Union Home Minister Amit Shah will chair a meeting of the Western Zonal Council on Monday in Gandhinagar. The meeting will address a range of issues including speedy investigation in cases of sexual offense and rape, matters related to infrastructure and environment, and other topics of national interest. The Western Zonal Council is composed of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, and the Union Territories of Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli.

The meeting will be attended by chief ministers, ministers, chief secretaries, principal secretaries, and senior officers of member states and central government. The agenda of the meeting includes discussions on the implementation of Fast Track Special Courts for expeditious disposal of rape and The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act cases.

Other topics of discussion at the meeting will be the facilitation of banks and India Post Payment Bank branches within 5 km in each village, addressing malnutrition among children through Poshan Abhiyan, reducing the dropout rate of school children, and the participation of government hospitals in Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Arogya Yojana.

Furthermore, the meeting will tackle issues of common interest in areas of road connectivity, power, industries, and other matters. The zonal councils aim to provide a forum for resolving disputes and irritants between the Centre and states, as well as among the states falling in the zone.

The meeting is part of the Narendra Modi government’s strategy to promote cooperative and competitive federalism in the country. The zonal council meetings serve as a platform for strengthening the relationship between the Centre and states.