Nepal’s Ministry of Forest Environment is considering new regulations to permit hotels to operate within national parks like Chitwan, as indicated in a draft document seen by Mongabay.

The decision to consider allowing hotels follows the closure of seven hotels in Chitwan National Park in 2009 due to ecological concerns and alleged involvement in poaching, with the last hotel shutting down in 2012.

Despite opposition from conservationists and local communities, the government has shown interest in allowing commercial activities, including large-scale hydropower plants, within national parks, raising concerns about environmental degradation.