Question

Consider the following statements:
1. The Zonal Councils are constitutional bodies.
2. Five Zonal Councils have been established till date.
3. The Home Minister of Central government is the chairman of Zonal Councils.
Which of the above statement(s) is/are correct?

• A. Only 1 and 2
• B. Only 2 and 3
• C. Only 1 and 3
• D. All of the above

Answer 1

The correct option is B Only 2 and 3

Zonal Councils are statutory bodies. There are five zonal councils and the North Eastern States i.e. (i) Assam (ii) Arunachal Pradesh (iii) Manipur (iv) Tripura (v) Mizoram (vi) Meghalaya and (vii) Nagaland are not included in the Zonal Councils and their special problems are looked after by the North Eastern Council, set up under the North Eastern Council Act, 1972. The State of Sikkim has also been included in the North Eastern Council vide North Eastern Council (Amendment) Act, 2002. The Union Home Minister is the Chairman of each of these Councils. The Chief Ministers of the States included in each zone act as Vice-Chairman of the Zonal Council for that zone by rotation, each holding office for a period of one year at a time.