But it could earn some brownie points, from the public at least, for initiating action against five of Nepal’s dreaded gangsters who enjoy political patronage or are members of political parties.

On Sunday, the government’s department of money laundering investigation (DMLI) filed charge sheets against Abhishek Giri, Chakre Milan, Deepak Manange, Ganesh Lama and Parshuram Basnet in a Kathmandu special court.

The charge sheets accuse the gangsters of amassing assets valued at around NRs. 63 crores (Rs. 39 crores) through illegal means and without having any legitimate source of income.

This is stated to be the first instance of any government action to bring these gangsters known for indulging in extortion, smuggling and other criminal activities to book.

Of the five, Chakre Milan is the only one lodged in a Kathmandu jail on charges of drug smuggling. The authorities have no clue about whereabouts of the other four believed to be operating from abroad.

Seeking action against them as per provisions of the Money Laundering Act, the department has also named spouses and close relatives of the gangsters in the charge sheet.

Confiscation of their property and assets in Kathmandu and other parts of the country is also being sought.

On Monday, the court issued summons against all five and asked them to present themselves within 15 days—failing which the court could pass verdicts against them and initiate legal measures.

Besides being the first instance of action against them, the case has generated widespread publicity as most of the accused are important members of prominent political parties.

Ganesh Lama is a central committee member of Madhesi Peoples Rights Forum (Democratic); the party headed by Bijay Kumar Gachchadhar, former deputy prime minister in the Maoist-Madhesi coalition.

Parshuram Basnet belongs to Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist), the party which had headed two governments since the 2008 Constituent Assembly elections.

Reports say Abhishek Giri is close to Nepali Congress, the country’s oldest party, and Deepak Manange is stated to have links with Rastriya Prajatantra Party, a party with leanings towards the former royal family.

Government action against these ‘dons’ might fall through as police failed to trace them during search operations prior to filing of the charge sheets.

All of them have been arrested in the past under various charges, but have managed to get released on bail allegedly due to their political affiliations and pressure on the police to set them free.

Now the Khil Raj Regmi-led government comprising former bureaucrats seems interested to do what successive ‘political’ governments have failed.

Interestingly, some of these gangsters like Chakre Milan and Deepak Manage have special pages on social networking sites like Facebook where they have hundreds of admirers.

But for the newer breed of gangsters, underworld dons from India still appear to make good business sense.

On Sunday, the Criminal Investigation Bureau arrested a 32-year-old who was extorting money from Kathmandu businessmen posing as Chota Rajan. This was the second such arrest in eight months.

What started out as a weekend familiarisation trip expected to be filled with adventure and fun turned out to be three days of unanticipated irritations for them with almost everyone wishing a quick end.

The idea mooted by Nepal’s foreign ministry to “maintain cordial relations between the host country and the diplomatic community” and possible growth in tourism failed because of shoddy execution.

Last year the ministry had taken a group of diplomats to the pristine Rara Lake in Mugu district and this year a rafting and trekking trip was planned to continue with the initiative.

But none of the diplomats and journalists who agreed to be part of this outing anticipated it to be full of unpleasant surprises.

The first evening passed without a glitch at a resort in Dhulikhel, located 30 kms south-east of Kathmandu. Trouble started next morning during the rafting session across Sunkoshi from Dolalghat.

The course stated to be of two hours extended to three and half with none having any inkling of the destination. By the time it ended at Lambagar everyone was scorched and exhausted.

As the group was behind schedule, everyone quickly downed their lunches on the banks of the river and proceeded to the next task. But instead of the respite of an easy trail another surprise awaited.

It was an uphill climb of nearly 1000 metres to Maule Chaur – the resting point for the night. Burnt out from the rafting experience, many diplomats opted out and drove there instead.

Those brave enough to take the challenge had an arduous task. The Sri Lankan ambassador was ‘rescued’ soon after the start and many others exhausted by the climb were transported to the campsite by bus.

None were informed the trek would be back breaking. There were no vehicles at hand and many diplomats had to request the organisers several times before the bus arrived.

It was dark by the time the group reached the camping site. But instead of arranging for some drinks to soothe everyone’s frayed nerves and muscles, the organisers had other surprises in store.

The group was ‘entertained’ to a cultural programme by students of a local school. The performers in school uniforms were made to wait for hours on a holiday to put up a show for the distinguished guests.

