Province No. 1

Province No. 1 (proposed names: Kirat, Limbuwan, Khambuwan, Sagarmatha, Birat and Koshi) is the easternmost of the seven provinces established by the new constitution of Nepal which was adopted on 20 September 2015. The province covers an area of 25,905 km², about 17.5% of the country's total area. With the industrial city of Biratnagar as its headquarters, the province covers other major eastern towns including Birtamod, Birat Chowk, Damak, Dharan, Itahari, Triyuga and Mechinagar and includes several mountains including the Everest, Kanchenjunga, and Ama Dablam. Koshi – the largest river of the nation, circumvents the province's western boundary. Adhering to the first-past-the-post voting system issued by the Constituency Delimitation Commission, the province hosts 28 parliamentary seats and 56 provincial seats.

The province is bordered by the Tibet Autonomous Region of China to the north, the Indian states of Sikkim and West Bengal to the east, and Bihar to the south, and Bagmati Province and Madhesh Province to the west. According to the 2021 Nepal census, there are around 5 million people in the province, with a population density of 190 per square kilometre. As per the 2011 Nepal census the province had around 4.5 million people.

History

The term ''district'' has been used in various ways throughout the modern history of Nepal.
At the end of the Rana regime, Nepal was divided into 32 districts. Eastern Nepal (what is now Province No. 1) was composed of the following districts:
*Morang District: including Jhapa, Sunsari, and Morang
*Udayapur District
*Ilam District
*Dhankuta District: including Taplejung, Panchthar, Terhathum, Sankhuwasabha, and Dhankuta
* Bhojpur District or “East No. 4”: including Bhojpur and Khotang
*Okhaldhunga District or “East No. 3”: including Okhaldhunga and Solukhumbu

In 1956, the Eastern districts of Nepal were grouped together into a region or ''kshetra'' called the ''Aruṇ Kshetra'' or Arun Region, after the Arun River which flows through it. The Arun Kshetra was made by combining the then five districts. The Arun Kshetra had total area of and total population was 11 lakh, or 1.1 million.
The five districts were:
# Biratnagar District: including Sunsari and Morang
# Dhankuta District: including Dhankuta and Sankhuwasabha
# Taplejung District: including Taplejung and Panchtharl
# Mechi District: including Ilam and Jhapa
# Bhojpur District: including Bhojpur and Khotang)

In 1962, the administrative system once again was changed, abolishing the ''kshetra'' system. The country was now restructured into 75 development districts or ''jillā'' and those districts were grouped together into zones or ''añchal''. In 1972, what is now called Province No. 1 was called the Eastern Development Region. It was composed of 16 districts, which were grouped into three zones.

At the cabinet meeting held on 17 January 2018, the city of Biratnagar was declared the interim capital of Province No. 1. On 6 May 2019 it was declared the permanent capital by a vote of two-thirds of the provincial assembly's MLAs.

Geography

Province No. 1 covers an area of 25,905 km². The province has three-fold geographical division: Himalayan in the north, Hilly in the middle and Terai in the southern part of Nepal, varying between an altitude of 70 m and 8,848 m. Terai, extended from east to west, is made up of alluvial soil. To the west of Koshi River, in between Mahabharat Range and Churia Range, there elongates a valley called Inner Terai. Churai Range, Mahabharat Range and other hills of various heights, basins, tars, and valleys form the hilly region. Some parts of this region are favorable for agriculture but some other parts are not. The Himalayan region, in the north, consists of many mountains ranges. Mahalangur, Kumbhakarna, Umvek, Lumba Sumba and Janak being some of them. The highest mountain in the world, Mount Everest (8848.86 m); and the third highest mountain, Kangchenjunga (8598 m) also lie in this province.

Nepal's lowest point, Kechana Kawal at 70 m, is located in Jhapa district of this province. There are many river basins and gentle slopes as well. Chure, Mahabharat, many basins, tars, and valleys form the Terai region. Between the Churia and Mahabharat, a low land of inner Terai exists. The Koshi river flows through the region with its seven tributaries; Indrawati, Likhu, Tamur, Dudh Kosi, Arun, Tamakoshi and Bhote Koshi (Sunkoshi). Tundra vegetables, coniferous forests, deciduous monsoon forests, and sub-tropical evergreen woods are vegetations found here. Sub-tropical, temperate, sub-temperate, and alpine and tundra types of climates are found here.

