SHANGHAI, Feb. 6(Xinhuanet)-- The first eight people from a 36-member Chinese tourist group who have been stranded in Nepal since Nepali King Gyanendra dismissed the country's government and declared emergency rule on Feb. 1 returned to Shanghai on Sunday.

Zhang Lei, deputy general manager of Shanghai International Business Travel Age ncy, organizer of the tourist group, said the returnees were flown in to Pudong International Airport of Shanghai at 10:05 a.m. by Nepali Airways.

The international communication has been cut off since last Tuesday, and Shanghai International Business Travel Agency failed to contact the 36-member mission, of whom, 30 were from Shanghai.

Ling Jin, general manager of Shanghai International Business Travel Agency, said they on Saturday dispatched Ma Yunhua with the Department for West Asian Affairs to Nepal to handle the crisis there.

According to Ma, they didn't get in touch with some members of the tour group, but sources from the Chinese Embassy in Nepal said that they hadn't received any phone calls for help.

Up to now, domestic communication inside Nepal has been restored, but international communications and the Internet still remain out of service. The airport in Katmandu of Nepal is half closed, with only six planes being allowed to land or take off.

Some Chinese tourists who have not returned said they would go back to China on Tuesday or on Feb. 15. after they finish their business plans in Nepal

Shanghai International Business Travel Agency is also the general representative of the Nepali Airways. At present, most of the Chinese tourists go to Nepal for business purposes, according to Ling Jin.

So far, the National Tourism Administration of China has not issued any travel warning to prevent Chinese citizens from touring the Himalayan state.