By the time dinner was served at 10pm, one and half hours behind schedule, most diplomats had made up their minds to leave the next morning instead of continuing with another day of trekking.

After a rainy and windy night in their tents, very few went ahead with the three and half hours of uphill trek to Narayanthan, a scenic pilgrimage site where lunch boxes were being doled out.

Those who could took their vehicles and fled back to Dhulikhel or Kathmandu from the camping site itself while many others gave up on the itinerary and came downhill on their own.

What could have been a pleasant trip ended as misadventure due to careless planning and implementation. It won’t be surprising if most diplomats refuse to participate in the next outing.

It’s not easy selling sour mangoes to same clients twice.

That hasn’t stopped political players from oiling their poll machineries to make fresh promises of a New Nepal to disillusioned voters. Registering of parties began last week and if all goes well the polls expected in June could be held in November.

One noticeable aspect that has emerged in this pre-poll season is the outpouring of love by some prominent leaders towards Madhes-the Terai region of the country bordering Bihar and Uttar Pradesh and its residents, called Madhesis or Madhesiyas.

Affection for this community, who have close socio-cultural ties with residents across the border due to similarities like language, customs and attire — Madhesis are also called ‘dhotis’ (a derogatory term used by the hill folk because of their dress) — has witnessed an upsurge.

The first one to publicly declare his love was Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’, former prime minister and chairman of Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) — the largest party in the Constituent Assembly dissolved last May without framing the constitution.

Prachanda, who won the last polls from two seats in Kathmandu and Rolpa districts (none from Madhes), has been making statements about how he would contest election from Madhes this time around.

Not to be left behind another former prime minister Madhav Kumar Nepal of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist) declared that he was a Madhesi and would contest from there. Incidentally, he had lost from two seats (Kathmandu and Rautahat) in the previous election.

Prachanda managed to woo Ram Chandra Jha, an influential Madhesi leader from CPN (UML), to his fold recently. The party is now actively working on a plan to boost its presence in the region and even considering fielding other senior leaders from there.

The sudden spurt of Madhes affection is not surprising. As per the 2011 census, this region accounts for more than 50% of the country’s total population of 26.5 million. This was an increase of 5% from the previous census conducted a decade ago.

Therefore it makes pure political sense for parties who don’t have strong bases in the region to try and win the affection of this sizeable vote bank, who feel they have been sidelined for ages by those belonging from the Himal and Pahar belts—the two mountainous regions.

However, the task of winning over Madhesi votes won’t be easy. Prachanda’s party had a coalition with United Democratic Madhesi Front, an umbrella group of five Madhes-based parties, in the last government. He wants this partnership to transform into electoral alliance.

But Madhesi parties, which formed the fourth biggest block in the dissolved CA after UCPN (M), Nepali Congress and CPN (UML), have other plans. They say there is no chance of an alliance with Maoists.

Rajendra Mahato, president of Sadbhawana Party, a Madhesi party which was part of the Maoist-led coalition government headed by Baburam Bhattarai, said recently that Prachanda’s Madhes love was one-sided and voters from the region won’t fall for such utterances.

Instead Madhesi parties are busy planning a merger or alliance among themselves to retain their stronghold in the region and keep bigger parties at bay. Chairman of Terai Madhes Democratic Party Mahanta Thakur says such a move is needed to prevent division of Madhesi votes.

Though they made a big impact during the 2008 election mainly as a result of an agitation against being treated as second-class citizens, Madhesi parties broke up into several factions after the polls largely due to personal ambitions taking precedence over the Madhes cause.

Now with elections round the corner, these parties are trying to cobble up some sort of unity. “Preliminary talks are underway at various levels among Madhesi parties. We are hopeful of an alliance before the election as our agenda is common,” said Thakur.

If that happens, Madhesi parties could again emerge as a significant block and play an important role in formation of the next government in case none of the three major parties manage to secure absolute majority on their own.

The former prime minister who now heads the high-level political mechanism entrusted with conducting the next election maintained that the main purpose of his visit was to seek India’s help for Nepal’s development and to conduct the polls effectively.

He also issued a ‘threat’ that if New Delhi fails to meet Kathmandu’s demand for aid, Nepal would not be supportive to India’s security concerns like the influx of terrorists, arms, drugs and fake Indian currency notes through the open 1800 km long border between the neighbours.

Having recently returned from a China trip, Prachanda also didn’t forget to mention that he would push for a tripartite cooperation pact involving Nepal and its two bigger neighbours India and China to fast track development in the Himalayan nation.

