Unlicensed guides to be barred from trekking areas from Jan

Trekking Agencies´ Association of Nepal (TAAN) and different unions of trekking workers have agreed to bar unlicensed trekking guides from leading groups from January 2015.

Kul Bahadur Gurung, second vice president of TAAN, said the decision was taken with the objective of controlling illegal operation of trekking business.

TAAN has also increased daily wage of trekkers by Rs 250 to Rs 300 effective from October for a period of two years.

According to Gurung, TAAN revises daily wage of trekking workers every two years. “This new wage will come into effect from October,” he added.

According to TAAN, daily wage of guides, assistant guides, cook and kitchen assistant have been increased by Rs 200 and porter (assistant worker) by Rs 300. With the fresh hike in daily wage, guides, assistant guides and assistant workers in Langtang and Annapurna region will get Rs 1,250, Rs 1,100 and Rs 1,150 per day, respectively. Similarly, guides, assistant guides and porters in the Everest region will get Rs 1,350, Rs 1,250 and Rs 1,150 per day, respectively. At present, they are getting Rs 1,100, Rs 1,000 and Rs 850 per day, respectively.

Likewise, guides, cooks and kitchen assistants going for camping trek will now get Rs 1,050, Rs 1,000 and Rs 950 per day, respectively, up from Rs 800, Rs 750 and Rs 700 per day. Similarly, assistant guides and assistant workers will now receive Rs 950 and Rs 1,150 per day, respectively.

TAAN has also agreed to form Worker´s Welfare Fund as per the demand of trekking workers. “We will deposit a minimum of Rs 15 million from TIMS Fund as seed money into the fund under the Social Security Scheme of the government,” added Gurung.

Similarly, TAAN has also asked its member companies to provide Rs 8,000 annually to guide, cook and Sherpas as festival allowance once a year. The association has also said it would raise wages of guides and porters going on mountaineering expeditions.

TAAN and trekking workers have agreed to implement the provision of ´No trekking without guide or porter´, according to Gurung.