There are seven provinces in Nepal and all have their own merits.
Nepal, a victim of agitation and violence, is a mountainous nation in South Asia, situated in the lap of the Himalayas. It was declared a federal democratic Republic with the end of the monarchy in 2008 and the new constitution in 2015. This constitution divided Nepal into seven provinces and adopted the federal system.This change was a major step towards addressing Nepal’s historical political instability, separatist movements and regional inequalities. Today, the provinces in Nepal have become not only administrative units, but have become the foundation stone of regional identity and local government.
Now that the Nepal government has collapsed. Immediately, the army has taken the command of the country in its hands, so let us know how many provinces are there in Nepal, what are their characteristics, how their governments are running, who are the heads of provincial governments, how are the election process, what is their main sources of income and how many different population are they?
How many provinces in Nepal, what are the features?
Nepal was divided into seven provinces under the Constitution 2015. This province initially province no. 1, Province no. 2 were known as etc., but later various provinces set their names based on their historical and cultural perspective. Now all the provinces have their own names and identity. Their names are Koshi Pradesh, Madhesh Pradesh, Bagmati Pradesh, Gandaki Pradesh, Lumbini Pradesh, Karnali Pradesh and remote western Pradesh.
Nepal has seven provinces and each has its own characteristics. They have the right to operate education, health, agriculture, local economy and development schemes, but subjects like defense, foreign policy and monetary policy are controlled at the federal level.
The provincial governments are headed by the Chief Minister, while the formal is the governor. Most of their income is based on tax-distribution and limited local revenue from the Center. Madhesh and Bagmati are the largest in terms of population, while Karnali is the smallest and backward.
How does the provincial government run in Nepal?
The Constitution of Nepal has created three levels of the federal structure.
- Federal government ie central government
- Provincial governments
- Local governments (municipality, village municipality)
The government of every province is based on the parliamentary system.
Provincial Assembly
The legislature of each province is called the provincial meeting. In this, members are selected from direct choices and proportional representation systems. The Chief Minister leads the executive in the province. The Chief Minister is selected on the basis of majority in the provincial meeting. Like India, every province has a governor appointed by the federal government, who is a formal head but the real power lives with the Chief Minister and the Council of Ministers.
How is the provincial government formed?
The Chief Minister of the largest party or coalition in the provincial meeting is elected as the Chief Minister. If a party is not in a majority, a coalition of parties can form a government. The term of the provincial meeting is 5 years, until the assembly is dissolved. The President appoints the Governor, and is a nominal prominent.
Where do the provinces earn?
The income of the provincial governments of Nepal comes mainly in two types.
- Part of revenue received from the federal government: The federal government distributes a part of its tax collection (custom, VAT, foreign trade tax etc.) into the provinces.
- Independent income source: Agricultural tax, income from local tourism, mining and natural resource fee, tax on local industry and business, vehicle registration, education, health tax etc.
However, now most of the provinces depend on the federal government for their income, as their own source of income is still volatile.
Challenges of Nepal’s federal provincial system
- economic inequality: Some provinces (eg Bagmati) are fast rich, while provinces like Karnali are very backward.
- Political instability: Repeated fall of governments and coalition politics makes development difficult.
- Financial dependence: The province depends on the federal grants.
- Infrastructure deficiency: There is widespread inequality in road, education and health services.
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