Wary of the Maoist leader’s closeness to China at India’s expense, New Delhi has given a thumb down to the idea.

Try as he might, the Maoist leader couldn’t convince many here that his India trip after a five year gap had much to do with seeking aid – more so when he represents just another political party and not the current interim government headed by the country’s chief justice.

The main objective behind the trip was to regain the confidence and trust of the political leadership in New Delhi that he had lost following his resignation from the PM’s post in 2009.

A cartoon in a local newspaper got it right when it showed Prachanda carrying a big can of massage oil as he is about to board a New Delhi bound flight. Another reported how he launched a “charm offensive” once he landed there.

It is worth recalling that Prachanda had launched an all-out attack against India, accusing it of interfering in the country’s internal affairs – something that rubbed New Delhi the wrong way.

The tirade continued for some months before he finally realised that it’s far more prudent to be on the good books of the mandarins of South Block. The change of heart was also at the prodding of his friends in Beijing who advised him to mend fences with New Delhi.

Soon, he started pronouncing his love for India and tried hard to make a trip and meet the “masters” he had once targeted. But given his tendency to change stances at the drop of a hat, neither New Delhi nor its embassy in Kathmandu paid any attention to his desire.

In 2011, another Maoist-led government headed by Baburam Bhattarai (considered by some as pro-India) came to power. The rise of his vice-chairman to the top post caused much heartburn and Prachanda became more eager than ever to make amends.

But his dream of a Delhi visit remained just that. Last year his party removed the ‘enemy number one’ tag it had given to the southern neighbour and reiterated commitment to multiparty democracy and progressive nationalism. Things started changing after that.

Happy at finally making the trip, Prachanda tried to convince all and sundry in New Delhi that he and his party are not against India. In fact he declared that his party wants Nepal-India relations to become the best example of bilateral ties anywhere.

It’s easier to build bridges burnt earlier than to fix a trust deficit. It will remain to be seen whether New Delhi believes him or waits for results of the next election to make its views a bit more transparent than it usually does in its Nepal dealings.

Every climbing season on Everest is special, but diamond jubilee celebration of the first ascent has made this year’s preparations extra special for climbers from across the globe.

Nepal government is planning several events including felicitating all Everest summiteers at a special function. They will miss New Zealander George Lowe, the last surviving climber of the first successful expedition, who passed away last month at the age of 89.

Veterans, debutants, Sherpas, climbing guides as well as researchers are already at the Everest base camp acclimatizing themselves to the elements and making initial forays to the higher camps.

Heavy snowfall on Monday and Tuesday failed to dampen spirits of those who are awaiting the small window provided by weather gods in May to make their final attempts at the peak.

This season 29 teams comprising 315 foreigners have been granted permission by the Nepal government to scale Everest from the south side. Ten teams will attempt Everest glory from the Tibet side.

Among those who are getting ready for the tough climb ahead is Yuichiro Miura, an 80-year-old Japanese climber who aims to become the oldest man to achieve that feat.

This won’t be his first go at the mountain. In 2003 Miura had climbed Everest at the age of 70, becoming the oldest person to do so. But his record was overtaken four seasons later by a fellow Japanese.

His attempt to reclaim the record failed again in 2008 when he reached the peak a day after Nepali veteran Min Bahadur Sherchan—who at 76 became the oldest to reach the summit.

Last season another Japanese climber Tamae Watanabe became the oldest women atop Everest at the age of 73.

Another woman who has her sight on the record books is 30-year-old American climber Melissa Arnot who is attempting to reach the peak for the fifth time—a record for women.

This year will be a special one for US climbers as they will be commemorating the 50th anniversary of the first successful American ascent by Jim Whittaker along with Sherpa Nawang Gombu.

Several Indians are also seeking Everest glory but the focus is likely to be on the joint Indian Army-Nepal Army team of 33 climbers who will be bring back garbage from the mountain besides scaling the peak.

Attention would also be on seven students of Lawrence School, Sanawar. The teenagers are trying to repeat the feat of Arjun Vajpai, India’s youngest Everest hero who scaled the peak at 16 two seasons ago.

Arjun meanwhile has moved on to other peaks. Following his Everest ascent he has become the youngest ever to climb Manaslu and Lhotse (both 8,000 m plus peaks). This season he is attempting Makalu—one of the 14 peaks above 8,000 metres.

