountaineering, containing some of the highest and most challenging mountains in the world, including Mount Everest. Technically, the south-east ridge on the Nepali side of the mountain is easier to climb; so, most climbers prefer to trek to Everest through Nepal. Morever Nepal has 8 of the top 10 highest mountains of the world with postcard beauty.

Federal Democratic Nepal

Nepal, (officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal), is a himalayan country in South Asia and, as of 2010, the world's most recent nation to become a republic. It is bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India. With an area of 147,181 square kilometres (56,827 sq mi) and a population of approximately 30 million, Nepal is the world's 93rd largest country by land mass and the 41st most populous country. Kathmandu is the nation's capital and the country's largest metropolitan city.

Nepal is a country of highly diverse and rich geography, culture, and religions. The mountainous north has eight of the world's ten highest mountains, including the highest, Sagarmatha, known in English as Mount Everest. The fertile and humid south is heavily urbanized. It contains over 240 peaks more than 20,000 ft (6,096 m) above sea level.

By some measures, Hinduism is practised by a larger majority of people in Nepal than in any other nation.Buddhism, though a minority faith in the country, is linked historically with Nepal as the birthplace of the Buddha. About half of the population live below the international poverty line of US$1.25 a day.

A monarchy throughout most of its history, Nepal was ruled by the Shah dynasty of kings from 1768, when Prithvi Narayan Shah unified its many small kingdoms. In 2006, however, a decade-long People's Revolution by the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) along with several weeks of mass protests by all major political parties of Nepal culminated in a peace accord, and the ensuing elections for the constituent assembly voted overwhelmingly in favor of the abdication of the last Nepali monarch Gyanendra Shah and the establishment of a federal democratic republic in May 28, 2008. The first President of Nepal, Ram Baran Yadav, was sworn in on 23 July 2008.