Nepal's cabinet meet at highest altitude

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                    Government of Nepal today held a meeting of its cabinet at an altitude of 5,250 meters on a place called Kalapathar, i.e. black rock in order to draw global attention of world community on the gravity of climatic change. Similar cabinet meeting was held by Maldivian Government in the month of October, 2009, when the entire cabinet of Mohammad Nasheed held meeting under the ocean. It was first such attempt and exercise to draw international attention.

                  Madhav Kumar Nepal, the PM of Nepal, the Himalayan tiny nascent democracy, along with all the 21 members of his cabinet assembled at Kalapathar, a flat area at 5250 meters altitude next to Mt Everest, and signed a document aimed at drawing global attention on climate change just a couple of days ahead of Copenhagen Summit . All the ministers were equipped with necessary things like thick jackets, wind proof gears and woolen hats. They were first taken to Lukla, a place some 2800 meters above the sea level to acclimatize them to higher altitude by helicopter.

            Many people called it as a gimmick and wastage of public money. The ongoing media hype owing to ensuing Copenhagen summit has come as business opportunity for many and arranging such trips by private agencies are being seen as a publicity stunts and nothing more than that.  Nonetheless, the media hype and environmentalists repeated warnings on climate change and global warming have helped awareness towards climate change permeate into the minds and heats of common people also, who hitherto were least informed and less concerned about all such problems.