The popular outburst in the mid-western and far-western regions of Nepal against the proposed demarcation of federal provinces shows that the delimitation of provincial boundaries not only involves territorial issues but also touches the sensitive domain of collective sentiments of the people. These violent protests also portend bigger storms ahead if the federal boundaries merge together to reveal contours of vested political interests to weaken national integration. Sobering effect With regard to the federal structure, the position of the people of the far and mid-western regions of Nepal has been clear from the time of the movement for an undivided far-west. Immediately after the 2006/07 People’s Movement, when the politics of ethnic and regional identities was in its hey-day, the people of that region had stood up in revolt against the racial and parochial consciousness of some sections of the political leaders.
