Nepal today started distributing new identity cards for all who have scaled Mount Everest as part of the celebrations marking the Diamond Jubilee of the first human ascent to the world's highest summit.
The first batch of identity cards were distributed to famous Sherpa mountaineers, without whose help scaling the 8,848 metre-high summit is virtually impossible.
"We want that all Everest summiteers, irrespective of their nationalities, live a dignified life and that you will be known for your bravery in your society and around the world through the identity cards," said Tourism Secretary of Nepal Sushil Ghimire.
Ghimire was addressing a special function organised to mark the 60th anniversary of mankind's first ascent on Mount Everest on May 29, 1953 by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay.
On this occasion, the prestigious Tenzing-Hillary Mountaineering Award was given to the Everest Summiteers' Association of Nepal for its outstanding work in the Himalayas, especially in the fields of environmental preservation and rescuing mountaineers.
Nepal's Tourism Minister Ram Kumar Shrestha stamped the first batch of commemorative postal stamps commemorating Hillary and Norgay's expedition.
