Kathmandu, May 3
The Nepal army and a wildlife expert have dismissed the Indian Army’s claim that its soldiers have spotted footprints of Yeti, the mythical beast found in the Himalayas, near the Makalu base camp, saying they were likely to be of a bear.
On Monday, the Army claimed its mountaineering expedition team in Nepal found mysterious large footprints in the snow that they believe belong to Yeti, or the abominable snowman.
However, Director General of the Department of Wildlife and National Parks Man Bahadur Khadka dismissed the claim, saying: “According to our experts, it may be the footprint of a bear found in the Himalayas.”
According to Nepal army spokesperson Bigyan Dev Pandey, a liaison officer of the army who accompanied the Indian Army expedition team had not directly seen the footprint.
Pandey said some three to four years ago, a French expedition team had reported a similar sighting of giant footprints. At that time it was reported that the unusual footprints were seen in the mountain. When the wildlife experts were contacted for verification, they said the Makalu Barun region is home to large snow bears and the footprints might belonged to them, the officer said.
In Nepali folklore, Yeti is a mythical ape-like creature taller than an average human that is said to inhabit the Himalayas, Siberia, Central and East Asia.
An Army team of 18 personnel led by Major Manoj Joshi embarked on an expedition to Mount Makalu in Nepal on April 2. On April 9, the team spotted “mysterious footprints” measuring 32x15 inches close to the Makalu base camp. Makalu is the fifth highest mountain at 8,485 metres. It is located in the Mahalangur Himalayas on the border between Nepal and Tibet, China. — PTI
from The Tribune http://bit.ly/2vIvwZv
via Today’s News Headlines
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