Koshi govt to hold talks with pro-identity groups

By Koshi Province Bureau,Biratnagar, Dec. 14: The Koshi Province government has decided to initiate formal talks with the pro-identity groups which have been protesting for a long time over the naming of the province.

The government will move forward with official discussions after it formed a negotiation committee to engage with the Province-1 Renaming Joint Struggle Committee, which has been protesting against the naming of the Koshi Province since March 24.

A cabinet meeting of the provincial government held on Thursday formed a three-member committee led by the Minister of Economic Affairs and Planning, Ram Bahadur Magar, to advance the negotiations.

The committee includes the Minister for Internal Affairs and Law, Rewati Raman Bhandari and the Minister for Physical Infrastructure Development, Bhupendra Rai as members. The secretary of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Law will serve as the member-secretary of the negotiation committee.

Minister for Internal Affairs and Law, Bhandari, said that the committee would begin its work with a plan to address issues raised by various ethnic groups, identity advocates and community representatives in the province. 

The committee will conduct discussions and dialogues following the constitution and legal frameworks to resolve present and potential inter-community issues through negotiation and consensus.