Tourism organizations like Trekking Agencies Association of Nepal (TAAN) and Nepal Association of Tour and Travel Agents (NATTA) has shown serious concern towards international news on fake rescue scam.
The organizations released press statement stating the negative impacts such news will provide in Nepal’s tourism sector that will have huge impact on nearing tourism season.
The news have accused Helicopter companies along with trekking agencies, tour and travel companies and hospitals for performing fake rescue of trekkers and mountain climbers.
Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation had formed investigation committee which has already given report about investigation, which led ministry to form and implement policy on rescue process however the news provided by national and international media over malpractice by helicopter, trekking and hospital sector creating fake rescue scam will make some serious impact on tourism organization.
Helicopter Society of Nepal (HSN) also made serious concern around week back stating that the news article was irresponsible as it has been aiming to mislead and misguide whole mountain trekking sector by stating unnecessary medical evacuation, deliberate attempt to make trekkers sick specially foreigners and criticized about deluding money from the insurance companies.
Couple of weeks back international insurance companies threatened to end travel coverage to Nepal and boycott travelling to Nepal as Nepal Government has not been able to fully crackdown the issue of fake rescue scam and charging huge amount of money from the tourists by intentionally making them ill or sick during their journey to the country.
The organizations placed their concerns as the issue is set to affect the government’s goal which is to bring around 2 million tourists to Nepal in the year 2020 AD as part of the Nepal tourism year-2020 project. In 2018, around 1.1 million tourists visited Nepal among which most of them being related to remote trekking and high altitude trekking.
