Safety should be the top priority

The deaths of so many mountaineers attempting to scale the Mount Everest is unfortunate and sad. However, we have to dig beneath the surface to identify the real causes behind such unfortunate loss of lives. It is important that mountaineers go through adequate training and they use high quality gear. The oxygen cylinders provided by agencies need to be checked and made sure that the volume of oxygen provided in not less than what is being advertised on the cylinder tag/label. Last but not the least, it should be made sure that these agencies have proper licenses and permission to operate.  

Saikat Kumar Basu
AB, Canada