On a serious note: An autonomous Chitawan in New Nepal makes much sense! Since our politics has already opened the Pendora Box of ethnicity-bsed-political movement, it will takes at least few decades to clearly understand the real cost of this "newly discovered" confusion in our already lagged endevour for nation building. But given the forward looking role Chitawan has so far successfully played, it not fair to make Chitawan wait for so many more decades to get new life. Being a Chitaune, I am shocked to see Chitawan painted as a part of Upendra Yadhav's Madhes. Chitawn is truly multiethenic socity. Over the time, the society has evolved harmoniously without any feeling of communal tension. Examine the electoral history, we can see how the representation is truely proportional: Chitawan has elected representatives form all casts and ethenic groups, bahun, chhetry, gurung, tharu, Newar, women etc. But it was not by any sort of reservation or regulation, rather it was possible because of harmonious evolution of goodwills among different ethinic groups. Once again, in the New Nepal, Chitawan has a new role to play by demonstrating how a broader cooperation and goodwill among different ethnic groups helps all to be winners. Yes, there was/is problem of poverty and backwarness; but Chitaune never blamed to others (though they were always in the frontline in democratic movement) and they knew well that the common enemy was/is the poverty. I spent my schooling days in Chitawan, and during my College life, friends from other disctrict used to tease me by labeling Chitawan as 76th district (an outlier). Yet, Chitawan would be considered as as a place with higer level of political awareness. And I was not sure what it means (since I do not have much expereince in other places). Later, I once had to visit Chitawan as a urban development expert. I was earlier invovled in similar missions to other districts including Kathmandu vally. Part of the job of our expert team was to look at the condition of urban road and how the municipalities were managing it. As an expert, I had a bitter experinece with the people of Kathmandu, where most people expected central government to improve local roads (access road). They were not ready even to bear a small part of it. We even encoutered so called elites say with 3-4 ropanis of land served by narrow 8 ft of access road. When we made proposal that the road be widened by 3 feets both sides and then be paved by department of road budget (no contributuion from land owners, some subsidy from central govt for shifting compound walls). Our estimate suggested that with this improvement, the land price would go up at least by 20-30 percent. To our surprise majority of the people (land owners) opposed the plan (asking for compensation for 1 m widening) and so called educated elites always in the front line leading the opposition. When we visited Bharatpur (Chitawan's DHQ), all our team memebrs were utterly surprised; almost all roads within the municipality boudary were wide and black-topped. The Mayor explain us that land owners contrubute land for widening and 40 % cost was from Municipality budget and 60 % from land-owners. We were surprised also to learned that landowners fully cooperative and willing accepting every projects. Chitaune are willing to contribute for paving road not because they are RICH or do not care MONEY. Rather it is because they are RATIONAL and SMART. They can see, by paving the access road, the land price goes up surpassing their contribution by many times. This was the first time I could clearly realize how Chitawan is DIFFERENT ! And we can find many of similar innovative initiatives that Chitawan can boast of. If our politician go for federal structure, lets launch a campaign to keep Chitawan as a special autonomus region (or at least direct rule by the center). And I am always proud to be a CHITAUNE !!!