Province No. 1

Province No. 1 प्रदेश नं० १
Province No. 1
From top left to right Mount Everest, Kanchenjunga, Gokyo Lakes, Namche Bazaar, Barun Valley, Ilam, Halesi Mahadev Temple and Tengboche Monastery all located in Province No. 1 of Nepal
Location of Province No. 1 in Nepal
Khotang Solu khumbu Sankhuwa sabha Taplejung Okhal dhunga Udayapur Bhojpur Tehra thum Panch thar Ilam Jhapa Morang Sunsari Dhankuta Bagmati PN-2 China India Province No. 1
Coordinates: 26°27′15″N 87°16′47″E / 26.45417°N 87.27972°E / 26.45417; 87.27972Coordinates: 26°27′15″N 87°16′47″E / 26.45417°N 87.27972°E / 26.45417; 87.27972
Country	Nepal
Formation	20 September 2015
Capital city	Biratnagar[1]
Largest city	Biratnagar
Districts	14
Government
• Type	Self-governing Province
• Body	Government of Province No.1
• Governor	Somnath Adhikari Pyasi
• Chief Minister	Sher Dhan Rai (UML)
• High Court	Biratnagar High Court
• Provincial Assembly	Unicameral (93 seats)
• Parliamentary constituency	28
Area
• Total	25,905 km2 (10,002 sq mi)
Area rank	2nd
Highest elevation	8,848 m (29,029 ft)
Lowest elevation	70 m (230 ft)
Population  (2011)
• Total	4,534,943
• Rank	3rd
• Density	180/km2 (450/sq mi)
• Density rank	4th
• Households	991,750
Demographics [2]
• Ethnic groups	Hindus, Kirat, Buddhist
• Ethnic castes	Rai, Limbu, Chettri, Bahun, Sherpa
• Sex ratio	91.48 ♂ /100 ♀ (2011)
Human Development Index 0.553 (medium) [3]
• Poverty rate	0.127[4]
• Literacy	65.30%
• Life Expectancy	69%
Time zone	UTC+5:45 (NPT)
Geocode	NP-ON
Official language	Nepali (43.07%)
Other language(s)	1. Maithili 2. Limbu
Website	p1.gov.np

Province No. 1 (proposed names: Kirat/Kirat Limbuwan/Sagarmatha/Koshi)^[6] is the easternmost of the seven provinces established by the new constitution of Nepal which was adopted on 20 September 2015.^[6] 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 headquarter, the province covers other major eastern towns including Damak, Dharan, Itahari, Inaruwa and Birtamod 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.^[7]

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 Province No. 2 to the west.^[8][9][10] According to the 2011 census, there are around 4.5 million people in the province, with a population density of 175.6 per square kilometer.^[11]

History[]

At the end of Rana regime, Nepal was divided into 32 districts. Eastern Nepal (Province No. 1) contained following districts:

• Morang District (Jhapa, Sunsari & Morang)
• Udayapur District
• Ilam District
• Dhankuta District (Taplejung, Panchthar, Terhathum, Sankhuwasabha, Dhankuta)
• Bhojpur District (east no. 4) (Bhojpur, Khotang)
• Okhaldhunga District (east no. 3) (Okhaldhunga and Solukhumbu)

In 1956, eastern districts of Nepal grouped in a region named "Arun Kshetra". Arun Kshetra was composed by grouping the then 5 districts. Those 5 districts are now divided into many districts. Arun Kshetra had total area of 7,000 square miles (18,000 km²) and total population was 11 Lakhs.^[12] The five districts were:

1. Biratnagar District (Sunsari, Morang)
2. Dhankuta District (Dhankuta, Sankhuwasabha)
3. Taplejung District (Taplejung, Panchtharl)
4. Mechi District (Ilam, Jhapa)
5. Bhojpur District (Bhojpur, Khotang)

In 1962, administrative system restructured and the "Kshetras" system cancelled and the country restructured into 75 development districts and those districts were grouped into zones.^[13] In 1972 area of the Province No. 1 named Eastern Development Region. It had 3 zones and 16 districts.