Province No. 1 also includes the snow fall capped peaks including Mount Everest, Kangchenjunga, Makalu with Solukhumbu, Sankhuwasabha, and Taplejung districts towards the north, the jungle clad hill tracts of Okhaldhunga, Khotang, Bhojpur, Tehrathum, Ilam and Panchthar in the middle and the alluvial fertile plains of Udayapur, Sunsari, Morang and Jhapa. Province No. 1 includes places like Haleshi Mahadev Temple, Pathivara Temple and Barahachhetra, which are the famous religious shrines for Hindus.

Climate

Climatic conditions of Nepal vary from one place to another in accordance with their geographical features. Province No. 1 has three geographical folds: the lowland of Terai, the hilly region, and the Himalayas' highlands. The low land altitude is 59 m, whereas the highest point is 8848 m.

In the north, summers are cool and winters severe, while in the south, summers are tropical and winters are mild. Climatically, the southern belt of the province, the Terai, experiences a warm and humid climate. Eastern Nepal receives approximately 2,500 millimeters of rain annually. Province No. 1 has five seasons: spring, summer, monsoon, autumn and winter.

Mountains

The northern part of Province No. 1 has the highest mountain in the world. Here is a list of mountains in Province No. 1.

Rivers

There are many rivers in the region that flow south from the Himalayas which are tributaries of other large rivers that join Ganga River (in India). Sapta Koshi or the Koshi is the main river of the region. Seven tributaries join the Koshi so it is called Saptkoshi.

The major rivers in the province are:
*Mechi River
*Kankai River
*Koshi River (SaptaKoshi) :
** Tamor
**Arun River
**Sun Koshi
**Dudh Koshi
**Likhu Khola
** Tama Koshi
**Indrawati River

Protected Areas

* Sagarmatha National Park – (National Park)
* Makalu Barun National Park – (National Park)
* Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve – (Wildlife reserves)
* Kanchenjunga Conservation Area – (Conservation areas)
* Gokyo Lake Complex – (Ramsar Sites)
* Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve – (Ramsar Sites)
* Mai Pokhari – (Ramsar Sites)

Subdivisions

There are total of 137 local administrative units in this province, in which there is 1 metropolitan city, 2 sub-metropolitan cities, 46 municipalities and 88 rural municipalities.

Districts

The province is made up of the 14 following districts:

Municipality

Cities and villages are governed by municipalities in Nepal. A district may have one or more municipalities. Province No. 1 has two types of municipalities.
# Urban Municipality '
## Metropolitan city
## Sub-metropolitan city and
## Municipality
# Rural Municipality (Gaunpalika)

The government of Nepal has set out minimum criteria to meet city and towns. These criteria include a certain population, infrastructure, and revenues.

Administration

The first provincial assembly elections in Nepal were held on 26 November and 7 December 2017.

After the results of the recent election in Province No. 1 the biggest party is CPN (UML) which won 51 of 93 seats; the second biggest party is Nepali Congress which won 21 seats; the third biggest party is CPN (Maoist Center) which won 15 seats in first Provincial Assembly election.

There are 56 FPTP and 37 PR seats in the province.

In a meeting on 17 January 2018 the Government of Nepal finalized the temporary capital of Province No. 1, and appointed Govinda Subba as the governor.

Sher Dhan Rai was elected as Chief Minister of Province No. 1 on February 14, 2018. He was a former Minister for Information and Communications. He was appointed as the chief minister, according to Article 168 (1) of the Constitution of Nepal.

Provincial Assembly

The first meeting of the provincial assembly was held on 5 February 2018 in Biratnagar and was chaired by Om Prakash Sarbagi. Pradeep Kumar Bhandari was elected unopposed as the Speaker of the Provincial Assembly on 11 February 2018. Saraswoti Pokharel was also elected unopposed to the post of Deputy Speaker on 15 February 2018.

Transportation

All provinces of Nepal except Madhesh Province have difficult geographic features. Only three districts out of fourteen of Province No. 1 falls in Terai and one district falls in inner Terai. Elevation from the lowest point of Nepal, Kechana (70 m above sea level) to the highest point of world, Everest (8848 m above sea level) lies in this province, so maintaining consistent road network is one of the most challenging. Despite of those challenges, all districts are connected via road networks. Air services are available. Rail services are under construction.

