KATHMANDU:  The government has allowed Chulu West Peak in Manang for the use of the Nepal Army (NA).

According to a source at the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, the 6,490-meter-high mountain will be used by the NA as a Mountain Warfare Advanced Training at the Army High School.

This is the first time in Nepal that the peak has been assigned to be used by a single body. Earlier, the Nepal Mountaineering Association has been managing and marketing two and a half dozen mountains including this peak.

According to Kedar Bahadur Adhikari, Secretary of the ministry, the peak will now be used for military training.

The government has also waived the fee for using this pick for the Nepal Army. The army has been able to use the mountain for training purposes free of charge for 10 years.

According to the Director-General of the Department, Rudra Singh Tamang, the Council of Ministers has selected the peak and handed it over to the Army. NA has also included mountaineering in special training courses in the highlands.

In Nepal, the government has now opened more than 400 peaks for climbing. Of them, only a few dozen peaks are regularly climbed.