J&K, Ladakh to attend NZC meet on Sept 20

Excelsior Correspondent
Jammu, Sept 18: The newly proposed two Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh would attend the 29th meeting of Northern Zonal Council (NZC) to be held at Chandigarh on Friday.
The NZC meeting will be chaired by the Home Minister and the Chief Ministers of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Rajasthan, Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh and Government of NCT of Delhi. The Chief Minister of Haryana is the Vice Chairman and host for the meeting.
Apart from the CMs of Member state 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 or many States falling in the Zone and 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 also 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 and transport.
Five Zonal Councils were set up in the year 1957 under Section 15-22 of the States Reorganization Act, 1956 and the Union Home Minister is the Chairman of each of these five Zonal Councils and Chief Ministers of the host State which is chosen by routine every year, is the Vice-Chairman. Two more Ministers from each State are nominated as Members by the Governor.