As per the cabinet meeting held on 17 January 2018, the city of Biratnagar was declared the interim capital of Province No. 1. It was later declared as the permanent capital on 6 May 2019 when two-thirds of the provincial assembly's MLAs voted in favor of Biratnagar.^[1]

Geography[]

Province No. 1 covers an area of 25,905 km².^[11] 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 height, basins, tars and valleys form the hilly region. Some parts of this region are favorable for agriculture but some other parts are not. 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 forest, 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 low-land of Terai, the hilly region and the highlands of the Himalayas. 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.

Average temperatures and precipitation for selected communities in Province No. 1^[14]

Location	August (°F)	August (°C)	January (°F)	January (°C)	Annual Precipitation (mm/in)
Damak	94 / 82	34 / 28	74 / 47	23 / 8	2618 /103.07
Dharan	85.1/72.3	29.5/22.4	68.4/44.4	20.2/6.9	1416/55.7
Biratnagar	83.1	28.4	60.8	16	1549.8/61
Bhadrapur	82.2	27.9	61.2	16.2	2351.9/92.6
Dhankuta	76.5	24.7	54.5	12.5	1809.5/71.2
Khandbari	74.8	23.8	52	11.1	2040.7/80.3
Ilam	71.8	22.1	50.9	10.5	2551.5/100.5
Bhojpur	69.1	20.6	46.8	8.2	2290.4/90.2
Khumbu Pasang Lhamu	56.1/38.3	13.4/3.5	33.8/-0.8	1/-18.2	645/25.4

Mountains[]

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

Mountain/peak	metres	feet	Section	Notes
Mount Everest	8,848.86	29,032	Khumbu Mahalangur	Earth's highest peak from sea level
Kanchenjunga	8,586	28,169	Northern Kangchenjunga	3rd highest on Earth
Lhotse	8,516	27,940	Everest Group	4th highest
Makalu	8,463	27,766	Makalu Mahalangur	5th highest
Cho Oyu	8,201	26,906	Khumbu Mahalangur	6th highest
Gyachung Kang	7,952	26,089	Khumbu Mahalangur	between Everest and Cho Oyu
Nuptse	7,861	25,791	Everest Group	319 metres prominence from Lhotse
Jannu	7,711	25,299	Kumbhakarna Kangchenjunga
Kabru	7,412	24,318	Singalila Kangchenjunga
Kirat Chuli	7,365	24,163	Kangchenjunga
Nangpai Gosum	7,350	24,114	Khumbu Mahalangur
Chamlang	7,321	24,019	Barun Mahalangur	#79 in the world
Pumori	7,161	23,494	Khumbu Mahalangur	First ascent 1962
Baruntse	7,129	23,389	Barun Mahalangur	First ascent 1954
Ama Dablam	6,812	22,349	Barun Mahalangur	"Mother and her necklace"
Kangtega	6,782	22,251	Barun Mahalangur	First ascent 1963
Cho Polu	6,735	22,096	Barun Mahalangur	First ascent 1999
Lingtren	6,714	22,028	Khumbu Mahalangur	First ascent 1935
Num Ri	6,677	21,906	Barun Mahalangur	First ascent 2002
Khumbutse	6,640	21,785	Khumbu Mahalangur	First mountain west of Everest
Thamserku	6,623	21,729	Barun Mahalangur	First ascent 1964
Pangboche	6,620	21,719	Kutang Himal
Taboche	6,542	21,463	Khumbu Mahalangur	First ascent 1974
Mera Peak	6,476	21,247	Himalayas	Trekking peak
Cholatse	6,440	21,129	Khumbu Mahalangur	Connected to Taboche
Kusum Kangguru	6,367	20,889	Barun Mahalangur	Trekking peak (difficult)
Ombigaichan	6,340	20,801	Barun Mahalangur
Kongde Ri	6,187	20,299	Barun Mahalangur	Trekking peak (difficult)
Imja Tse	6,160	20,210	Khumbu Mahalangur	Also known as Island Peak. Popular trekking peak.
Lobuche	6,145	20,161	Khumbu Mahalangur	Trekking peak
Nirekha	6,069	19,911	Khumbu Mahalangur	Trekking peak (difficult)
Pokalde	5,806	19,049	Khumbu Mahalangur	Trekking peak (moderate)
Mount Khumbila	5,761	18,901	Mahalangur	Unclimbed
Kala Patthar	5,545	18,192	Khumbu Mah	Popular hiking peak below Pumori
Gokyo Ri	5,357	17,575	Himalayas	Popular hiking peak

