PIB News Update: Union Minister for Home Affairs, Shri Amit Shah will be chairing the 29th meeting of the Northern Zonal Council (NZC) at Chandigarh, on September 20, 2019. The Chief Minister of Haryana is the Vice Chairman and host for the meeting.
The Northern Zonal Council comprises of the States of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, and Rajasthan, Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh and Government of NCT of Delhi. Chief Ministers from the member States in the Zone along with two Ministers each, Administrators of Union Territories, Chief Secretaries and senior officers from the State Governments and the Central Government will attend the meeting.
The Council takes up issues involving Centre and States and one/many States falling in the Zone. The Zonal Councils thus provide a forum for resolving disputes and irritants between Centre and States and among many States in the Zone. The Zonal Councils discuss broad range of issues which include boundary related disputes, security, infrastructure related matters like road, transport, industries, water and power etc., matters pertaining to forests & environment, housing, education, food security, tourism, transport etc.
Five Zonal Councils were set up in the year 1957 under Section 15-22 of the States Reorganization Act, 1956. Union Home Minister is the Chairman of each of these five Zonal Councils and Chief Ministers of the host State (to be chosen by routine every year) is the Vice-Chairman. Two more Ministers from each State are nominated as Members by the Governor.