Cooperation over Conflict: Zonal Council Moves to Settle Long-Pending Issues

Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah on Thursday chaired the 27th meeting of the Eastern Zonal Council in Ranchi. The meeting was attended by Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, and West Bengal Minister of State for Finance Chandrima Bhattacharya. Chief Secretaries of the four member states—Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, and West Bengal—along with senior officials from the Centre, also participated.

Organised by the Inter-State Council Secretariat of the Ministry of Home Affairs in coordination with the Jharkhand government, the meeting focused on long-pending inter-state issues, including water resource sharing, asset division of PSUs post Bihar’s bifurcation, and implementation of new criminal laws.

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A resolution was passed acknowledging the role of security forces in ‘Operation Sindoor’. Shah reiterated the Centre’s commitment to making India Naxalism-free by March 2026, citing joint efforts of state authorities and security forces in reducing Left-Wing Extremism in the region.

Specific agenda items included disputes over the Massanjore Dam, Taiyabpur Barrage, and Indrapuri Reservoir, as well as unresolved matters concerning the division of assets and liabilities between Bihar and Jharkhand. Consensus was reached on taking forward actionable steps toward resolution.

Shah noted that under the Modi government, zonal councils have transformed from advisory forums into active instruments of cooperative federalism. He said that since 2014, a total of 83 per cent of the 1,580 issues taken up have been resolved, with the number of meetings rising from 25 (2004–2014) to 63 (2014–2025).

Discussions also covered implementation of the three new criminal justice laws, fast-track courts for gender-based crimes, rural banking infrastructure, and district-level narcotics control mechanisms. Shah urged states to revise skill development frameworks to better match local employment needs.

The Council further reviewed key development areas such as nutrition, education, healthcare, emergency response systems, and cooperative governance.

Established under the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, the Eastern Zonal Council is one of five statutory regional bodies. The Union Home Minister serves as its chairperson, with member state representatives rotating as vice-chairperson. A standing committee of Chief Secretaries handles preliminary issue reviews ahead of council deliberations.