The Cabinet has given a green signal for the Tourism Ministry proposal to extend the climbing permits of hundreds of mountaineers who had been forced to abandon their expeditions last year due to avalanches on the Himalaya triggered by the April 25 earthquake. The permits will be extended for two years.

After the Finance Ministry's nod two weeks ago, the Cabinet meeting on Monday okayed the proposal tabled by the Tourism Ministry.

Last year, 103 teams consisting of 801 individuals had received permits to climb various peaks in the Himalaya. Among them were 357 mountaineers (18 of them Nepalis) who had obtained Everest climbing permits.

Officials at the Department of Tourism said that the mountaineers, including Everest aspirants, who had abandoned their summit bids last year, had been waiting for clearance to make fresh attempts this spring.

The world’s highest peak was closed for two consecutive years in 2014 and 2015 due to deadly avalanches. On April 18, 2014, an avalanche on Everest near Everest Base Camp killed 16 Nepali guides.

Rescuers pulled out 13 bodies in the next two days, while the remaining three were never recovered as search and rescue operations were called off due to “too much risk”. Subsequently, the expedition was called off.

The first post-avalanche ascent happened on May 23, 2014 when Chinese climber Wang Jing reached the summit of Everest. However, her ascent sparked controversy as she had bypassed the Khumbu Icefall by helicopter.

The government had extended the Everest climbing permits until 2019 for those climbers who were forced to abandon the mission in 2014. Nearly 334 mountaineers were issued climbing permits, and they have been allowed to return to the peak at any time until 2019.

Again in 2015, the April 25 earthquake set off avalanches killing 19 climbers, including high-altitude guides and helpers at base camp and the Khumbu Icefall. There were no Everest bids in the spring of 2015.

The Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee had then recommended to the government to extend the climbing permits of the 2015 Everest aspirants until 2016, or further into the future.