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News: A high-level meeting of the Central Zonal Council took place at Jagdalpur in Chhattisgarh under Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah.
About Zonal Councils
Origin
- Prime Minister Nehru introduced the concept of zonal councils in 1956 during the debate on the States Reorganisation Commission report.
- Legality: They were established under States Reorganisation Act, 1956 as statutory (extra-constitutional) advisory bodies.
- Objectives: It was introduced as a mechanism to promote inter-state cooperation and resolve issues arising from state linguistic reorganizations.
- These councils serve as advisory and cooperative platforms between states and the Centre.
The 5 Zonal Councils & Their Headquarters
- The country is divided into 5 zones to foster balanced regional development:
- Northern Zonal Council: Headquarters in New Delhi (Includes: Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, Delhi, Chandigarh, and Ladakh).
- Central Zonal Council: Headquarters in Allahabad / Prayagraj (Includes: Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh, and Madhya Pradesh).
- Eastern Zonal Council: Headquarters in Kolkata (Includes: Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Odisha).
- Western Zonal Council: Headquarters in Mumbai (Includes: Maharashtra, Gujarat, Goa, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, and Daman & Diu).
- Southern Zonal Council: Headquarters in Chennai (Includes: Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Keralam, and Puducherry).
North-Eastern Council: This is a distinct body created by a separate act i.e. the North Eastern Council Act, 1971. It includes the Northeastern states and its functions are more expansive, relating to regional planning.
Composition of Zonal Councils
- Each Zonal Council consists of:
- Union Home Minister – Chairman of all councils.
- Chief Ministers of the states in a zone – Vice-Chairman (on a rotational basis for one year).
- Two Ministers from each state – Nominated by the respective Governor.
- Two representatives from Union Territories in the zone.
- One Planning Commission nominee for each council.
- Chief Secretaries and senior officials from the states.
- Standing Committees
- Each council has a Standing Committee comprising Chief Secretaries of member states.
- These committees meet periodically to resolve issues and prepare the groundwork for council meetings.
- Representatives from Central Ministries and NITI Aayog attend based on necessity.
Functions and Role of Zonal Councils
- It acts as a platform for resolving Centre-State and inter-state disputes.
- It facilitates regional cooperation in economic and social planning.
- It discusses and resolves issues related to:
- Border disputes.
- Linguistic minorities.
- Inter-state transport
- Other matters under the States Reorganisation Act.
- It fosters cooperative and competitive federalism.
