MUSTANG: The Nepali Army and the Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP) in Jomsom have conducted an extensive cleanup campaign along the Round Annapurna Circuit trekking route.
The cleanup covered the section from Thorong Pass to Thorong Phedi on the Manang-Mustang border and was carried out by the Army High Altitude and Mountain Warfare Training School in Kaisang in coordination with ACAP Jomsom.
The army undertook the initiative while providing mountain warfare and disaster response training to personnel deployed in high-altitude and remote hill regions. As part of the exercise, trainees collected waste along the popular trekking route used by tourists traveling from Manang into Mustang.
According to Rajesh Gupta, chief of ACAP Jomsom, around 170 army trainees participated in the campaign, collecting garbage from Thorong Pass, situated at an altitude of 5,416 meters, down to Thorong Phedi (also known as Chamber Ground) at an altitude of 4,200 meters.
The collected waste was packed into 40 bags and transported to the waste collection center along the trekking route before being taken to the roadhead at Thorong Phedi. ACAP subsequently transported the waste to its office in Jomsom for proper management.
Under the Annapurna Conservation Area, the trekking route is widely used by foreign visitors traveling from Besisahar in Lamjung through Manang and into Mustang. The Thorong Pass section of the Annapurna Circuit is regarded as one of Nepal’s most challenging and popular trekking routes, attracting large numbers of international trekkers, particularly during the spring and autumn seasons.
Gupta said managing waste left behind by trekkers remains a major responsibility for conservation authorities. ACAP noted that the army trainees made a significant contribution to environmental conservation and the promotion of sustainable tourism through their cleanup efforts on the high Himalayan trail.
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