Rivers[]

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

The major rivers in the province are:

• Mechi River
• Kankai River
• Koshi River (SaptaKoshi) Below given names are tributaries:
  • Tamor
  • Arun River
  • Sun Koshi
  • Dudh Koshi
  • Likhu Khola
  • Tama Koshi
  • Indrawati River

Protected Areas[]

• Sagarmatha National Park – 1,148 km² (443 sq mi) (National Park)
• Makalu Barun National Park – 1,500 km² (580 sq mi) (National Park)
• Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve – 175 km² (68 sq mi) (Wildlife reserves)
• Kanchenjunga Conservation Area – 2,035 km² (786 sq mi) (Conservation areas)
• Gokyo Lake Complex – 7,770 ha (30.0 sq mi) (Ramsar Sites)
• Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve – 17,500 ha (68 sq mi) (Ramsar Sites)
• Mai Pokhari – 90 ha (220 acres) (Ramsar Sites)

Subdivisions[]

There are total 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.

1. Urban Municipality (Urban Municipality has three levels):
   1. Metropolitan city
   2. Sub-metropolitan city and
   3. Municipality
2. Rural Municipality (Gaunpalika)

The government of Nepal has set out a 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 wins 51 seats out of 93 seats and second biggest party is Nepali Congress which wins 21 seats and third biggest party is CPN (Maoist Center) which wins 15 seats in first Provincial Assembly election.^[15]

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

In a meeting on 17 January 2018 government of Nepal finalized the temporary capital of Province No. 1, the meeting also appointed Govinda Subba as the .^[16]

Sher Dhan Rai was elected as Chief Minister of Province No. 1 on February 14, 2018.^[17] 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.^[17]

Provincial Assembly[]

The first meeting of the provincial assembly was held on 5 February 2018 in Biratnagar and was chaired by Om Prakash Sarbagi.^[18] Pradeep Kumar Bhandari was elected unopposed as the Speaker of the Provincial Assembly on 11 February 2018.^[19] Saraswoti Pokharel was also elected unopposed to the post of Deputy Speaker on 15 February 2018.^[20]

Party		FPTP	PR	Total
	NCP	46	20	66
	Nepali Congress	8	13	21
	Federal Socialist Forum, Nepal	1	2	3
	Rastriya Prajatantra Party	0	1	1
	Sanghiya Loktantrik Rastriya Manch	0	1	1
	Independent	1	-	1
Total		56	37	93
Source: Election Commission of Nepal

Transportation[]

All provinces of Nepal except Province No. 2 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 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 Province No. 2 and connects with Solukhumbu. Gaighat, Saune etc. are the destinations along with highway.
• Mahendra Highway is the major east-west highway of Nepal. It starts in Kakarbhitta in Province No. 1.

Airways[]

Forbesganj-Biratnagar
Legend
Forbesganj Bathnaha Jogbani Indo-Nepal border Budhanagar Biratnagar

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 (, 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)^[21]

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. Budhanagar is the first railway station of Forbesganj–Biratnagar section in Nepal which is at distance of 18 km from Bathnaha Railway Station. The railway track is further being constructed to connect Biratnagar city.^[22][23]

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, 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.^[24] There are 992,445 households^[25]

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% Buddhists, 4% Muslims and 1% others.

Ethnicity[]

The province is very ethnically diverse. The largest group is the Chhetri, making up 14.58% of the population. 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%).^[26]

Language[]

Nepali language is lingua franca of the province and is the mother tongue of 42.53% of the population. Maithili is spoken by 11.1% 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, 2.73% Urdu, 2.66% Rajbanshi, 2.63% Rai, 1.69% Newar, 1.65% Chamling, 1.47% Sherpa, 1.07% Santali.^[26]

Education[]

71.22% of the total population of the province can read and write mean educated.^[27]

See also[]

• Provinces of Nepal
• List of districts in Nepal

References[]