He walked 1, 028km (640 miles) in 20 days from east to west Nepal and the following year he trekked about 300km from north to south in nine days -- a tougher walk because of mountainous terrain.

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At the age of 72 he began his fitness preparations in earnest traversing Nepal north to south and east to west on foot.

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At least 18 people have died, including a five year old girl, in a 6.8 magnitude earthquake that hit the east India state of Sikkim and neighboring Nepal on Sunday.

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Participating media trainers from Cambodia, East Timor, Indonesia, Laos, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand , Tajikistan, and Vietnam now serve as resource persons in the national workshops on the same topic organized by UNESCO in the eight Asian countries.

UNESCO: Communication and Information

Mr Chowdhury points out that this cumbersomely named grouping is the only one in the region that includes countries to both the west (Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka) and east (Thailand) of Myanmar.

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Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Brunei, Bhutan, Cambodia, East Timor, India, Indonesia, Iran, Laos, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam.

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