The chief ministers of Goa, Gujarat, Maharashtra are expected to attend the meet along with the administrators of Daman & Diu and Dadra Nagar Haveli and representatives of Central ministries. Issues related to regional developmentof infrastructure to boost the urban housing sector, issuance of fishermen biometric identity card and card readers to fishermen are likely to be discussed.
Other items on the agenda include stamp duty on imports, applicability of entry tax on imports and problems pertaining to parking and congestion at ports.
The States have been divided into five zones and each zone has its council comprising the chief minister, two ministers and the chief secretary of each state. The zonal councils are headed by the Union Home Minister and each zone nominates one chief minister as its vice-chairman on a rotation basis.
The zonal councils provide a forum where irritants between the Centre and States and amongst the States themselves can be resolved through free and frank discussion and consultations.
Being advisory bodies, there is scope for free and frank exchange of views at these meetings.
Though there are a large number of other fora like the National Development Council, Inter-State Council, Governor’s and Chief Minister’s Conferences and other periodic high-level conferences, the zonal councils are different, both in content and character. They are regional fora of cooperative endeavour for states linked with each other economically, politically and culturally.
Among the main objectives behind the setting up of zonal councils was promoting national integration, arresting the growth of acute state consciousness, regionalism, linguism and particularistic tendencies and establishing a climate of cooperation between the States for successful and speedy execution of development projects.
