Deputy Prime Minister Ram Chandra Poudel visited the four mid-western districts most affected by the Maoist insurgency to try to seek support for a proposed "integrated development programme" the government wants to implement. Poudel\'s visit, limited to the safety of the district headquarters of Rukum, Roipa, Kalikot and Salyan, was marked by promises of new roads and more money for development activities. He also used the occasion to highlight the virtues of democracy and of the Nepali Congress party.