Everest conqueror Hillary dies at 88
11 Jan, 2008

Sir Edmund Hillary, the unassuming beekeeper who conquered Mount Everest to win renown as one of the 20th century's greatest adventurers, died Friday. He was 88.

Hillary died at Auckland Hospital at 9 a.m. Friday, New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark's office said. Though ailing in his later years, he remained active, but no cause of death was immediately given.

The gangling New Zealander devoted much of his life to aiding the mountain people of Nepal and took his fame in stride, preferring to be called "Ed" and considering himself an "ordinary person with ordinary qualities."

TIMS to be implemented from New Year 2008
25 Dec 2007

After many months of struggle and lobbying with the government, we have finally succeeded in introducing the TIMS. TAAN is hopeful that the new system would discourage illegal operation in trekking business,’ Jyoti Adhikari, president of TAAN, told a press conference and general convention of TAAN organised on 23rd December. Adhikari further informed that the TIMS mechanism would help secure business for government authorized trekking agents as it discourages independent trekking leaders that were robbing the trekking agents off their business.

TAAN has devised separate TIMS certificates for Organised and Individual Trekkers.

For the effective distribution of TIMS certificates, TAAN will use the offices of all its member agencies as TIMS Counter. Trekking agencies that aren’t affiliated with TAAN, however, have to get TIMS Card from either TAAN Secretariat or NTB. Similarly, TAAN’s Pokhara Chapter member agencies of TAAN Pokhara Chapter will distribute TIMS Card in Pokhara.

‘The agencies have to file the database of trekkers to TAAN Secretariat within a day. The database will become useful to rescue the trekkers during the emergencies. Also it will help us to ascertain the number of trekkers in a particular trekking route,’ Adhikari added.

TAAN’s announcement to implement the TIMS was accepted by thunderous applause of its general members. The members requested the TAAN Executive Committee to fix the criteria for individual trekkers, lobby in maintaining one-window policy for all concerned services and the effective publicity of the TIMS.

TAAN has said that it would collect Rs. 100 per trekkers from the trekking agency against the TIMS. TAAN intends to use the collected amount for rescue, tourism awareness, publicity and administrative expenses.

Speaking on the occasion, Lila Bahadur Baniya, manager at NTB, said that NTB would promote the benefits of TIMS through its channels. ‘We are hopeful that the TIMS mechanism will help discourage illegal trekking operation. It will be a win-win situation to both the government and the private sectors,’ Baniya added.

For the effective implementation of TIMS, TAAN has constituted a 15-member TIMS Monitoring Taskforce under the chairmanship of executive member D.B. Gurung.

Speaking on the occasion, TAAN 2nd vice president Bachchu Narayan Shrestha requested the support and cooperation of the general members to successfully implement TIMS.

Source: Trekking Agency Association of Nepal (TAAN)