Kathmandu, May 12

A standing committee meeting of the CPN-UML Saturday decided that the party was ready to form 8 provinces on the basis of multi-identity and 11 states if they were given common names.

Earlier, the party was sticking to the demand of seven provinces based on multi-identity.

After the meeting held at the parliamentary party office of the UML, secretary Shanker Pokharel said that eight provinces in which all communities could be covered would be suitable for Nepal.

"If the parties agree on common names, the party can agree on 11 provinces," he said.

According to Pokharel, the meeting also informed about the progress made in the discussions with the other parties regarding federalism and state restructuring.

He said that giving caste-based names would invite communal conflict in the country and added that cultural and linguistic identity could be adopted in the common names of the states.

In another context, he said that the issue of joining the government would be discussed only after deciding the contentious issues of the new constitution.