KATHMANDU, Sept 3: Minister for Federal Affairs and Local Development, Hit Raj Pandey has said that the local election will be held by mid-April 2017.

The minister said so while addressing a discussion program, entitled “National Consultation on Local level restructuring in Nepal: Reflecting the Voices of Grass-root leaders,” organized by the National Association of VDCs in Nepal (NAVIN) in the capital on Friday.

Elaborating on the plan, Minister Pandey said that if the Local Body Restructuring Commission (LBRC) provides its recommendations by mid-October, the government will initiate process for holding election by mid-April, 2017. “I am sure that the commission will finalize the number and boundaries of local bodies,” he said.

UML leader Agni Kharel instructed that the commission should follow the right given by the constitution to determine the new local structure. The commission has proposed 565 local bodies in its initial report, which is yet to be finalized. Kharel stressed that the number of the local bodies should be finalized on the basis of the commission's recommendation.

Dormani Poudel, a member of the commission, said that it will finalize the numbers and boundaries of the local bodies based on the criteria given by the government and constitution. “We will finalize the number and boundaries of local bodies by holding consultations with all political parties,” he said Poudel.