From internet
BEIJING - China
has begun building a highway to Mount Everest base camp, partly to smooth the
way for the carrying of the Olympic torch up to the highest peak in the world,
Chinese press reported Tuesday.
The new road will begin at the base of the
mountain in China's Tibet region and replace a rough 108-kilometre (67-mile)
track that leads to the northern base camp, the Xinhua news agency reported.
Construction of the
150-million-yuan (20-million-dollar) highway began on Monday and will take
about four months to complete, according to Xinhua.
The road is being built to
"ease the path of those bearing the Olympic torch," Xinhua said.
Organisers of next year's Beijing
Olympics have said they intend to include the summit of Mount Everest in the
130-day torch relay leading up to the Games.
The relay, which will traverse
five continents, will begin in Beijing on March 31 next year, with the attempt
to reach the summit of Everest slated for May.
The Xinhua report also said the
new highway would help ease the way for the growing number of tourists who are
travelling to base camp, which is 5,200 metres (17,160 feet) above sea level.
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