KATHMANDU: The Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities on Sunday submitted a memorandum to Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and demanded 11 amendments to the Constitution in order address concerns of indigenous nationalities.

The delegation headed by NEFIN President Nagendra Kumar Kumal reached the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers today and demanded amendments to constitutional provisions to ensure participation of the nationalities in state organs and governance system.

The demands include adoption of identity as a principal base for state restructuring, naming provinces and other local bodies on the basis of historical, linguistic and cultural identities of ethnic groups living there, 60 per cent allotment of Parliamentary seats for proportional representation system, recognition to one-horned rhino as the national animal among others.

Meanwhile, the Federation also included 10 others points in the memorandum and urged the PM to immediately address them.

They demanded that a separate ministry be formed to look into issues of indigenous nationalities and education in mother tongues be ensured, among others.

The ethnic leaders also demanded that proportional representation should be ensured while making political appointments at various constitutional bodies.

In response, the Prime Minister said issues of identity and rights of nationalities would be gradually implemented, according to a statement issued by the PM's Secretariat.