Roadways

Almost all districts are connected by roads in Province No. 1, although some roads at high altitudes are not paved and conditions of those roads worsen during the rainy season. In the hills and mountain regions, the traffic is much lighter compared to Terai regions like Jhapa and Morang due to difficult terrain.

The main highways of Province No. 1 connect Terai to the high altitude regions. There are feeder roads too for inter-district and in-district travel.

* Mechi Highway: 268 km long two-lane freeway which connects Jhapa to Taplejung. The main destinations along the highway include Prithivinagar, Bhadrapur, Duhagadhi, Budhabare, Kanyam, and Phikkal.
* Koshi Highway: 159 km long two-lane road which starts in Biratnagar and connects to Myanglung. Itahari, Dharan, Dhankuta, Bhedetar, Hile etc. are the destinations along the highway.
* Sagarmatha Highway: 265 km long two-lane highway which starts from Kadmaha of Madhesh Province and connects with Solukhumbu. Gaighat, Saune, etc. are the destinations along with the highway.
* Mahendra Highway is the major east–west highway of Nepal. It starts in Kakarbhitta in Province No. 1.

Airways

Many domestic airports and air services are available in the region including one of the most geographically challenging airports, Lukla Airport.

Airports in Province No. 1:
* Bhojpur Airport ( Bhojpur)
* Biratnagar Airport (Biratnagar)
* Kangel Danda Airport (Kangel, Solukhumbu)
* Man Maya Airport ( Khanidanda, Khotang)
* Thamkharka Airport ( Khotang Bazar)
* Lamidanda Airport ( Lamidanda, Khotang)
* Tenzing-Hillary Airport (Lukla, Solukhumbu)
* Phaplu Airport (Phaplu, Solukhumbu)
* Rumjatar Airport (Rumjatar, Okhladhunga)
* Syangboche Airport (Syangboche, Solukhumbu)
* Taplejung Airport (Taplejung)
* Tumlingtar Airport (Tumlingtar, Sankhuwasabha)
* Bhadrapur Airport ( Bhadrapur, Jhapa)
* Dharan Airport (Dharan, Sunsari) (proposed)

Railways

There is a 13 km railway track which has been laid in Nepal by Indian Railways is connected to Bathnaha railway station. Bathnaha is a village situated at Araria district of Bihar state of India. A custom yard station has been built both side of the border on Bathnaha–Katahari railway section. Katahari is at distance of 18 km from Bathnaha Railway Station. Itahari will be further connected with Katahari which is 20km at distance from Biratnagar (Katahari).

Economic activities

Tourism, natural resources, industries, agriculture, and foreign employment are the major sources of income for the people of Province No. 1. Similarly, there are many tourist sites: Sagarmatha National Park, Makalu Barun National Park, Pathivara, Ramdhuni, Barahachhetra, Damak, Itahari, Dharan, Ilam, etc. Industries are also important. In this province manly there are four transit points: i.e. Kakarbhitta, Pashupatinagar and Jogbani to India, and Olangchunggola and Kimathanka to China.

Demographics

Total population of Province No. 1 (according to 2011 Nepal census) is 4,543,943 in which female comprises 52% (2,368,407) of the total population. There are 992,445 households

Religion

Hinduism is the major religion of the province. Kirat Mundhum is the second major religion of the province. 67% of the total population are Hindus, 17% are Kirantis, 9% are Buddhists, 4% are Muslims, and others make up 1%.

Ethnicity

The province is very ethnically diverse. The largest group is the Chhetri, making up 14.58% of the population. Followed by Madheshi with (14.26%). Next is Hill Brahmin (11.98%). Other Khas Arya groups are the Kami (3.27%) and Damai (1.78%). The Janajati groups are the Rai (11.26%), Limbu (8.01%), Tamang (4.62%), Magar (4.13%), Newar (3.68%), Sherpa (1.40%) and Gurung (1.36%). Some Terai groups include Tharu (4.10%), Musalman (3.55%), Rajbanshi (2.47%), Musahar (1.35%), Yadav (1.30%) and Santal (1.11%).

Language

Nepali language is lingua franca of the province and is the mother tongue of 42.53% of the population. Maithili is spoken by 20.46.1% of the population and is the second largest language. 7.27% of the population speaks Limbu, 3.89% Tamang, 3.87% Tharu, 3.20% Magar, 2.88% Bantawa, 2.0% Urdu