Fears of Sikkimisation (yes, it’s a word used frequently in Nepal) of Nepal -meaning takeover of the sovereign nation by the bigger southern neighbour is still part of the discourse in political circles and media.

Political parties who see a grand Indian design in everything bad that happens in Nepal use this term frequently to rouse patriotic fervor. And many common Nepalis do believe in Nepal’s imminent Sikkimisation.

Last month Dev Gurung, secretary of the Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist, the faction which split from Pushpa Kamal Dahal led Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), said Sikkimisation has already begun and a violent uprising is the only way to prevent its spread.

This fear is not new. A section in Nepal has been wary of India’s so called Sikkimisation plans for close to four decades now as the recently released Kissinger Cables by whistleblower website WikiLeaks show.

The huge cache of US diplomatic documents circulated between 1973 and 1976 include quite a few cables which indicate how Nepal viewed events unfurling in Sikkim during that period.

A confidential cable sent from the US Embassy in Kathmandu in April 1973 mentions about the Nepal government’s “understandable and predictable” reaction of not making an official statement on disturbances in Sikkim for fear of offending either India or China.

The cable details how four Nepali foreign ministry officials expressed “intense interest” in the position of the great powers including China on the issue during a social gathering and showed feelings of fraternal sympathy for the Nepali majority population in Sikkim.

The officials were also anxious to get Soviet reaction to the developments and asserted that in view of close ties between New Delhi and Moscow, India would not “swallow” Sikkim without a “green light” from the Soviets.

Another cable sent the same month details US Deputy Secretary of State Kenneth Rush’s meeting with King Birendra in Kathmandu in which the monarch opined that there were two points of view in Nepal regarding the events in Sikkim.

“One, that it was initiated by India, in which case it would affect others in area, and, two, that situation arose more or less out of internal problems” (in Sikkim),” the cable states.

The situation mentioned is the riots against his unpopular rule which led Palden Thondup Namgyal, the Chogyal (ruler), to seek protection from India.

Birendra told Rush that he was “inclined to believe that it was 50-50 proposition” and that Nepal was closely watching the outcome of events in Sikkim to determine its meaning.

In another meeting with US diplomats a month later Birendra said Indians held all cards in Sikkim and took advantage of the situation. “He (Birendra) said he did not know how (the) present arrangement will work out, but he thinks there will be future troubles in Sikkim,” said the cable.

A cable sent in July 1974 on ‘Nepali view of Sikkimese Events’ notes the total absence of reporting in Nepali press on developments in Sikkim and mentions it could be due to direct guidance from the palace to local journalists.

But common Nepalis were keen on happenings in Sikkim and avidly read reporting in Indian press on the subject. The cable speaks of Nepal government’s concern on how Sikkim could become a sanctuary for activities of Nepali Congress, which was plotting to usher democracy in Nepal.

“Most sophisticated Nepalese recognise that there is no direct connection between politics in Sikkim and Nepal. Nonetheless, there will be some concern that events in Gangtok represent direct Indian intervention in neighbouring Himalayan principality, and Nepalese are always quick to draw parallels between their own situation and those of other Himalayan states,” it said.

Another cable sent the same month mentions of “unhappiness” among Nepalis at various levels due to India’s 1974 nuclear explosion and intervention in Sikkim. “These events have revived fears of Indian hegemonistic designs raised at time of 1971 Bangladesh crisis”, the cable said.

But after remaining mum for over a year, Nepal gave its first official reaction to events in Sikkim when the country’s foreign minister said in August 1974 that it was Nepal’s “unshakable stand that there should be no outside interference in the internal affairs of any country”.

The cable noted that the minister’s statement after weeks of studied silence “had effect of letting genie out of the bottle”.

A month later reacting to news of Sikkim getting parliamentary representation in India, the same minister made a statement wishing for Sikkim to “continue to make progress through the preservation of its traditional entity,” said a September 1974 cable.

The same cable mentions of unanimous condemnation of Indian action in Nepali media and protests by students outside the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu. The cable noted the Sikkim issue could become a contentious one in Indo-Nepal bilateral relations.

A subsequent cable speaks of a 5000-strong student demonstration against India in Kathmandu where traffic was blocked at several places and shops closed in protest against happenings in Sikkim. The cable notes that the well organised campaign had approval from the Nepal government.

During a meeting with a senior US diplomat in New York in September 1974, Nepal’s foreign minister said Nepalis were worried by Indian absorption of Sikkim, which he described as “cleverly managed and deliberately staged”. He also stressed that “sentiments on Sikkim ran very deep in Nepal”.

