Amit Shah To Chair Southern Zonal Council Meet in Mahabalipuram
Three-day tour to focus on Centre-state coordination and border security
New Delhi: Union Home Minister Amit Shah will begin a three-day visit to Tamil Nadu and West Bengal on Thursday, during which he will chair the 31st meeting of the Southern Zonal Council in Mahabalipuram and lay the foundation stones for border security projects in Siliguri.
Shah will chair the Southern Zonal Council meeting on Thursday and offer prayers at the Shore Temple in Mahabalipuram in the evening.
The Southern Zonal Council comprises Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Puducherry, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay is the vice-chairman of the council.
The meeting will be attended by chief ministers, lieutenant governors and administrators of the member states and Union Territories, along with two senior ministers from each state.
"The chief secretaries/advisors and other senior officers of the State Governments, as well as senior officers of the Central Government, will also participate in the meeting," a government statement said.
"The chief ministers of the member states serve as the vice-chairman of the Council by rotation. The 31st meeting is being organized by the Inter-State Council Secretariat under the Union Home Ministry with the Tamil Nadu government as the host," it said.
"Issues proposed by the states are submitted for discussion before the Zonal Council's standing committee and after deliberation there, the remaining issues are placed before the Zonal Council meeting for consideration," the statement said.
Shah will then proceed to Siliguri in West Bengal, where he will lay the foundation stones for various border security projects on Friday and interact with Sashastra Seema Bal personnel, officials said.
The home minister will also inaugurate an exhibition on the three new laws on Friday evening and chair a border security-related meeting in the city on Saturday, they said.
The five Zonal Councils, including the Southern Zonal Council, were established under Sections 15 to 22 of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956.
The councils provide a structured mechanism for dialogue on issues affecting two or more states, or the Centre and states, and serve as an advisory platform for cooperation.
"Under the leadership of Modi, Zonal Council meetings have evolved into a powerful platform for finding solutions through dialogue," the statement said.
A total of 69 meetings of various Zonal Councils and their standing committees have been held in the last 12 years since June 2014.
"In addition, various issues of common interest at the regional level are covered, such as issues related to the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, issues concerning important projects related to water sharing and the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Gramin), and issues related to civil aviation," it said.
