Kathmandu: Nepal has banned trekking alone in the Langtang area following growing incidents of foreigners, mostly women, who either disappeared or murdered while trekking solo.
"The government has made it mandatory for trekkers travelling in Langtang National Park area situated in North-East Nepal, to be accompanied by either a trekking guide or a trekker," the Tourism Ministry said in a statement.
The provision comes into effect from September 1 and it will be applicable in Langtang area only for the time being, the ministry said.
The decision was made in the wake of growing incidents of foreigners, mostly women, disappearing mainly from the Langtang National Park area while travelling alone without the help of a guide.
A few tourists, who have gone for trekking in Langtang area in the North-East Nepal has gone disappeared recently and that has tarnished the image of the country, said a Tourism Ministry`s spokesman.
A Belgian tourist, Debbie Maveau, 23, was missing for two weeks and later her decomposed body was found at Langtang National Park in June this year.
Similarly, American tourist Lene Sessions, 22, who was threatened with sexual assault by an unidentified man in December last year while 27-year-old Briton, Zisimos Souflas, had disappeared in April when he was travelling solo in Khumbu region.
PTI