But sensing New Delhi growing unhappiness at such statements and anti-India protests in Kathmandu, news on Sikkim slowly started disappearing from Kathmandu’s major dailies and protests by students also came down in subsequent months.

And when King Birendra met Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in New Delhi on September 30, 1975 neither sides raised the issue of Sikkim during the “frank and realistic” deliberations.

With Olympic legend and eminent gay rights activist Greg Louganis as chief guest, it was a big achievement for Nepal’s nearly 2-3 million strong LGBT population. But subsequent months haven’t been good for LGBTs who expected the games to usher positive change.

Attacks on the community, non-renewal of license of Blue Diamond Society—the umbrella organisation fighting for LGBT rights and failure of police to provide protection to this sexual minority have made rights bodies appeal to the Nepal government to take corrective steps.

In Kathmandu there have been reports of members of the community receiving threatening phone calls, being stalked and kept in detention under the Public Offence Act – a vaguely worded law under which people can be jailed for 25 days or released after paying a hefty bail amount.

Surprisingly all this is happening despite a 2007 Supreme Court verdict, which asked the government to provide equal rights to the LGBT community. Due to government inaction they still face problems in getting jobs, citizenship certificates or to open bank accounts.

“The LGBT rights movement in Nepal is a regional and international leader, but is under serious threat,” Graeme Reid, director of LGBT Rights Program at Human Rights Watch, a New York based rights body stated in a release issued on Monday.

The statement lists cases of police high handedness, lack of action on complaints and continued threats which have resulted in a climate of fear preventing LGBTs from congregating in public, conducting HIV prevention activities or expressing their views freely.

Worried at the plight of the community UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, wrote to Nepal’s newly appointed foreign minister Madhav Ghimire last month urging him to stop the harassment and take steps to provide them equal rights.

Both Pillay and HRW have asked the government to renew the license of BDS, the country’s first LGBT rights body founded by former lawmaker Sunil Babu Panta, so that work on HIV prevention and other activities can continue without delay.

Unless the interim government takes measures to protect rights of the LGBT community – the positives witnessed in past years like more acceptance in society may soon get eroded.

There’s no dispute however over the fact that he had arrived in Kathmandu from Pakistan and was about to enter India through the Gorakhpur border when he landed in police net. Shah was not the first militant from Jammu and Kashmir who has followed the route.

Since 2010 nearly 300 former militants have returned to their home state, Jammu and Kashmir, from Pakistan to take part in the state government’s rehabilitation process. Many of them have travelled via Nepal and used to porous Indo-Nepal border—for their return.

Though the method has no official sanction of Indian and Pakistani governments, intelligence authorities of both countries are aware of it and have seemed to allow it to be used by disillusioned militants willing to return home and rebuild their lives.

But the Nepal route in used not just by militants willing to surrender and lead normal lives. The same path is being followed by many active militants, both from Jammu and Kashmir and Pakistan, to enter India and carry out terror strikes across the country.

US diplomatic cables released by whistleblower website WikiLeaks in December 2010 mentions how 16 terrorists entered India via Nepal and then proceeded to Jammu and Kashmir in the first six months of 2009.

Former Indian Army chief General Deepak Kapoor made this assertion during a meeting of the then US National Security Advisor James Jones with defence minister AK Antony and defence ministry officials in New Delhi in June 2009.

Replying to a query by Jones on the percentage of infiltrators from Pakistan that manage to get through, Kapoor estimated it to be around 15-20% while citing the challenge posed by India’s open border with Nepal.

Indian authorities believe that the flow of militants using the same route is still continuing—with aid from the Pakistani embassy in Kathmandu. The porous border with Nepal is also believed to be used by militants to escape after carrying out terror strikes in India.

Besides militants the open Indo-Nepal border is used to ferry fake Indian currency from Pakistan to India. The same route is taken to smuggle arms into India—-both fake currency and arms are then used to fund militant activities and carry out terrorist attacks.

Nepal has been a safe haven of sorts for not just militants from Jammu and Kashmir but also for terror outfits of north east India.

In December 2010, Rajkumar Meghen, chairman of the banned United National Liberation Front (UNLF) of Manipur was arrested by a team of National Intelligence Agency (NIA) and Bihar Police from East Champaran when he was about to board a Nepal-bound bus.

