Kathmandu, Dec. 21 (PTI): The Nepal government has decided to amend the new Constitution to address two key Madhesi demands - proportional representation and constituency delimitation - in a bid to end the months-long impasse.

The decision was taken at an emergency cabinet meeting held at the Singha Durbar here last night. The cabinet members agreed to set up a political mechanism that will recommend solutions to disputes over the proposed provincial boundaries within three months of its formation.

The Madhes-based parties have been protesting for over four months against the seven-province model proposed in the new Constitution, which was adopted on September 20 .

The new charter divides the Madhesi ancestral land in order to marginalise them, the parties contend. Over 50 people have been killed in protests since August.

The Madhesis have blockaded Nepal's border trade points with India, causing a shortage of essential goods and medicines in the landlocked Himalayan country.

The meeting decided to move forward with the bill to amend the new Constitution, which has already been tabled in parliament.

The Nepali foreign ministry, in a statement released a day after police killed a Class X student in fresh clashes, said the cabinet had agreed to support the constitutional amendment bill that would increase the Madhesi presence in government bodies through proportional representation.

"The process for the adoption of the Constitution amendment bill tabled in the parliament will be advanced in order to ensure the participation in the state organs on the basis of proportionate inclusiveness," the statement said.

"With regard to the demarcation of provinces... a political mechanism will be constituted, which will submit its report along with recommendations within three months," the statement said.

The Nepali minister for industry, Som Prasad Pandey, said after the meeting: "The bill has ensured proportional inclusive participation in various state organs as demanded by the agitating parties and has also proposed delimitation of the electoral constituencies based on population."

On the political mechanism, he said, it "will recommend solutions to disputes over the proposed provincial boundaries within three months of its formation".

Nepal informed India that some important decisions have been taken to resolve demands raised by the Madhesis, which was welcomed by the Indian government.

"The government of India welcomes these developments as positive steps that help create the basis for a resolution of the current impasse in Nepal. As a neighbour and well-wisher, India was deeply concerned at the unrest stemming from internal differences in Nepal on the Constitution," the external affairs ministry said.

The three-point proposal has been discussed in several rounds of talks with the agitating parties which have expressed some reservations and have demanded further clarity.

Similarly, the meeting also urged the parties to call off their protests, saying that their demands can be addressed through dialogue. "Besides these issues, the demands related to citizenship and other issues can also be settled through negotiations."