KATHMANDU: The Department of Tourism has granted a climbing permit for Mt Everest to a Brazilian climber recognising him as a permanent resident of Bouvet Island, it has been revealed. A permit issued by the DoT to a 14-member expedition last week mentions that Mauro Antonio Chies, 30, from Bouvet Island, is a part of the team led by American climber Christopher Pollack. Interestingly, Bouvet Island is an uninhabited subantarctic high island and dependency of Norway located in the South Atlantic Ocean. “It’s not our mistake. We have issued a permit to Mauro as per the application filed by a local agency,” DoT spokesperson Meera Acharya claimed. According to her, Himalayan Ski Trek submitted an online application mentioning Mauro’s country’s of birth as Bouvet Island. But, a copy of Mauro’s passport seen by THT Online clearly shows that he is a permanent resident of Caxias do Sul, a town in southern Brazil. The team has other members including Former US Marine Corps Sergeant Kirstie Ennis from Colorado, Jamie Morton from the United Kingdom, Pete Newland from the UK,  Sam Taylor from Kenya, Mark Wood from the UK, Gethin Davis from Wales, Rizza Ali, Tom Makin, Rob Gowler and Tom Martienssen. “We have already asked the agency for clarification,” Acharya said.