He allegedly had a Nepali name-Raju Shrestha, which he used as an alias while he was in Nepal.

Two months earlier, Anthony Shing aka Ningkhan Shimray, the foreign affairs chief of Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland (Issac-Muivah) was arrested at the Tribhuwan International Airport in Kathmandu.

The same year in July another NE ultra, Niranjan Hojai, ‘commander-in-chief’ of the Dima Halam Daogah (Jewel) group of Assam, was also arrested in Nepal and handed over to Indian authorities.

Both Hojai and his ‘boss’ Jewel Garlossa who was arrested in Bangalore in June 2010 had properties in Nepal including hotels. The later also had a Nepali wife and fake Nepali passports.

The 58-year-old seemed relieved to have left the position that has been the main bone of contention among political parties in Nepal since dissolution of the Constituent Assembly in May. It was also the reason for the prolonged political and constitutional crisis.

A day after leaving his official residence in Baluwatar, Bhattarai told media persons that his tenure was successful as it was able to take the much delayed peace process, which involved integration of former Maoist rebels into Nepal Army, to a near conclusion.

But instead of accepting responsibility for failing to deliver the new constitution and hold elections on the date announced by his government (when Constituent Assembly got dissolved), the senior Maoist leader put the blame on the opposition for those failures.

Though achievements in the peace process are noteworthy, Bhattarai’s inability to promulgate the statute and conduct polls are the two chief letdowns by which his tenure—one of the longest in Nepal’s recent history—is likely to be remembered by posterity.

The scenario however was very different in August 2011 when he got elected as prime minister. Even before his election Bhattarai was seen as the one who had the ability to deliver the constitution—he had won all opinion polls on who’s the best candidate for the PM’s post.

And he didn’t disappoint, initially. In his first address to the nation, 18 days after assuming charge, he termed his ‘achievements’ a film trailer and assured more would follow. His decision to use a locally-assembled SUV as his official vehicle endeared him to many.

A month into office Bhattarai told BBC that if he failed to complete the peace process and make the first draft of the constitution within November 2011, he won’t like to continue as the prime minister. But as subsequent events showed, he failed in both tasks and yet remained in his post.

Bhattarai’s credibility and image got further eroded when he refused to budge, first after dissolution of the Constituent Assembly without a constitution and then when his government failed to hold the next parliamentary elections on the date he had himself announced.

By remaining glued to his post, Bhattarai prolonged the political and constitutional crisis. And his ‘support’ to party colleagues found guilty of human rights violations during the civil war alienated him from the masses who were overjoyed when he took charge.

When he left office last week, Nepal was in no better state than when he joined. Though he would like to state otherwise, Bhattarai’s tenure, which started with a bang, ended in a whimper—–not entirely due to his faults.

And the reason for their concern is the fall in number of tourists from India—Nepal’s largest “source market”—-for two consecutive months as indicated in figures released by Nepal Tourism Board.

In January the number of Indian tourists declined by a sharp 26% and the figure continued to drop to 18% in February in comparison to the previous year. The trend was similar in December 2012, which saw a 10% decline in the number of Indian tourists.

Annual figures of Indian tourists, however, present a different picture. Last year saw nearly 165,000 Indians coming to Nepal by air—an increase from the 2011 figure of 149,000.

Indians account for around 25% to 30% of the total number of foreign tourists who visit Nepal by air. Since both countries share an open border there’s no accurate data about the numerous other Indian tourists who enter Nepal by road.

Comparatively the number of tourists from China-ranked second after India in terms of tourists—stood at 53,373 for 2012, a decline from the previous year’s figure of 61,917.

Though number of Chinese tourists for this year has been encouraging—February saw a big jump of 135%—hotels and travel and tour operators are bothered by the continuing decline of Indian tourists.

News reports quoting tourism industry experts blame overpriced hotel rooms and lack of innovative marketing by the government as reasons why price conscious Indian tourists are seeking other destinations in Middle East and South East Asia for their holidays.

Lack of political stability and sudden ‘bandhs’ and ban on vehicular movement imposed by various political parties are other factors why Indian tourists are looking beyond Nepal.

To arrest this negative trend NTB is planning to appoint representatives in India and China to ensure large number of tourists from both countries. Promotional activities to make Nepal more attractive to Indian tourists are also being drawn up.

Unless these are framed with Indian tourists in mind and implemented soon the rest of 2013 could continue to hurt the Nepal tourism industry.