EDUCATION AND INFORMATION ABOUT HIMALAYAS

Nepal is known as the land of the Himalayas .These are the loftiest mountains in the world .The Himalayas extend all over Northern Nepal and occupy nearly forty percent of the total area of our country .They consists of several parallel ranges,one higher than the other.The higher Himalayas are perpetually covered with snow,that's why they are called the Himalayas .In sanskrit, "Himalaya"means the abode of snow.The higher Himalayas contain most of the highest peaks in the world.Some of the highest peaks are Mt.Everest ,Kanchanjungha,Lhotse and Cho Oyu.These peaks attract climbers every year.The high Himalayas contain several big glaciers and lakes.They are devoid of vegetation and human settlement.

The lower Himalayas are forested .The forests contain pine trees and rhododendrons.The rhododendron is the national flower of our country .Ont the lower parts of these mountains we find valleys and lakes .The lower Himalayas are inhabited but the density of population is low.Life is difficult on the mountains.People rear goats and sheeps.Some cultivation is done on the hill-slopes and in the valleys.

The Himalayas are a great hindrance to the development of our country .They cover a large part of our country .As they are unfit for cultivation,a big area of country is a huge waste.Trasport is difficult across the mountains and people cannot easily travel from one part of the country to another.Some parts of the Himalayas are inaccessible and inhospitable.

Though the Himalyas are an obstacle to the development of our country,we derive many benefits from them.They stand as sentinels on our northern border.They forrm an insurmountable wall and protect us from enemy attacks.Because of the Himalayas ,we don't have to deploy a big army on our nothern frontier.The Himalayas also protect us from the cold winds blowing from Central Asia.Were it not for the Himalayas, the climate of Nepal would have been awfully cold in winter.The Himalayas also give us plenty of rain.They stop the monsoons coming from the Bay of Bengal and cause a good deal of rainfall.