Compiled by Kushum Kharel
Spread over mountains, hills and lowlands, province no. 1 have total 14 districts including Jhapa, Ilam, Panchthar, Taplejung, Sankhuwasabha, Terhathum, Bhojpur, Dhankuta, Khotang, Sunsari, Morang, Solukhumbu, Okhaldhunga and Udaipur. The headquarters of province 1 is Biratnagar and it is the largest city of it too. It is bounded on the east by the Indian state of West Bengal and on the south by the state of Bihar. Similarly, China's autonomous region of Tibet to the north and Province no. 2 and province no. 3 in the west. It is located between 86 degrees 1 minute to 88 degrees 3 minutes east longitude and 28 degrees 2 minutes to 26 degrees 3 minutes north longitude. The total area of this state is 25,905 sq. Km. and the total population is 4,534,943.
The governor of this state is Somnath Adhikari Pyasi and chief minister is Sher Dhan Rai. The province hosts 28 parliamentary seats and 56 provincial seats. There is one court - Biratnagar High Court. Talking about the climate scenario, in the north, summers are cool and winters severe, while in the south, summers are tropical and winters are mild.
By the end of the Rana regime, there was a total division of 32 districts in Nepal. Anong which Eastern Nepal, now Province 1, includes 6 districts. Later in 1956, eastern districts grouped a region named 'Arun Kshetra' which includes a total 5 districts. Among the previous 6, Okhaldhunga was excluded in this region. In 1962, the system of Kshetra was cancelled and Nepal was divided into 72 districts and 14 zones. In 1972, Province 1 was named as Eastern Development Region which includes a total 16 districts and 3 zones. And finally, the new constitution of Nepal on 20 September 2015 established this region as state no. 1.
Practically all regions are associated with streets in Province No. 1, albeit a few streets at high heights are not cleared and states of those streets compound during the stormy season. In the slopes and mountain districts, the traffic is a lot lighter contrasted with Terai locales like Jhapa and Morang because of troublesome territory. The principal highways of Province No. 1 like Mechi, Sagarmatha, Koshi and Mahendra Highways interface Terai to the high elevation area. Additionally, numerous homegrown air terminals and air administrations like Bhojpur Airport, Biratnagar Airport, Dhahran Airport, Bhadrapur Airport, Taplejung Airport and so on are accessible in the district including one of the most topographically challenging air terminals, Lukla Airport.
Ethnically and linguistically diverse, this region is mainly inhabited by Brahmins, Chhetri, Rai, Limbu, Tharu, Lepcha, Tamang, Gurung, Meche, Koche, Yadav, Rajbanshi and other castes. The major spoken languages are Nepali, Maithili, Kiranti, Tamang, Limbu, Gurung Magar and Tharu. Hinduism is the major religion of the province. Buddhism is the second major religion of the province np. 1.
Tourism, natural resources, industries, agriculture and foreign employment are the major sources of income for the people of Province No. 1. This province is the location of the world's highest peaks, including Mount Everest, Kanchenjunga, Makalu, Choyu, Lhotse, Jannu, etc. which has served as a natural border with China and helped to gain many tourists on a daily basis. Also, This state has other many tourist sites including Antudanda of Ilam, Kanyam and Bhedetar of Dhankuta, Namche Bazaar of Solukhumbu, Sagarmatha Base Camp, Taltalaiya of Sunsari, Sagarmatha National Park, Makalu Barun National Park, Koshi Tappu Wildlife Sanctuary, Kanchenjunga Conservation Area and Nepal's tallest waterfalls like Todke and Pokli.
Nepal is located in Southeast Asia and is rich in religious and cultural aspects. Among all the innumerable temples, pagodas, monasteries of Nepal, some of the famous pilgrimage fall under this state too - Pathibhara Devi temple of Taplejung, Maipokhari of Ilam, Arjundhara and Shatakshi tDam of Jhapa, Barah area of Sunsari, Budha Subba, Dantkali and Ramdhuni, Halesi Mahadev of Khotang, Barah Pokhari, Salpa Pokhari, Dudhkundi, Kalika Devi, Chhintang Devi, Kankai and other famous religious places. Indigenous and foreign pilgrims have a strong faith in these places. The arrival of thousands of devotees and pilgrims every year has helped in development in religious tourism of this state.
The Puwa Khola Hydropower Project and Thame Hydropower Project have been constructed and are in operation in this state. Also, the Arun III Hydropower Project is one of the major proposed hydropower projects. Rich in water resources, this state has rivers including Arun, Tamor, Dudhkoshi, Mechi, Koshi, Kankai, Triyuga etc.
